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"What is your solution?" Affleck asked of Maher and Harris. "Just condemn Islam? We've killed more Muslims than they've killed us by an awful lot." |
You can all decide whose viewpoint you agree with more, but the Affleck comment listed above, got me thinking about The Crucible and our on-going discussion of duality.
Affleck's comment reflects the duality of America's role as a foreign policy interventionist. Put simply, our actions overseas have two sides.
- To some, our nation acts in defense of democratic principles and freedoms.
- To others, our acts of war kill innocent civilians and further destabilize nations.
In The Crucible, duality--moreover the rejection of the concept--fuels the hysteria and violence of the witch trials. Miller was onto something: when Americans are not willing to accept, discuss, and debate human duality, things seem to deteriorate rather quickly.
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| Ah, progress. |
- As a class, we will read aloud and discuss Act IV of the play. I'm hoping to finish by Friday.
- Independently, you will be responsible for reading the Nathaniel Hawthorne short story, "The Minister's Black Veil." The short story must be read and the accompanying questions must be completed by Friday, October 10th.
- Copies of both the story and the questions will be distributed tomorrow (10/7)
Momentarily, let us leave behind our discussion of the Puritans and the Massachusetts Bay Colony and discuss another region of the United States: the American South.
I am a longtime fan of Athens, Georgia's own Drive-By Truckers, an independent, smart, and raucous rock and roll band fronted by the one and only Patterson Hood.
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| Patterson is the second guy from the left. |
Recently, Patterson wrote an essay about this complex relationship for the website, The Bitter Southener, entitled, "The New(er) South."
Patterson even coined a term for this relationship: "the duality of the Southern thing."
In a song written from the perspective of the devil, Patterson fully explores this "duality" by examining the lives of three great Alabama Icons: Ronnie Van Zandt, Bear Bryant, and George Wallace.
"The Three Great Alabama Icons"
Puritans, Batman, and rock and roll in one post? Yes! We did it! Ah, America.
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| Batman is pensive. |
Your Task:
- Explain what you think Patterson means by "the duality of the Southern thing."
- Reference both the song and the essay in your response.
- If you're really stuck, explain why you feel that Patterson believes George Wallace is deserving of hellfire.
- Discuss your own views regarding America and duality.
- Explain why duality plays such an extensive role in defining the idea of America.
Your response must be posted to the blog before class on Thursday (10/9).
In a song written from the perspective of the devil, by "Patterson," the devil is talked about frequently, especially towards the end, when Patterson talks about Wallace. In the south, there is a strong duality, and in "The Crucible," duality fuels the lies and stupidity of the Salem witch trials. The Southern Duality is that the people appear to be racist, but they believe they are doing the right thing. This is related to when Miller said Americans are not willing to accept, discuss, and debate human duality, things seem to deteriorate rather quickly.
ReplyDeleteI think the biggest dualities in the world can be found right here in America, like how Americans appear to be killing innocent civilians, when bombing areas of ISIS threat, Americans believe that they are protecting and upholding American democratic values. This is how duality plays such an extensive role in defining the idea of America.
warning: I’m not sure if I’m 100% right
ReplyDeleteWhen Patterson talks about the duality of the Southern thing, he’s talking about how Southerners were known for being so inviting and creative but were also known for being racist. Southerners hospitality isn’t all that reliable if they aren’t so inviting to the blacks, and were cruel people to them. Being racist and not seeing everyone as equals, but being so polite and brilliant with the arts just doesn’t add up. This does show the duality of Southerners, they have this mask of showing how talented and welcoming, but once that was pulled off all you could see was how racist they were. “...I discussed the dualities of being from a region that is known for great music and literature and art and something called “Southern hospitality,” but is also known for Jim Crow laws, slavery, racism and the Ku Klux Klan.” Each character in the song represent both the good and bad of the South. Most of the song is referencing George Wallace who after being a big advocate on racism, changes his mind after losing the last election. “...he's in hell now, not because he's a racist...Because of his blind ambition and his hunger for votes, he turned a blind eye to the suffering of black America…”
Everyone is complex and has duality, so does America. We kill innocent people all the time similar to how Osama Bin Laden and his group of people killed thousands of innocent people. What’s the difference? I honestly don’t know much about America’s military forces, but I do know people are so hooked it. America knows how to manipulate people, using one word, terrorist. People hear that word and everyone goes crazy but, we are considered a terrorist in other countries. There’s really not a difference, the duality between what we do and what happens to us are very similar. America just knows exactly what to say to make us seem like the victim.
Terrorist is definitely a loaded term.
DeleteIt’s not surprising to see that George Wallace had changed his outside appearance from his true self for the sake of votes. Patterson believes that Wallace deserved to be in hell because of the fact that he wasn't really who he truly ‘showed’ himself to be as. He’s power hungry and his ambition for votes was what was driving him to do whatever to win over the population.
ReplyDeleteDuality has only shaped America into what it is now. Once people realize the wrongs in their doings, it is often fixed or modified to make living a much more safe and comfortable place. The fact that we’re slowly correcting our mistakes in our dualities is why it plays an important role to us. Slavery which was looked at the bad side of America was demolished because we notice our duality and how hypocritical we've been by saying “all men are born equal” which led us to creating a better vision of what we are today.
Patterson believes that George Wallace deserves hellfire because he was an extremely racist man. By being so racist, Patterson argues, made a bad reputation with racism and the south. He also strongly believed that Wallace did all of this for votes and power. Patterson stated, "Wallace turned a blind eye to the suffering of black America." He only cared about the white people of America, then when there wasn't as much segregation between whites and blacks he came out as a non racist.
ReplyDeleteThere are many ways that duality ties in with the idea of America. In normal ways of coarse like every other kind of people of the world, Americans show duality. This duality is like when someone plays football but instead of genuinely wanting to play, they just play so they could look cool to their friends. This and similar situations are how normal people show duality. But on the other hand our country's government is also set up so the elected officials have to display duality. Just like George Wallace many elected officials show duality in order to get elected. And there are also situations where congress wants to make decisions but doesn't want to look like they are doing something bad for the people. So in many ways ideas of America display duality.
Based upon my belief, the reason Patterson believes that George Wallace deserves to burn in hell was because of pure blind ambition by just getting voted by the people. Most people without the realization of duality would just title Wallace as a racist. It's very common for have politicians to have the duality of which one side has a lust for power. Some may even change themselves on the outside just to look like they want to hear what the people want.
ReplyDeleteAmerica, as well as other nations, all show duality. The government and its society believe that we do things for the greater good, but sometimes even those deeds can impact the rest of the world in a negative way. Wars can be a great example, we say that we are defending our country, when in reality we are going out to take a countries resources, and cause turmoil for the citizens of those countries only because they decided to attack the U.S.
In the song “The Three Great Alabama Icons” the Drive-By truckers refer to “The duality of the southern thing.” This statement means that there are two sides to the south. There is the stereotypical side that the Northerns see the southerns but there's also another side to it. There are also two sides to George Wallace. This man does whatever he has to to be elected for office. When he first ran for office he ran against racism but this view quickly changed when his views were shot down. He then ran in 1962 as a segregationist and won big. He loved being seen on TV so he accused Martin Luther King Jr and John F Kennedy of being communist. Later in life he changed his view back to anti racism. This song shows people have two different sides to them such as Wallaces case.
ReplyDeleteIn the Essay “The New(er) South” Patterson says “I've found that people really aren't all that different, wherever they are from. Certainly some towns are cooler or more fun or more beautiful than others.” He is saying that all people have duality. People are very similar but they are very different at the same time. Duality is such a big part in America because everyone wears a mask when they are around people they aren’t comfortable with. People don’t want to show their true selves because one wants to hide their flaws. Everyone hides their flaws until their veil gets removed and they can’t hide their imperfections any longer.
Is it necessarily a bad thing that we hide our flaws? It is interesting. I know personally that I do not like to show weakness.
DeleteWhen Patterson talks about “the duality of the Southern thing”, he is basically saying how the South is recognized for great things, such as its artistic culture, but at the same time it is equally recognized for its bad, as in racial segregation, slavery, etc. Hood states, “...the dualities of being from a region that is known for great music and literature and art and something called ‘Southern hospitality,’ but is also known for Jim Crow laws, slavery, racism and the Ku Klux Klan.” In his band’s song, “The Three Great Alabama Icons”, Patterson Hood mentions George Wallace, who was the Governor of Alabama. George Wallace, according to Hood, possessed “the duality of the Southern thing” because while he preached as a segregationist and a racist, on the inside he actually believed in equality for all and because he also fueled the fight against civil rights. The reason for why Hood believes that George Wallace is deserving of hellfire is because of the fact that George Wallace pretended to be someone that he wasn’t to get power. As said in the song, the first year Wallace ran for governor, he lost because he spoke out against racism and segregation, yet the next year he supported it and won. And even though Wallace backtracked on his whole segregationist persona, it didn’t change the fact that he added more to the already heated argument of racial segregation.
ReplyDeleteDuality plays such a big role in defining the idea of America because as a country we aim to be that “city on a hill”. The whole idea of our very country revolves around the idea of “freedom.” But, freedom isn’t free. And that can express how duality defines this country. Even when we try to help other nations, we also might cause destruction. We can be seen either as a country that tries to give others the freedoms we have, or we can be seen as a country that causes havoc in already destabilized nations. However, because the dualities of good and bad need to be balanced, whenever good is being done, something bad can also result. In trying to achieve freedom to certain nations, innocent lives will be lost. And because of those reasons, some will see all the good that our country is doing, but others will see all the bad that we’ve done.
One thing that Patterson means by “duality of the Southern thing” is that there are multiple perspectives as to what the South is like. For example, the phrase “Southern hospitality” is well known; one may think about a kind blissfully ignorant Christian Republican woman with big hair holding a nice cold can of cola that welcomes a stranger to eat dinner with her family provided he brings his manners and that the husband is only a few feet away with his shotgun just in case. But the term “Jim Crow Law”, also originating from the South, is also well known; one may think about a black man clapping up a white man’s wife and being thrown in jail for it. Inviting a stranger into a home and throwing an innocent one in jail are two different things and thus constitute a duality. Another thing that Patterson means is that a Southerner may not actually feel the way that they are assumed to feel. Patterson writes in his essays, “Wallace died while I was writing “SRO,” and I wrote a song about him that was set in hell, where the Devil is welcoming him and telling him why he's there. Wallace's grandson, George Wallace III, is a huge DBT fan and thanked me for writing a fair assessment of his grandfather.” This certainly goes against what some believe about a Southerner loving to fight and acting plain stupid. A non-Southerner would draw the conclusion that a Southerner would be outraged by speaking against the Southerner’s grandfather, but the Southerner doesn’t become outraged. “Such is the duality of the Southern Thing.” Of course Patterson didn’t just mean that Southerners are wrongly portrayed as evil. In his song, Patterson speaks about George Wallace: “Wallace spent the rest of his life trying to explain away his racist past, and in 1982 he won his last term in office with over ninety percent of the black vote, such is the duality of the Southern Thing.” Patterson stated that Wallace is in Hell because he was racist on the outside and progressive on the inside because he simply wanted votes and power. The duality is shown here and by the fact that Wallace, known as the racist representing the South, denounced racism later in life.
ReplyDeleteThe duality of America today is slightly different than that spoken of by Patterson when addressing the South alone; today’s duality is caused by hypocrisy in the favor of the power-hungry. Laws of American contain duality. For example, the right to freedom of speech is said to be given to all Americans, which is true. But that freedom of speech is given along with a long list of reasons why, and scenarios when, that freedom is suspended. Say whatever you want as long as it’s not a lie, unless you are a lawyer or politician. If it “appeals to the prurient interest”, freedom of speech is also suspended, unless you are a health teacher. If it is “offensive”, freedom of speech is suspended, unless you are a comedian, politician, or minister. If the written work “taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value”, freedom of speech is suspended, unless you are Michael Bay. If the speech includes “fighting words and offensive speech”, freedom of speech is suspended, unless you are a cop. Finally, if the speech includes what is considered a “threat”, freedom of speech is suspended, unless you are Obama or George W. Bush, although Bush should rightfully be an exception because I doubt he understands anything he says anyway. The fact that the laws have exceptions and contingencies, affects everyone differently, and are thought of differently by many different people, proves to be a duality of America. This duality plays an extensive role in defining the idea of America because America is nothing but a bunch of laws and false-freedom. The duality, and irony, lies in the fact that America is called “the land of the free”, when American freedom is a lie, and “the home of the brave” when we like blowing things up in other countries from a distance.
If we stop watching his "movies," maybe we can stop Michael Bay.
DeleteThat being said, I do enjoy Con Air and The Rock.
When Patterson talks about the “Southern Thing” he is talking about the different perspectives of the south, past and present. For instance, the past in the south there was slavery, Jim Crow laws, racism, and the Ku Klux Klan. But now the South has a lot of culture and interesting things to its name like, art, music, and food. That is the South’s duality, in their name some people think of the past and all the horrible things that happened. Others will think of the present South and the pleasant things they bring to this country, especially their Southern hospitality. However, as Patterson does mention in his song, George Wallace has an obvious duality to his name, hypocrisy. Wallace would have said anything just to get the majority of the votes, which he did when he said we should end segregation, however it did work out for the better.
ReplyDeleteEveryone in America has some kind of duality, one way or another. Especially, when the Colonists came to the United States for freedom. Most of them didn’t even care about freedom, they wanted power. That was their duality, on the surface they proclaimed, “The right for freedom!” but in the inside they basically said, “I only care about myself and the power I deserve.” The foundation of our country is based on duality, from then on duality was just natural. It shaped our country into what is today, either good or bad. For example, going back to George Wallace his duality was really for power, but it ended up in the favor of the Country because now there is no more segregation. Therefore, duality is never a bad thing, what really matters is the final outcome.
warning: I’m not sure if I’m 100% right
ReplyDeleteWhen Patterson talks about the duality of the Southern thing, he’s talking about how Southerners were known for being so inviting and creative but were also known for being racist. Southerners hospitality isn’t all that reliable if they aren’t so inviting to the blacks, and were cruel people to them. Being racist and not seeing everyone as equals, but being so polite and brilliant with the arts just doesn’t add up. This does show the duality of Southerners, they have this mask of showing how talented and welcoming, but once that was pulled off all you could see was how racist they were. “...I discussed the dualities of being from a region that is known for great music and literature and art and something called “Southern hospitality,” but is also known for Jim Crow laws, slavery, racism and the Ku Klux Klan.” Each character in the song represent both the good and bad of the South. Most of the song is referencing George Wallace who after being a big advocate on racism, changes his mind after losing the last election. “...he's in hell now, not because he's a racist...Because of his blind ambition and his hunger for votes, he turned a blind eye to the suffering of black America…”
Everyone is complex and has duality, so does America. We kill innocent people all the time similar to how Osama Bin Laden and his group of people killed thousands of innocent people. What’s the difference? I honestly don’t know much about America’s military forces, but I do know people are so hooked it. America knows how to manipulate people, using one word, terrorist. People hear that word and everyone goes crazy but, we are considered a terrorist in other countries. There’s really not a difference, the duality between what we do and what happens to us are very similar. America just knows exactly what to say to make us seem like the victim.
Patterson says that George Wallace is deserving of hellfire not because he is a racist but because he is selfish. Wallace didn't care about anything but his popularity and he was willing to put his own self morals in jeopardy. He was a politician who wanted to get an upper hand anyway he could. He decided to do that but siding with the popular vote, not what was right.
ReplyDeleteAmerica is an example of duality since there are two sides to everything we do. When going to war, we are supposedly protecting our people from the "terrorists" and that may be true to some degree but on the other hand, we are terrorists to the countries we are bombing. Congress is another example because they appear to be doing well and everything is fine and dandy but when things go wrong, the President is the one who takes the blame for their mistakes. America is a prime example of duality.
Patterson believes that George Wallace is bound to hellfire because Wallace manipulated “southern duality”. Wallace began running as an honest man not emphasizing on segregation and lost; (most people would see this as the moral less conservative part of thinking) then a few years later Wallace ran as a more conservative, approval of segregation and won. If I was Patterson, I would say Wallace was deserving of hellfire simply because he wasn’t true to himself nor’ the people he represented. The duality shown by Wallace was negative and untrustworthy mostly for the self interest of him so he could succeed in office.
ReplyDeleteAmerica is basically the definition of duality. One day America is made stronger by battling back in war and defending our people while in the next breath other people are grieving and resenting the deaths of many other hopeless people. It’s just an unsettled situation among the American and non American people. But war and attacks are accepted because only one side (America) feels it is only fair that whoever attacked us should be punished. Resulting in the perfect act of duality right verses wrong (if that exsists) ; eye for an eye basically but did anyone ever tell them that only leaves the whole world blind?
Patterson describes the South as having a common duality. He says that the South is viewed for their literature, art, and great music. Growing up in the South Patterson thought it was a great place to live. He also believes that no matter where you’re from you’re still a person. You can be the same as someone who grew up in Hollywood. He also explains that there are places that are always going to be more beautiful than another place but where he grew up was wonderful. The South has a duality between preferences. Some people recognize the South for racism, the Ku Klux Klan, and slavery. George Wallace was a big contender for the reasons why the South has effected many different people. Patterson believes there is a common duality in the perspectives of the South. He feels very strongly that George Wallace is now in hell. George Wallace always let the majority make his decisions for him. He always went with the most popular decision which could lead him to contradict his own self. He was against slavery, than for it. Many Southerners disagreed with how he did things because that would lead people to look at the South in different ways. That is why Patterson feels such a passion against him because he saw the South as something wonderful and now because of George Wallace it is hard for some people to see it the same way.
ReplyDeleteHow I understand duality is a concept over good and evil. Patterson explains the duality of the south being that it is now evolving and doing so many great things but back then he wasnt so proud of because the south wasnt a great place at one point. "... I discussed the dualities of being from a region that is known for great music and literature and art and something called "southern hospitality," but is also known for Jim Crow laws, slavery, racism and the Ku Klux Klan." Patterson knows that the south wasn't always so pretty. However he doesnt want people thinking and putting a label that it is still like that, because its not. He wants people to see it how it is now. Patrerson says, "The paardigm is shifting in the south." A great place that is thriving in so many things such as music, art, and literature.
ReplyDeleteThe duality with America is, is that everyone comes to this country expecting it to be flawless but its not. A lot of things are wrong with the way this county functions and goes about things. America is supposed to be this place where your free and there is no dictatorship and you can do as you please. Really we have no say in a lot of things and or freedom only.extends but so much. In Pattersons essay he says," By our very nature, we will always be a culture with more than its sare of dualities..." Although he was refering to the south this applies to America to. America isnt this picture perfect place because even though we might be somewhat safe our freedom is the price to pay.
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ReplyDelete“The duality of the Southern thing” is clearly defined through Patterson’s “love/hate/love” relationship for his home region. Patterson Hood finds himself being simultaneously proud of “living in a region that is known for great music, literature, art and something called ‘Southern hospitality,'” but is also ashamed of the South being known for its “ Jim Crow laws, slavery, racism and the Ku Klux Klan.” The negative aspects of southern culture, has come to influence the social and political divisions “between rural and urban areas, and the liberal democrats and conservative republicans”. Patterson strongly suggested that we remove all negative aspects of the south’s past, because they prevent a more progressive vision of the new southern culture from emerging. In other words, they are preventing the “good” side of southern duality from being noticed. Moreover, The three Alabama icons discussed in Hood’s song – segregationist Governor George Wallace, University of Alabama football coach Bear Bryant, and Lynyrd Skynyrd band leader Ronnie Van Zant – all embody this duality. In the song, Hood emphasizes Wallace’s shameless embrace of segregation as a vote-getting strategy. As it said in the song, the first year Wallace ran for governor, he lost because he spoke out against racism and segregation, yet the next year he supported it and won. And although Wallace tried to backtrack and return to his old self, it didn’t change the fact that he added more to the already heated dispute of segregation. It is evident, that Patterson Hood had more respect for actual racist rather than people who pretended to be, which is why he believed Wallace deserved to reside in eternal hell.
ReplyDeleteWhat Patterson Hood calls the “duality of the Southern thing” is, in many ways, the duality of the American thing. Both the Southern and the American pasts are mixtures of good and bad, pride and prejudice, honor and shame that continue to influence modern culture in both a positive and negative way. Slavery, racism, politics, segregation, etc. — also existed or still exist outside of the South. These are American problems too, and although they may have been more historically concentrated in the South, we should be wary of always using the South as a symbolic dumping ground for our own problems . Maybe if we stopped singling out the South, we would recognize and solve them for ourselves.
So, in a way, as a country, we still have not fully recovered from the hurt of the Civil War.
DeleteWhen Patterson coins "the duality of the southern thing" he's defining "thing" as a broad spectrum. The "southern thing" is all the customs and traits that the south is known for. Patterson is addressing the duality of the south and how it's two sides to the same coin. He acknowledges all the good, but he also acknowledges all the bad. In his essay "The New(er) South" Patterson states, "...I discussed the dualities of being from a region that is known for great music and literature and art and something called “Southern hospitality,” but is also known for Jim Crow laws, slavery, racism and the Ku Klux Klan." He's trying to explain that the south is known for it's great culture and "iced tea hospitality" but the south was also a place of dark ideals. The south is associated with much of the bad in American history, especially slavery. In his essay Patterson even says, "...I remain mortified that the most idiotic people in Washington usually seem to have one of our Southern accents." In the song, "The Three Great Alabama Icons" Patterson places former Alabama governor, George Wallace in hell. As it is explained in the song, George Wallace put on a fake mask to gain power and votes. He was against segregation, but still ran as a segregationist and then "won big." He played the role of racist for many years until times finally started changing and he could finally come out. Patterson places George Wallace in "hellfire" not because he was or was not racist. Patterson places George Wallace in "hellfire" because he gave the south a bad name. Because Wallace was so associated with Alabama, when anyone thought of Alabama they thought, "racist." George Wallace fueled the fire of the south's dark side of duality.
ReplyDeleteAmerica is a country based on duality, and America is not afraid to acknowledge its duality. We like to think of ourselves as the "city upon a hill"; the inspiration for all other nations. We believe in our freedom so tremendously that we like to force the idea upon others. Americans shake their heads in sympathy when they hear about places that don't have freedom like theirs. America puts itself into wars because we want that country to have the same freedom as we do. And because America sticks it's nose into every war, it causes destruction. This is the duality: America wants to help other countries achieve freedom and democracy, but in doing so, many innocent civilians are killed; foreign and American. This duality really shows to prove that freedom is not free.
The south has 2 different ways you can look at them by. “The duality of the southern thing” is referred to the great things that happen in the south like the art, literature, and music which makes the South an interesting, respectable and loving place. There’s also horrific things that south is infamous for. Things like slavery, Jim Crow Laws, Ku Klux Clan, and racism. The northerners viewed the south different than they view themselves but there’s always going to be 2 sides of duality. In the Drive by Truckers song, “The Three Great Alabama Icons” they talk about George Wallace’s campaign for governor and how he changed his views depicting the situation he was in. Wallace would fluctuate between being “racist” to not be to get votes. He was known for being the racist voice of the southern segregation but was technically not racist. This shows duality because he was only doing this because that’s what the south favored, it wasn't his entitled thoughts.
ReplyDeleteThere’s always going to be duality in everything America does because it’s all based on the opinion of what people think is the correct way to do things. Ben Affleck and Bill Maher had an argument about the terrorist group Issis and how we are reacting to it. Some people think that we shouldn't get involved and others think we should be more aggressive and fight. People are always going to side against each other for what they think is for the better. In the article, they talk about certain things being easy to fall in love with and others not so much. There are so many differences and similarities that we don’t even see in situations, places, and people and we from our own opinions that not everyone agrees with.
Southern views during the 70’s were extreme and hardcore. Those who did not believe in what was popular in the South were casted out, isolated from the rest of the “normal people.” Patterson was one of those, throw-outs, of society. He hated football, so instead picked up a guitar and went on the road with his band. Throughout the voyage of his musical career, he realized how mixed up and perplexing Southern views were compared to the rest of America. The so called, “Three Great Alabama Icons,” expressed the, “Duality of the Southern thing.” Southern perceptions had two, if not multiple sides and a plethora of interpretations. For example, George Wallace, the Governor of Alabama strove for nothing but success, even if it meant forsaking moral values. Patterson describes Wallace at first as a man with, “A very progressive and humanitarian track record.” After Wallace loses the seat of Governor for siding with Anti-Racism, he runs for office again but this time as a, “Stomp Segregationist.”
ReplyDeleteAmerica, as blissful as it may seem to ignorant eyes, is nothing but a cesspool of conflicting ideas and malleable laws. When pondering about the Ebola epidemic, two things come to mind: “What can happen to me?” and “What is happening to the afflicted?” But that is where duality occurs. The government, gives everyone freedom and equality, but when someone screams, “EBOLA!!!” then suddenly freedom gets taken away, and people are given a one-way trip to a quarantined hospital room. Hazmat suits and lots and lots of soap.
Freedom is not synonymous with safety.
DeletePick anything in this world and it has layers. The southern part of the United States for example has many levels of duality. Patterson Hood of the band Drive-By Truckers was born and raised in Alabama. He loves the South for its music, literature, art, and special 'Southern hospitality', but is also ashamed for the racism and slavery evident throughout the South's history. A song called 'The Three Great Alabama Icons' by his band speaks further on the subject of duality, especially about politician George Wallace. At the beginning of his career, he was a humanitarian lawyer. When he ran for office, he didn't pull in enough votes. The second time around, he made sure the people saw him a racist man all for segregation. He won over the voters. After some time, people were beginning to change perspective and saw racism for the bad it was. At this point, Wallace tried to backtrack, and push his past away from his reputation. On the surface, he was the voice of the people. However, he is saying what they want to hear in exchange for power. "Such is the duality of the Southern Thing."
ReplyDeleteOn a larger scale, the United States has duality as well. The country is supposed to be the symbol of freedom all around the world. The government tries to spread this idea and help fix problems in other countries. On the downside, this often involves battles which damage the places where common people live in said countries, and hurt or kill these people. Soldiers from the U.S. are killed as well. Is there freedom for these people that didn't ask for the United States to 'fix the situation'? There is duality within the United States as an ambassador for freedom.
What Patterson means by “duality of the Southern thing” is that there are many different views on the South. Although known today for their literature, great music, and “southern hospitality”, the South can’t help but be remembered as the place with Jim Crow laws, the Ku Klux Klan, racism, and slavery. Of course, within that duality comes another duality. In his song, “The Three Great Alabama Icons”, Patterson spends the majority of it talking about Governor George Wallace. At the time, Wallace was an anti-segregationist. He ran for the position of governor and lost. A couple years later, he runs again, but this time as a segregationist, and wins. Even though he believed in equality, he spoke only of racism and other stuff segregationists would say. Some say it was all about the power, but who knows.
ReplyDeleteAmerica is all about duality, especially in government. They say it’s for the great good of our country, but they could actually be doing more bad than good. Take any war involving the U.S. for example. We are meant to go to war to bring about peace and fight for freedom, but we kill…a lot. We ruin their lives and cause chaos. It’s just this one giant mess of duality.
From his song and essay, Patterson think that George Wallace deserved to be in hellfire. The reason is because of George doing some racist things because it is what "his people want". Like Standing in front of the school`s doorways. Also accusing Martin Luther King Jr. and President Kennedy for being a Communist. All of his doing is because he thinks that "what the people will want and do". It was totally not what the people will do. Thanks to Wallace, this gave southerners what defined them. After a couple years later, He soon later tried to redeem himself and get people to forgot about it. This made it worst.
ReplyDeleteDuality plays a big role in "America`s Play". Everyone remembers the saying about the "American Dream". Like how in USA, everyone is free to do anything they can imagine. Some people believe it and others not so much. People will give their opinions to certain topics because that is what they believe in. Either by past experience or based on what they heard. Not everyone can agree with their belief.
“The duality of the Southern thing” is how people perceive the South. On one side, the South is seen as this cool place filled with “great music and literature and art and something called the ‘Southern hospitality’.” On the other side, the South is associated with “Jim Crow laws, slavery, racism and the Ku Klux Klan.” George Wallace is the epitome of this duality of the Southern thing. When he first started out in politics, he established himself as a very progressive man. He was pro-rights and very against segregation. However, his views lost him the race for the position as governor. He knew that the only way to get the power that he wanted was to play for the other side, so Wallace ran again as a huge racist. Of course this time he won all the votes. During the course of his term, Wallace did everything in his power to prevent integration, and although he eventually got old and tried to apologize for his racist actions, he contributed to the stigma against the South. George Wallace is deserving of hellfire because many people suffered in his hands all because he wanted to have power. He knew that what he was doing was wrong, but he didn’t care enough to stop.
ReplyDeleteAmerica is based on the duality of right and wrong. Citizens believe that America is the best country ever. We pride ourselves on our freedom and being this one large melting pot of culture. Because we, this insanely awesome country, have democracy, we must share it with every other country. And although we are relentlessly killing millions of people every day, our actions are excusable because we are doing it for the greater good. If you ask any other person from another country, their response is most likely going to be completely different.
By saying, "The duality of the South thing," Patterson explains how people in the South had two different sides. People believed in only what was “popular.” They could be for something then against in it just a second. Back in the South there were a lot of horrible events going on. Like slavery. The song “The Three Great Alabama icons is a song that talks about George Wallace and his campaign for office. George Wallace at first was for slavery. He wasn’t even really for it but everyone else was so he was. It was kind of like how certain people follow the crowd and just do what the other people do. Wallace said he was for slavery because it was the popular choice at that time. Late he changed his campaign because anti slavery and antisegregation became popular over being for slavery.
ReplyDeletePatterson believes that George Wallace deserves hellfire because what he did was really horrible. He didn’t go for what he believed and by doing that he made slavery grow even more. All he wanted to do was win. He didn’t care for anyone but himself. I completely agree with Patterson because Wallace really didn’t care about anyone. He showed true duality. By acting in two sides. Duality plays such an extensive role in America because people are the real examples of duality. Every person has two sides. The government is an example of duality in America. The government will show the good side of them and do great things but will hide and do bad things to make themselves look good which is what George Wallace kind of did. Duality plays a huge role in America.
The essay entitled The New(er) South by Patterson Hood expresses the ideas people around the world view but never write down. He shows the duality against the southern culture. In its earlier days the south was known for slavery, Jim Crowe Laws, segregation, Ku Klux Klan, and racism all around. Years later even as the scenery changed views have not. Hood talks about the drastic progression of literature and arts/musical aspects as well as the southern hospitality charm. Yet people look down upon the south with their accents and dumbfounded answers of the most serious issues. Patterson picks out Rep. Paul Broun and explains how the words if one southern talking making in great power can bring a culture down by a possible front he puts. Even movies and TV shows represent the south as a hill billy nature not caring to show the south as lux and rich with proper upbringing. The duality of the South is that what we see and perceive what is the south is far from the truth many hide or give no thought to share.
ReplyDeleteIn all ideas and minds there is a duality. Deep within a thought there is always a contradiction to balance what is right, what is wrong and what you want. Even the idea of America has secret dualities’ stuck between the lines of the so called freedom and power of the people. We think we are free because we are given the rights to see that we are. While all along they are a distraction. If the government really wanted to they could do absolutely anything they wanted because they right laws with loopholes referring to every possible situation they would be put in to disgrace that same law. Secondly the power of people is represented by the right to vote and elect. But in the end we aren’t the ones making the final choices. Just as the president is seemed to be the most powerful person to other nations when all along there are so many others and the president is just a face. Lastly America’s duality lies within the people themselves. They wear a mask to protect and avoid heartbreak and loss. We believe a person is one thing never realizing they could be any other way. We lie to ourselves and even when we catch ourselves we go along with it. Duality in America is seen but should it be spoken the destruction it will cause will be far worse than the white lies we tell ourselves to get through life and its worries.
“The duality of the Southern thing” sounds vague and silly to the ear, though with some thought, it is simple to understand. Patterson Hood “discussed the dualities of being from a region that is known for great music and literature and art and something called “Southern hospitality,” but is also known for Jim Crow laws, slavery, racism and the Ku Klux Klan.” This means that Hood described his hometown as a place where great music was written, played, recorded, etc., but that in the same place, bad, controversial, and historically ruining events took place. Because the sort of cultural “things” in Hood’s hometown are polar opposites, a duality is revealed.
ReplyDeleteGeorge Wallace is a money-loving, power-seeking, no-good “man”, if you could call him so. He proved himself a horrible person by changing his mind about the segregation “situation” in a heartbeat. He did not care about anything except himself getting elected into office. Patterson Hood has all the reason in the world to loathe George Wallace. As for the rest of America, we are just as bad. Now don’t get me wrong, I love America! I am not making any effort to put my own country down. But in reality, America is not as nice as we look. In the tragic attacks of 9/11, the terrorist group called Al Qaeda got in America’s way. As a nation, America needed to keep up its name, and no terrorists would bring it down. Our nation isn’t all “free” and “brave”, but we have a nasty side too. This shows even to this day in the ongoing battles, bombings, and killings of people in Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, and many more countries. “No, we are not bad people! We are protecting our own people and our rights!” Just by thinking this implies an American duality.
When George Patterson says "the duality of the southern thing" I interpreted that as him stating that the south does not just have one side of it. In the essay George Patterson says " I discussed the dualities of being from a region that is known for great music and literature and art", right there he mentions what good things the south is known for. When he talks about the duality of the south he's also talking about how the south is known for great things but that's not all its known for. It's is also known for horrible things as well many often forget, but Patterson acknowledged them. He says "but is also known for Jim Crow laws, slavery, racism and the Ku Klux Klan". So, the duality of the southern thing is how the south can be looked at in two different ways either good or bad. In the song Patterson wrote "The Three Great Alabama Icons" he also speaks about a man named George Wallace and how he is now burning in Hell. He goes into details on how he's not in hell for being a racist as many would have guessed because he is "no worse than most white men of his generation" according to Patterson. The real reason he believed Wallace is in Hell is due to his lust for power, he stopped at nothing to get what he wanted. He pretended to be racist at one point in his life just to get others to like him, so that is why he is in Hell.
ReplyDeleteDuality is present all over America. In the people and even the country as a whole. As a country we act as if everything is perfect here, but it's really not and that alone is a duality. America claims that everyone is equal, that it is very peaceful here, but there is two sides of every story. We are obviously not the perfect country we make ourselves out to be. We do have people rebelling against their bosses, attempting to make a stand against the government, so we are not better than other countries. So, duality in terms of speaking about America as a whole might just be that you can look at it as better than other countries or you can look at it as not perfect. Their is always two sides.
Mr. Patterson mentions the “…duality of the Southern thing.” Often in both his written work and his song what it means still remains a mystery. However, one perspective that after much review of the both the essay and song one may conclude an idea or glimpse of what is meant by the “…duality of the Southern thing.” Which, depending on one’s own perspective may lie in their hearts as the correct view or the incorrect view; Either way to begin with Mr. Patterson starts off in his essay talking about his inclination to write songs that would soon become the album of the “Southern Rock Opera” album. This leads him to talk about the three great Alabama icons (though one those not originate from Alabama), who they were and the phrase, “Southern Hospitality.” Shortly after however, he also mentions the “Jim Crow Laws” and the “Ku Klux Klan” going from something positive such as “Southern Hospitality” to something negative the “Jim Crow Laws” both originated from the south however. Each has its own right of why it belonged there at the time it was thought of or created. For instance in the positive section, “Southern Hospitality” brings the warm picture of strangers coming into the home or people generally being nice to each other even if they had just met for the first time and would never meet again in years or ever. On the other hand is the negative aspect where stereotypes of racist bigots and idiots derive from such as the “Ku Klux Klan”. Both the positives and negatives mentioned come from the same source and are both good and evil much like the definition of duality-Good and evil stemming from the same source. Focusing on the politician George Wallace one sees the stemming duality of himself both during the election and later on. Since, he lusted for power and votes he changed his ways to being a racist man to earn them. Later on he claims otherwise however, on the surface he was doing the good at the time he ran but beneath the skimmed surface was the lust for power. Overall, with everything taken in it’s possible that the “Southern thing” is actually just the Southern duality of history, traditions and life in the Southern U.S.A.
ReplyDeleteAmerica as of today is the precedent suffer-er of City on a Hill syndrome. As we face a duality needed to be the best and shining example when in fact, we tend to fail and do what is opposite of what is needed. The thought of terrorism is enough for people to rally behind others to go to war to defend people’s rights and freedom, to spread freedom and release people from shackles. Yet, it is not always wanted or right as by pushing one side of the situation and one view old traditions and culture of the area is lost. While freedom can be brought, culture is lost as it’s transformed as to what America looks through its lens as perfect. Now, there are times where even at home in the heart of problems that this duality exists. Should a politician run to votes they’ll say it’s for the people’s views and what the people want when in fact, beneath it’s for the lust of power they have and the constant desire for it. Duality defines the U.S.A for it’s one of the few that contemplates both the good and the evil that comes from each decision. It simply doesn’t look at one view when it comes to an issue whether the decision after works or not. This is a defining feature of America as in congress it’s the reason why so many people are inside it constantly debating different points and views to the same issue. Each political decision made is based upon the duality inside it before it is truly put into play. Therefore, duality plays a big role in defining America.
This loss of culture--globalism--is sad. It's just disheartening to see McDonalds and Starbucks all over the world.
DeleteIn Patterson Hood’s essay, “The New(er) South,” Patterson goes on to explains his love and hate towards the south. He calls this relationship, “the duality of the Southern thing.” In his essay he states, “I discussed the dualities of being from a region that is known for great music and literature and art and something called “Southern hospitality,” but is also known for Jim Crow laws, slavery, racism and the Ku Klux Klan.” Although he loves and is proud of the Southern culture, he is also ashamed of the bad things they are associated with. In his song, “The Three Great Alabama Icons,” he explains the duality of the south by using Ronnie Van Zandt, Bear Bryant, and George Wallace as examples. However, the most mentionable is George Wallace. While running to be the Governor of Alabama, George Wallace tried not to make race an issue and did not support the Klu Klux Klan. But after losing the race to, John Patterson who did support segregation, he realized he had to support segregation in order to win. The duality of George Wallace is that although he did not stand for segregation, his lust for power lead him to do so. The duality that Patterson is trying to explain about the south is that even though they are known great things such as its music, and southern hospitality, it is also known for slavery and racism.
ReplyDeleteDuality plays an extensive role in defining America because America views itself as the “city on top of the hill.” We see ourselves as the best and when we see countries that are not like us, we always find a way to interfere with those countries. A good example of duality in our country is our army. To some people, our army fights for our rights and freedom. However to other, they see acts of war as the pointless killing of innocent civilians and the destruction of other nations. America strives to be this “city on top of the hill,” but we can never be this perfect nation when our country is defined by duality.
The duality of the southern thing is referring to the perceptions of the South. According to Patterson in his essay, the South is known for “great music and literature and art and something called “Southern Hospitality.”” So, growing up Patterson loved where he’s from. However, some people perceive the South as racist because of slavery, the Jim Crowe laws, and the Ku Klux Klan. Both are ways the people see the south. This is the South’s duality. They have a good and bad side that define them too much, which is not right. Patterson also explains this duality in his band’s song, “The Three Great Alabama Icons.” George Wallace was politician who only cared about himself. He pretended to be racist to win the Southerners’ votes. Later, he claimed that he wasn’t racist anymore. In Patterson’s song, he places Wallace in hell because of his lust for power and selfishness.
ReplyDeleteThe USA, like everything else, has duality. Our country tends to show it by our so called “freedom”. From the first time we have ever stepped in history class, we are taught our rights. However, all of them have limitations. And when we cross these limits our rights are taken away.
Patterson Hood defines “Southern Duality” by mentioning three distinct figures, these figures are known as “The Three Great Alabama Icons”, Ronnie Van Zandt, Bear Bryant, and George Wallace. Yet, Hood tends to discuss Wallace more, solely based upon his despicable actions. Hood even goes as far to state that Wallace went to Hell after his passing. Hood’s statement may seem a tad harsh, but Wallace wasn’t the best of men. He tended to tackle what was the most acceptable approach at the time, if racism was favored, he’d advocate it, simply because that’s what the majority deemed to be the norm. Wallace never utilized his own interests or ideas, he chose to just do whatever got him the most votes, or the most likeable amongst the people etc. Hood sees that as something of an untruthful mentality, perhaps that’s where the whole “Hellfire” line comes from.
ReplyDeleteDuality, in our country, comes from the individuals that inhabit it. Either from the North or the South. Which on a way, makes America… America, difference in opinions, difference in personality, difference in practically everything. It all expresses the ideal of independence, letting others live life the way they want, either making good or bad decisions. In short, duality shapes the way our country is today.
George Wallace displayed the Southern duality that Patterson talked about. Wallace was the most famous racist voice of the South. But when he lost his first bid as governor because of the racial issue, he changed his views and promoted that he was not a racist anymore. The Southern duality, which was talked about in The Newer South, was that they are known for their Southern hospitality, but also known for Jim Crow laws, slavery, racism, and the Ku Klux Klan. The hypocrisy was a huge paradox. Patterson believes that George Wallace is in hell, because even though he changed his views, he slowed the process of the views on slavery down.
ReplyDeleteAmerica also has its own duality. We are known as “The Land of the Free”, but we are only perceived that way. We have freedom to a certain extent and we don’t have a say in a lot of things that goes around either. We go to war in other countries, so years later, they can live the American dream and have peace and freedom. America and Americans are full of duality.
Patterson says that George Wallace deserves hellfire because he is a selfish man. Wallace did not care about anything but the popularity. Whatever the popular vote was, he leaned towards them. He did not care about what was right or what he needed to fixed. Surprisingly he won and this is not right because that is not a leader.
ReplyDeleteAmerica is exactly like this because we express duality in numerous ways. To start off, we have a democratic party and a republican party. we are supposed to be a union but yet we have two sides that always fight even after they are voted in. For some odd reason we can not just get a long and this is why others are wanting to attack. In addition, we complain about terrorists but yet we just stepped into the ISIS case and bombed that. Originally we had nothing to do with this but now we just make ourselves look bad and attack other nations.
In The New(er) South, Patterson describes his main point as "the duality of the southern thing". He describes south being this great place where there is abundance of music, literature, art, and hospitality but also describes the dark sides on south that arose from people ideas and beliefs. According to him these include "Jim Crow laws, slavery, racism, and the Ku Klux Klan." This itself describes the duality of south by portraying its good side with the bad side. He says there are many commonalities in south, like the accent, while having totally opposite version of each other. In the song "The Three Great Alabama Icons", he shows the duality present in George Wallace. He says that George deserves to be in "hellfire". He describes him as a "belligerent racist" who happens to be non segregationist. He became a segregationist for lust for power. George shows duality within himself. He was the so called representative of the bad side of south. He deserved hellfire not because he was racist but because the bad image he gave of southerners to others. Because of him, northerners got a bad image in their mind about south which got up a stereotype that is still going on right now.
ReplyDeleteThey say America is country of opportunities. Its said that everyone has equal rights in the law but the laws itself contradicts it. Almost every law has an exception of something making it contradict itself while keeping the law intact. For instance if u take cannabis (marijuana), you will see that its illegal in federal law, but its still being used in many states without taking away the law. If you look at the foreign side then you will see that US is interested in getting involved in wars even though everyone knows that its going to end up in a bad way. There are two sides of a war. War is harmful, obviously, because it causes death of many people but also is beneficial because it enables unemployed to get a job because during war there would be more opportunities open to work.
Sorry Mr. Clark for having "u" for "you". I am pretty sure I did it properly but somehow "yo" got erased.
DeleteNo worries. It is interesting that things can be illegal in one state and perfectly legal in another. This is yet another American complexity. This is a big, diverse place indeed.
DeleteThe South has a duality like no other, you can either think it's a paradise or it's like hell. Just because some people may think of the Southern Hospitality doesn't mean it's all good and well. There is also the side of, segregation, Jim Crow laws, and the Ku Klux Klan. As stated by hood, "I have received random acts of kindness on a sidewalk in New York City. I’ve had a beloved guitar stole...". This whole "duality of the southern thing" is also explained in the song "The Three Alabama Icons". In the song they mostly are talking about the Governor, George Wallace. When he first ran he lost because he was not for segregation and didn't get enough votes. Although, when he ran again he was for segregation and all of a sudden he won. Coincidence? I don't think so. He just wanted the votes and would do whatever he could to get them.
ReplyDeleteNo one in their right mind wants to go to war but with the duality in the US the government can make it sound like a terrific idea. They say by having a war it will solve all these problems and create more jobs for everyone when in reality it can backfire and we can just end up killing many soldiers. The government is always trying to cover up the bad with something good and stretching the truth, this is the duality.
In the essay written by Patterson he talks about how he loved yet hated the south for many reasons. He loved the south for its culture, literature, music, art, but he hated the dark past of slavery and all the problems that came with it. Examples would be segregation, Ku Klux Klan, Jim Crowe's laws. This is considered a duality there are two sides to it. Yes that all is bad but we can move on now and remember the south for all it's good things. Slavery is just one more mistake that we must not make in the future. In the song he sings about the three Alabama icons but mostly about the third one which was George Wallace. The considerably very racist politician who lost elections because racism was starting not to be a trend anymore and people were moving on from it. Wallace wouldn't just give up though he then try's to change his image and become anti-racist just so people will vote for him but it's all really just his lust for power. That's why he was thrown into hell because he was only focused on that and nothing more. His duality had two sides and he'll use whichever on works best at the time.
ReplyDeleteDuality is big in America. Celebrities are always trying to look good for the camera and try to act cool and nice, but that's only because that's what you want from them. Off the air they act a lot different like ignorant or not caring only because they are not on the spot. Regular people do it all the time with their friends and family etc. The people who abuse it the most is politicians they will do whatever you want to get you to like them. But when they get elected they tend to break promises and do different things they didn't bother to mention and seem to act like a different person all together. That's the duality and problem of American Goverment.
I think Patterson believes George Wallace is deserving of hellfire because of the things he has done which is mostly him being a racist. George Wallace was a crowd pleasure and only did things to make the people happy and gain power for himself. He didn't necessarily agree with everything but he still did it just to win over the people. He even was for slavery at one point just because that's what the people wanted to hear. George later confesses that he was truly sorry for what he has done. And that it was only to please the people. This shows how Peterson can say he deserves hellfire. It's because Wallace supported so many bad things for the wrong reason. George had the power to help the slavery issue but instead he supported it. This shows that Wallace's actions were motivated by bad intentions.
ReplyDeleteDuality plays a roll in American society as well. A perfect example of this would be that Republicans say that they want less government , and more self responsibility and freedom to handle situations and make there own choices by themselves. But then they want the government to pass abortion laws on women's bodies. This makes no sense because you were just asking for more freedom and being able to make your own choices, but by enforcing the abortion law on women would cause them to be forced to do something without there own decision being imputed at all. This is just one example out of many on the duality In America.
What Patterson means by "the duality of the southern thing." is the hypocrisy of people in the south such as George Wallace. George Wallace was a humanitarian at first but then his lust for power turned him in to a racist figure throughout the south. The promoted segregation and believed that colored people were not as advanced as whites. Patterson says that George Wallace will burn in hell because he went from being a humanitarian to a racist then to and African American rights activist. He will burn in hell with the devil due to his hypocrisy on racism only caring about votes not the people, this is the duality of the southern thing.
ReplyDeleteDuality plays an extensive role in defining the idea of America because humanity is duality. The founding Fathers believed in creating a government that was protective of everyone's rights but in reality it only benefited white land owners. They promised a country that was free to all men but had slaves for until the late 1800's. Duality is as American as Apple Pie it is what makes America so great but also so terrible.
Patterson says that Geroge Wallace deserves hellfire. He says this because He is a racist, and a politician with a lot of power. He actually became a racist so he would get majority vote to win election and not help the south by changing segregation laws and helping African Americans. Then when the majority rule changed again he changed his views again, in my opinion George Wallace deserves hellfire for what he had done as a politician
ReplyDeleteDuality is often overlooked because it occurs so much, pretty much everywhere. In America it is used everyday, but especially by our government. For example we make laws in favor of the rich, that may make the poor struggle. Why? Because we can benefit off of the rich benefitting because they are the ones paying the most taxes purchasing expensive goods etc. While if we were to help the poor we would be putting money into an empty pit and it would not be flowing back as heavily. So although it doesn't sound good it actually has to be like that for the benefit of the government.
Kyle Smith
In Patterson's essay he talks about a multitude of random things, but they all link up to the South and duality. In the song he talks about how not liking football made him a wuss in his hometown, and in his essay he references how his local band festivals also didn't like the music he played (he was "banned for life"!), and neither did his father. Hood also wrote in both his song and essay that George Wallace was deserving of hellfire because of the manipulation he made to run for office by running for segregation. One could call him a hypocrite, which is also duality. At the end of his essay though, he said something I didn't expect, "...but these complexities also make our part of the country an interesting place, so ripe for the art and literature and music for which we are rightly respected and loved."
ReplyDeleteThe whole time I thought Hood was complaining about duality, but he actually thought it made the country very special.
I have to say, I really agree with Hood. These complexities in our country really make us unique. We all have different opinions about everything and I think that's what makes life interesting.
Patterson believes George Wallace is deserving of hellfire because he gained power through any means necessary. Wallace pretended to be racist in order to gain power in office. This shows he was willing to do anything necessary in order to become more powerful, even if it means ignoring his own beliefs in order to do so. Later, he did admit to not being a racist and only doing it for the popular vote, which showed that despite believing in equal rights, if it meant he was obtaining more power, he was willing to do anything, and thus, he was deserving of hellfire.
ReplyDeleteAmerica is very puzzling due to the fact that the North and the South have different beliefs, even after the civil rights movement. This is an example of America's duality.
Duality can be found in everything. Whether you are referencing “The Southern Thing,” the Puritans, ISIS or any other situation, duality has a major relevance. When Patterson describes “the duality of the Southern thing” he is pulling together ideas and events of the past and present to show the complex reputation of the South. In the essay, Patterson explains the many views of the south. When looking at the positive side of the south, you will find “Southern Hospitality,” great music, great food, architecture, literature and an overall good place to live. On the other hand, the south is known for slavery, racism, the Jim Crow Laws and the Ku Klux Klan. This is the main duality of the “southern thing.” It is difficult to look at the south as a whole when there are so many complexities. It is hard for people to look past what the south is infamous for and see the improvement it has made. Patterson includes in his song that there are parts of the south that make these stereotypes a reality. George Wallace was Governor of Alabama from 1962 to 1986 and was a hypocrite on many levels. In Wallace’s campaign he lied to the people to win his power. He started by campaigning against segregation but, later switched his view to a segregationist only to win his seat in office. In cases like this, one can see where the roots of these stereotypes come from. Southerners are often misunderstood for their southern pride because they are mostly known for slavery and horrible acts during the civil rights movement. The “duality of the southern thing” is ongoing but, even in Florence, Alabama where Patterson once lived, things are improving and the south is making a better name for itself.
ReplyDeleteIn America, we recognize duality and see it as human nature to disagree. There are always two sides to every situation and America does a good job of learning this concept. Even in our own government duality is found. Our government is constructed to see the two sides of every situation and this is why our country succeeds to solve most problems. Even when we aren’t solving our own problems, we are trying to solve others. America is the mother country and we tend to jump into any problem we see. For example, America wants to end the ISIS attacks but, we also don’t want to kill innocent people or kill our own people as well. This is another duality shown because while we are trying to help out for the general good, we are actually causing damage for others. Whether one is referring to the “southern thing,” the crucible or even America itself, duality appears everywhere and it is ones job to open up their mind and understand duality rather embrace their ignorance.
Here's my second duality blog and the reason you have not seen it is because your blog deleted it twice and the second time I thought it posted so I thought it was done. so then about two weeks later I deleted it off my notes because I thought it was posted and no one told me it wasn't and then I noticed on genesis that it was a zero, so here's my second one. Also sorry it sucks it's because I don't remember everything what we were talking about when we had to write this:
ReplyDeleteWhen Patterson says "the duality of the southern thing" he is referring to the fact that there are two sides to the southerners. On one side they could be categorized as racists but also they are known for good things. Patterson believes George Wallace deserves hell fire because he was never him. Wallace is very good at getting his way, he would change his views on things to gain votes and then once he was elected he would attempt to change his views again. Also you can tell by Patterson's word choice that he does not think that Wallace should have any fame, "George Wallace on TV all over the world for standing in the doorways of schools and blocking progress."
In the Three Alabama Icons song by the Drive By Truckers they explain perfectly why George Wallace
"But because of his blind ambition and his hunger for votes, he turned a blind eye to the suffering of Black America.And he became a pawn in the fight against the Civil Rights cause… Fortunately for him, the Devil is also a Southerner…"
America is one big example of duality. Some people are psychopaths because they kill people when they really feel like they are doing something good for everyone else. For example some wars that we have aren't even fought for a good reason. The Civil War we said that we were fighting to free the slaves however we were really fighting for power. That shows inner duality because we said "yea were fighting for the slaves" but really we had an inner motive to gain more and more power.