Buddy, Can You Spare a Dime
“Buddy, Can You Spare a Dime?”
When I set out to look for a song that would accurately and effectively represent the hardships, evils and effects of the depression era, I was faced with a unique challenge – One that I did not expect. From my time spent searching for a song that captures the essence of that lamented time, I learned that the Great Depression, in itself, held so much misery, so much adversity and strife, that there couldn't possibly be a single song that could take into account every subtlety and nuance of this forlorn period, and articulate it competently. Therefore, I was forced to think along a narrower line, made to choose an aspect of the Depression, that I wanted to elaborate on. Two of the most striking songs that I came across in my research, were “Remember my Forgotten Man” (1933), written by Al Dubin (lyrics) and Harry Warren (music), and “Buddy, Can You Spare a Dime?” (1931), written by E. Y. Harburg (lyrics) and Jay Gorney (music). Both of these songs dealt with the same subject matter and were moving in their own ways. However, the latter song had the kind of melancholic air that made it, at least in my opinion, a better representation of the period under consideration. It is for this reason that I chose it for the purpose of writing this paper. The two songs mentioned above, are among the few songs that deal seriously with the morose side of the Great Depression[1]. In their similarities, the most obvious seems to be that they both talk about the misery of the disenfranchised[2] individuals: The ones that the nation forgot. Disenfranchisement of the common man was one of the strongest themes of the Great Depression, or at least the one that struck me the most. As the country spiraled down into economic recession, the fate of the common man, the working class, hung in the balance. The state was in shambles and Americans were teetering on the precipice of a monumental trial of will and resolve. The depression that followed affected
When I set out to look for a song that would accurately and effectively represent the hardships, evils and effects of the depression era, I was faced with a unique challenge – One that I did not expect. From my time spent searching for a song that captures the essence of that lamented time, I learned that the Great Depression, in itself, held so much misery, so much adversity and strife, that there couldn't possibly be a single song that could take into account every subtlety and nuance of this forlorn period, and articulate it competently. Therefore, I was forced to think along a narrower line, made to choose an aspect of the Depression, that I wanted to elaborate on. Two of the most striking songs that I came across in my research, were “Remember my Forgotten Man” (1933), written by Al Dubin (lyrics) and Harry Warren (music), and “Buddy, Can You Spare a Dime?” (1931), written by E. Y. Harburg (lyrics) and Jay Gorney (music). Both of these songs dealt with the same subject matter and were moving in their own ways. However, the latter song had the kind of melancholic air that made it, at least in my opinion, a better representation of the period under consideration. It is for this reason that I chose it for the purpose of writing this paper. The two songs mentioned above, are among the few songs that deal seriously with the morose side of the Great Depression[1]. In their similarities, the most obvious seems to be that they both talk about the misery of the disenfranchised[2] individuals: The ones that the nation forgot. Disenfranchisement of the common man was one of the strongest themes of the Great Depression, or at least the one that struck me the most. As the country spiraled down into economic recession, the fate of the common man, the working class, hung in the balance. The state was in shambles and Americans were teetering on the precipice of a monumental trial of will and resolve. The depression that followed affected