History is a difficult subject precisely because it requires both an intense amount of memorization and some hefty conceptual labor to turn those random bits of information into a narrative of what, how, why, when, where, and so what? Songs like Billy Joel’s “We Didn’t Start the Fire” follows the oral tradition of old by passing down history via song. Though it doesn’t elaborate on any of the allusions name-dropped, it lists what was important politically, culturally, and militarily in the mid-1900s (providing the “what” in the series of questions above).

1. Analysis: The second video on the page for this text gives a brief explanation of the event, person, or place referenced. Let’s go one step further, and explain why these events were included over others. Pick at least one reference. Can you figure out why that event was (and/or still is) so influential it needs to be passed down in a catchy melody?

2. Composition: I’ve already asked what events you’d include in a song like this, but let’s switch it up. If you could take this premise and completely re-create it from the format up, how would you do something similar? Not just what events or individuals would you include, but what visual or textual medium would you use (episode, comic, song, etc.)? What genre would you use (comedy, tragedy, parody, etc.)?

   • If it helps, American Horror Story: Hotel took this concept in their episode “Devil’s Night,” by depicting a dinner party with some of the most infamous serial killers of all time, relying on your knowledge of who they were to understand their characters and comments. A less gorey version of this comes from the YouTube murder-mystery parody “Edgar Allan Poe’s Murder Mystery Dinner Party” from Shipwrecked, where the jokes, events, and deaths are all related to the lives and works of the authors invited.