The national narrative of transformation depicted in the appended presentation purports to explain African American's long winded struggle for voting rights, as inspired by “Amazing Grace”. The Library of Congress describes the historical formation of the “Amazing Grace” hymn as, “the joy and peace of a soul uplifted from despair to salvation through the gift of grace” (The Creation of “Amazing Grace”). Considering that interpretation of “Amazing Grace”, the photographs in the presentation serve to exemplify the dynamic of both discouragement and jubilance in the African American struggle for voting rights. For example, on the sixth slide of the presentation, a photograph of a black male being lynched for voting is displayed. This photograph represents American (black people’s) moments of despair as a result of manipulative social relations between blacks and whites and the American government’s neglect of concern for African Americans. In contrast, on the thirteenth slide is a photograph of the African American First Family of the United States and other leaders and activists marching across the Edmund Pettus Bridge (in Selma, Al) to commemorate 50 years of secured voting rights. This photograph represents the jubilance …show more content…
Mighty Clouds of Joy’s (1972) recorded rendition of “Amazing Grace” served to support the exact national narrative of transformation depicted in the appended presentation. Mighty Clouds of Joy’s version’s employment of polyphonic texture is emblematic of the chaotic yet fluctuating struggle that African Americans endured. The upbeat tempo throughout the entire song is representative of the hope, faith, and resilience the blacks possessed in order to attain the rights to vote. This recorded version was naturally loud and this symbolized the attention grabbing nature of the voting rights movement in America to the rest of the