Music is the most influential of all of the art forms. It is more than entertainment. Music has been used as a powerful tool for healing, a means of communication, and a way to lift the human spirit.
Shannon Gardner
3/17/2002
English 105
Essay # 4
Argument/Persuasion Paper
Concession format
Music is the most influential of all of the art forms. It is more than entertainment. Music has been used as a powerful tool for healing, a means of communication, and a way to lift the human spirit. To some, music results in the loss of parental control, loss of imagination, and increase difficulty in relationships (Bloom, 135). These two very different views of music have been the subject of debate for and against music. Music itself heals, soothes, motivates, innovates and stimulates the mind, body, and soul.
Some believe that music interferes with moral development. The outrageous lyrics can promote sex, violence, and drugs. Rock has been said to have “the beat of sexual intercourse” (Bloom, 130). The arousing beat and explicitly descriptive lyrics encourage youth to treat these as completely natural urges. They give the implications of routine and acceptance before even the slightest knowledge of love, marriage, or family. It also has a negative impact on education. “I believe it ruins the imagination of young people and makes it very difficult for them to have a passionate relationship to the art and thought that are the substance of liberal education” (Bloom, 136). Bloom has a very negative outlook on the effects of music. He believes that modern culture, specifically rock music, undermines foundations, and prevents young people from developing insights into a fuller life. I do not fully agree with this. Some music can give a listener hope for a better life. Many lyrics are of dreams and future. The music passes these feeling to the listener. If a child listens to music with depressing lyrics, this can have a negative affect, but I believe that the person listens to music to how the already feel.