When I was trying to decide what to make my first blog post about, I went on a quest to find the Internet's favorite Hamilton song. What song was a favorite among many, you may ask? Satisfied.
I first started by searching on my favorite news website, Buzzfeed. Buzzfeed is known for having posts relating to just about anything and everything, so I figured Hamilton would be included in that; and sure enough it was.
While I was a little surprised about where some of the songs were ranked, I was elated to see that Satisfied was on top, because it is a great song. (Probably my favorite song in the musical). I love the Schuyler sisters, so any chance I get to hear a song that is sang or is about them I get very excited.
to find more rankings of the Hamilton soundtrack.
My next stop was at youngfolks.com. Here, Satisfied was ranked #2 just behind Wait For It, which is still an amazing ranking.
Just as I was getting into my trek for the 'best' Hamilton song, I decided that my study would be better if I played the 'Hamilton (Original Cast) Soundtrack' on Pandora. Then it hit me like a Mack Truck hitting a fly traveling towards its windshield: I need to write about the beauty that is the song, Satisfied. How did I come to this realization might you ask? Well, the first song that rolled up on my Hamiltonian Pandora station was Satisfied, and that's when I knew!
As I enjoyed the emotional roller coaster that is the song Satisfied, I wanted to get a better idea of where some other places on the internet placed this song. To my surprise, on every ranking list that I could find, it was always in the top 10.
As I was finding all of this information, the song, The Schuyler Sisters, came on my Pandora station, and a line that's sung in that song always strikes a chord with me:
"“We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal"... I’m ‘a compel him to include women in the sequel."
When I reflected on this, I realized how much we have changed as a society. Non-Stop, or another song sang by men would have been wildly popular during this time period, but women wouldn't be given this same chance. However, in today's society, women are given a place in society and are seen, for the most part, as equals. The fact the Lin-Manuel Miranda gave women a voice in a play that takes place during a time when they wouldn't have a voice is very applaudable.
I am personally more of a fan of the songs sang by the ladies in this musical, and wish that they were given a few more opportunities to shine. However, I do understand that this play takes place in a time period when women wouldn't have had a voice, so the fact that they are represented at all surprises me.
So, I guess the question that I pose to you is, 'Do you think that Miranda gave women the credit they deserve, or do you think that women should have been given more/less of a spotlight in this musical?
Below are the websites I used in case you're curious about the rankings:
https://www.buzzfeed.com/kerrkerrkerr/a-ranking-of-every-song-in-hamilton-1m9qw
http://theyoungfolks.com/music/every-song-from-the-hamilton-cast-album-ranked/79401/5
https://li.st/existential/hamilton-songs-ranked-6YsogDmwGOQtcuccolRaya
http://heavy.com/entertainment/2016/06/top-10-hamilton-songs-best-list-ranked-video-audio-stream/
https://thesassyreader.wordpress.com/2016/04/18/hamilton-cast-recording-songs-ranked/
I personally think that the spotlight the women in the musical were given was just enough. In some ways they had something to do with the story line but in other ways they didn't. The musical was mostly about the men and the part that they played in the revolutionary war. I think that Angelica was given the light she needed she got Hamilton and Eliza together and then we saw the relationship between Hamilton and Angelica and how that fit with Eliza, but for the most part that was her only role. Eliza on the other Hand was Hamilton's wife so she had a bigger spotlight, and was there for the big things like having a child and during the affair and playing the part of the wife who misses her husband. I think that altogether you got to know the women well enough to understand their role in the male characters lives. Miranda did a good job letting the women be known but not letting them steal the show from the main story line.
ReplyDeleteI think that Lin did an amazing job with the way he showed women!! He gave them a lot more credit than they would have gotten in the time period this is based, but it works so well in our day and age!! Women did not just sit around in the past and do nothing, but a lot of historians do not show what women were doing during this time, because women weren't allowed to fight and thats what is usually focused on. This musical put some emphasis on some of the women during this time which is more than they usually get which is awesome!!
ReplyDeleteI think Miranda does a great job of balancing the focus between the men and women of the play. While they are given much more attention in the modern work than they were given in the 18th century, I see it fitting. In reality, women shaped Hamilton into the man he was. He grew up without a father and his only male role model was Washington. Other than that, he had a couple friends and numerous political enemies who undoubtedly pushed him in his work, but weren’t his real inspirations. I think that in general, the women in his life are more influential than the men, so they deserve the credit they were given.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the spotlight was enough. Since this musical is historical, there needs to be a reflection of the time period. And I think it is important for people to realize the difference in rights that women have then and now. Their places in the musical, if you think there were too little or too much, shows a truth to the time period. It gives people a chance to see how far we have come and how much further we have to go.
ReplyDeleteI think that Miranda was successful in giving women a rightful role in this play. Eliza is a very powerful character, and even her sister Angelica plays a strong role also. Also, the fact that a women like Maria Reynolds was able to seduce Hamilton into having an affair with her, and this is a huge part of the play, shows that he is looking to show how powerful women can be, both in persuasiveness to men and having a large impact on mens feelings, such as Eliza on Hamilton's feelings.
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