MASARYK UNIVERSITY FACULTY OF EDUCATION Department of English Language and Literature The Reflection of American History in Bon Jovi Songs Master Thesis Bc. Radka Šimková Supervisor: Ailsa Marion Randall, M.A. Brno, 2020 1 Declaration I hereby declare that I have worked on this thesis independently and that the information I used has been fully acknowledged in the text and included in the list of references. Brno, December 2020 ............................................... Bc. Radka Šimková ii 2 Acknowledgements First and foremost, I would like to extend my deepest appreciation to my supervisor and adviser, Ailsa Marion Randall, M.A., for her continuous and unwavering support and never-ending faith in my abilities to finish this work. Further I would like to thank my parents for their unconditional love, confidence and trust in my decisions. I am obligated to express many thanks to some of my dearest friends. Namely, Melanie and Kathleen, for their ceaseless friendship and abundance of motivation. Robert, because he never failed to make me laugh and make my day better, even at my worst. Jana, who threw some helpful thoughts my way when I least expected it. Anna, who has always believed in me. Mark who stood by my side and provided endless support. Cloé and Bailey because they are goofy and lovely and I love them very much. And last but not least, Casen, who pulled me out of the dark hole of self-pity and misery, brought me out into the light and showed me that I can, in fact, do it if I stop whining. Thank you, for you all made this possible. iii 3 Annotation The thesis “The Reflection of American History in Bon Jovi Songs” deals with the connection of Bon Jovi music to American history, culture and religion. It addresses the historical, cultural and religious background of not only the period that Bon Jovi was creating in but also from other earlier times which influenced their music. The thesis discusses ideas and expressions in three different songs in relation to three different topics tied to America. The song Dry County mainly connects to settlement issues, mostly the struggles of immigrants and their relatives when arriving in America, living in a new environment as well as the stress of tearing family bonds when moving and of poverty tied to lack of money. The second song, Living in Sin, expresses the battle that the further generations had to face in order to validate themselves as true part of the society and their confusion with the rules set within the family. The third and final song, Livin’ on a Prayer, describes the struggles of young people who were trying to make a living for themselves. All three songs are connected by the topic of religion and its influence on the unity of the population as well as what religion meant to each generation. The last part of the thesis considers the information found in the research and applies them to educational environment. Key Words American culture, American Dream, American history, American migration, Bon Jovi, faith, music, music in curriculum, religion, song lyrics. iv 4 Abstrakt Diplomová práce “Odraz Americké Historie v Písních Bon Jovi“ se zabývá propojením hudby Bon Jovi s americkou historií, kulturou a náboženstvím. Diskutuje o historickém, kulturním a náboženském prostředí nejen z doby, ve které Bon Jovi tvořili, ale také z dřívějších časů, které ovlivnily jejich hudbu. Práce pojednává o myšlenkách a výrazech ve třech různých písničkách v souvislosti s třemi různými tématy, které se vážou k Americe. Píseň Dry County se převážně spojuje s problémy osídlování, hlavně obtížemi imigrantů a jejich příbuzných při příchodu do Ameriky, žití v novém prostředí stejně jako stresem z rozvrácení rodinných pout při stěhování a z chudoby spojené s nedostatkem peněz. Druhá píseň, Living in Sin, vyjadřuje boj, se kterým se následující generace musely potýkat, aby se osvědčily jako opravdová součást společnosti a jejich zmatek z pravidel, která byla v rodině nastavena. Třetí a konečná píseň, Livin‘ on a Prayer, popisuje obtíže mladých lidí, kteří se snažili vydělat si na živobytí. Všechny tři písně jsou propojeny motivem náboženství a jeho vlivem na jednotu obyvatelstva, jakož i co náboženství znamená pro jednotlivé generace. Poslední část této práce uvažuje o informacích, které tento výzkum našel a aplikuje je na vzdělávací prostředí. Klíčová slova Americká kultura, americký sen, americká historie, americká migrace, Bon Jovi, víra, hudba, hudba v kurikulu, náboženství, texty písní. v 5 Table of Contents 1 Introduction.............................................................................................................................1 2 Theoretical Part.......................................................................................................................3 2.1 American History...........................................................................................................3 2.1.1 The Vision before the Move..................................................................................3 2.1.2 Settling and Living in the New World...................................................................8 2.1.3 Second Generation...............................................................................................11 2.1.4 The Culture Changing.........................................................................................13 2.2 Religion and Belief.......................................................................................................16 2.2.1 Religion...............................................................................................................16 2.2.2 Beliefs of Further Generations and the Secular Hymn........................................21 3 Practical Part..........................................................................................................................26 3.1 Connection to Dry County...........................................................................................26 3.1.1 Title of the Album...............................................................................................27 3.1.2 Title of the Song..................................................................................................28 3.1.3 The Lyrics............................................................................................................29 3.2 Connection to Living in Sin.........................................................................................57 3.2.1 Title of the Song..................................................................................................58 3.2.2 The Lyrics............................................................................................................59 3.3 Connection to Livin’ on a Prayer.................................................................................68 3.3.1 Title of the Song..................................................................................................68 3.3.2 The Lyrics............................................................................................................69 3.4 Application in Teaching................................................................................................74 4 Conclusions...........................................................................................................................76 6 Works Cited.............................................................................................................................78 List of Songs............................................................................................................................80 Appendix A: Dry County.........................................................................................................82 Appendix B: Living in Sin......................................................................................................83 Appendix C: Livin’ on a Prayer...............................................................................................84 Appendix D: 99 in the Shade...................................................................................................85 Appendix E: A Teardrop to the Sea.........................................................................................86 Appendix F: Blame It on the Love of Rock & Roll................................................................87 Appendix G: Hey God.............................................................................................................88 Appendix H: I Believe.............................................................................................................89 Appendix I: It’s My Life..........................................................................................................90 Appendix J: Living With the Ghost.........................................................................................91 Appendix K: My Guitar Lies Bleeding in My Arms...............................................................92 Appendix L: The Devil’s in the Temple..................................................................................93 Appendix M: These Days........................................................................................................94 Appendix N: We Weren’t Born to Follow...............................................................................95 Appendix O: Work for the Working Man................................................................................96 vii 7 1 Introduction Music