Across the lines
Who would dare to go
Under the bridge
Over the tracks
That separates whites from blacks
Choose sides
Or run for your life
Tonight the riots begin
On the back streets of America
They kill the dream of America
Little black girl gets assaulted
Ain't no reason why
Newspaper prints the story
And racist tempers fly
Next day it starts a riot
Knives and guns are drawn
Two black boys get killed
One white boy goes blind
Little black girl gets assaulted
Don't no one know her name
Lots of people hurt and angry
She's the one to blame
Who would dare to go
Under the bridge
Over the tracks
That separates whites from blacks
Choose sides
Or run for your life
Tonight the riots begin
On the back streets of America
They kill the dream of America
Little black girl gets assaulted
Ain't no reason why
Newspaper prints the story
And racist tempers fly
Next day it starts a riot
Knives and guns are drawn
Two black boys get killed
One white boy goes blind
Little black girl gets assaulted
Don't no one know her name
Lots of people hurt and angry
She's the one to blame
The audience for the song “Across the Lines” by Tracy Chapman is those people that cause the trouble in the community. More specially, those Blacks and whites who have very closed in minds and who hate the other race for no apparent reason other than the color of their skin.
WATCO racial violence on the American dream
Enthymeme: Racial violence kills the American dream because racial violence causes riots and disunity among the very essence of America, the people.
Tracy Chapman focuses very much on pathos to make people aware of the situation that she herself grew up in. She tells very personal stories of people that suffer from racism and violence that is caused by this type of hate. “Little black girl gets assaulted,” the fact that she is a “little black girl” really touches your heartstrings and feelings of sadness for this, more than likely, innocent young girl. Tracy also mentions a person’s race with every story, “Two black boys get killed, One white boy goes blind.” This keeps the racial violence the emphasis, as it’s not just a person, rather a black person or white person.
Tracy also makes an appeal to ethos as she herself did actually grow up in the “back streets of America” so she certainly knows what she is talking about and it bring whole new meaning to the lyrics and suggests that these are real people that are really suffering.
When looking at STAR, her reasoning is very accurate and typical of racism but when looking whether it is sufficient is another thing all together. Is racism the only cause to killing that American dream, probably not, there are so many other factors. Maybe it kills the American dream for those people who suffer from it but for America as a whole, less than likely.
It is a very effective song for conveying the message that it is meant to convey as Tracy Chapman throughout speaks from experience and relates real life situations to proving her point that racism kills the American dream.
WATCO racial violence on the American dream
Enthymeme: Racial violence kills the American dream because racial violence causes riots and disunity among the very essence of America, the people.
Tracy Chapman focuses very much on pathos to make people aware of the situation that she herself grew up in. She tells very personal stories of people that suffer from racism and violence that is caused by this type of hate. “Little black girl gets assaulted,” the fact that she is a “little black girl” really touches your heartstrings and feelings of sadness for this, more than likely, innocent young girl. Tracy also mentions a person’s race with every story, “Two black boys get killed, One white boy goes blind.” This keeps the racial violence the emphasis, as it’s not just a person, rather a black person or white person.
Tracy also makes an appeal to ethos as she herself did actually grow up in the “back streets of America” so she certainly knows what she is talking about and it bring whole new meaning to the lyrics and suggests that these are real people that are really suffering.
When looking at STAR, her reasoning is very accurate and typical of racism but when looking whether it is sufficient is another thing all together. Is racism the only cause to killing that American dream, probably not, there are so many other factors. Maybe it kills the American dream for those people who suffer from it but for America as a whole, less than likely.
It is a very effective song for conveying the message that it is meant to convey as Tracy Chapman throughout speaks from experience and relates real life situations to proving her point that racism kills the American dream.
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