Welcome to my blog about Hamilton the musical! Enjoy!
I was listening to the song called "The Schuyler Sisters" and I heard a line in it that was said by Angelica. the line is "I've been reading Common Sense by Thomas Paine so men say that I'm intense or I'm insane you want a revolution? I want a revelation so listen to my declaration:" after that, Eliza, Angelica, and Peggy all say "We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal." and then following that lyric, Angelica responds with "And when I meet Thomas Jefferson, I'm 'a compel him to include women in the sequel!" When I heard the first parts of the lyrics, I was curious about Thomas Paine and who he was and what the book Common Sense was about. When I went online, I found out that the book Common Sense was a voice for the American people. The book also advocated for American independence from Great Britain. But when Angelica was referring to the line that all men are created equal, she was referring to the sentence in the Declaration of Independence which was written by Thomas Jefferson. Because Thomas Jefferson was the one who wrote the Declaration of Independence, it would make sense for Angelica to go to him to change the declaration to favor women as well as men. In these few lyrics, Angelica is stating that Thomas Paine is depicting women as either intense or insane. While, Thomas Jefferson and other men believed that women were unequal to all men. This upsets Angelica and her sisters because they believe that women should be considered as equals to men.
She says that she wants men and women to be equal, and after the revolutionary war the constitution was written, and it refers to "we the people," but for the longest time women didn't have the same rights as men. Therefore they weren't equal to men. I think that most women expected the same thing as Angelica, and that's why so many fought so hard to get women the rights that they deserved.
ReplyDeleteWhat i got from this line that you are focusing on, is that because Angelica was reading Common Sense, she was inspired to voice her opinion, and that caused men to think she was intense and insane, not that Thomas Paine in particular thought she was insane. By reading the pamphlet she was more inspired to stand up to Thomas Jefferson about the fact that Women should have an equal amount of rights that men do! Angelica educated more than most woman were at the time, so she was able to have a better understanding of these writing then most.
ReplyDeleteI love what Lin-Manuel Miranda does throughout the show, and especially in this song, when he references other texts. The show also has a couple of biblical references, most notably in One Last Time, and the whole show plays as an homage to various parts of hip hop culture. Examining how these quotations are used, and their places in the plot, is a really fascinating exercise, and sheds a lot of light on Miranda and his deeper intentions with the musical.
ReplyDelete