Conversation 2

Summary

Some messages and themes that Beyonce expresses through the song and its video are her background, and where she comes from. She uses her parent's birthplaces and ethnicity to make a connection with herself, who she is, where she came from, and how she views herself. It is shown throughout the song and video that Beyonce is confident about herself. She is proud of who she is and who she has become. Despite what others might say or think about her. She seems to perceive herself positively. In the first line of the song, it states, “ Y'all haters corny with that Illuminati mess”, this is an example of dysphemism being used, emphasizing that she has earned her spot in the music industry with her strong work ethic, talent, and strive. This is what put her at the top, not giving herself up to the Illuminati. Another example of a rhetorical device being used throughout the song is hyperbole. In the line stating, “If he hit it right, I might take him on a flight on my chopper, ‘cause I slay”, this quote conveys the idea of hyperbole because she is exaggerating as she uses the word “hit” in a different type of context in this situation. To add, an example of emotive language being used is the line, “You know you that bitch when you cause all this conversation”. In this case, this would be negative emotive words such as “bitch”, but in this context of the song she is using it positively, trying to show that you are important to others if they feel as if they should always talk about you or always bring your name up in conversations. These messages and themes are not similar to my initial reaction to the song and video, I say this because before reading the lyrics I did not know what Beyonce was trying to express through this song, but after listening deeper and reading what she says it makes more sense as to why she would say these things based on who she is and the part she plays in society. I think this song became controversial because it is an upbeat song that is catchy and many people look up to Beyonce and her music as an inspiration for their own lives, showing power and that you can come from nothing but still make something of yourself and become someone who you look up to as well. Matsoukas helped Beyonce convey her message by bringing it to life. For starters deciding on how and where they should shoot the video, they came up with Louisiana, the hometown of Beyonce's grandmother. She had the vision of aiming the anthem at female and black empowerment and with the help of Matsoukas she was able to bring her vision alive by implicating many intense scenes to capture the acts and focus on what was being said as well, not to mention all the work it took in such little time.