Song 6: Hard Times Come Again No More

Ok, this song is fairly easy to understand. Written in 1854, Hard Times Come Again No More talks about the hardships faced by the majority of the people just before the Civil War and foretelling the hard times to come. The song is written from the point of view of someone whose life isn't so bad, hence "While we seek mirth and beauty and music light and gay". The female singer is pleading for some help to be given to those less fortunate than her because she feels it is alomst her responsbility to help these people. This song feels as if it was written while looking out a window and seeing these events occurring day to day which leads me to believe that there really was a extremely large majority of poor people in America at this time. Again, I did not like the song because its tempo was still too slow, but its historical value is undeniable.