Blowing in the wind - Bob dylan

Blowin' in the Wind" is a song written by Bob Dylan in 1962. It was released as
a single and included on his album The Freewheelin' Bob Dylanin 1963. It has
been described as a protest songand poses a series of rhetorical questions
about peace, war, and freedom. The refrain "The answer, my friend, is blowin' in
the wind" has been described as "impenetrably ambiguous: either the answer is
so obvious it is right in your face, or the answer is as intangible as the wind".

BOB DYLAN

●​ Bob Dylan was born on 24th May 1941.

●​ He was born at Minnesota in USA.
●​ His name at the time of birth is Robert Allan Zimmerman.
●​ He is famous as a singer, song writer, artist and a writer.
●​ He won the Grammy Award in 1973 and in 1980.
●​ He is the recipient of the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2016.

Blowin' in the Wind," Bob Dylan's classic 1962 protest song, has had a long, rich
life as an anthem for causes from civil rights to nuclear disarmament. In this
song, the speaker poses a series of huge questions about the persistence of war
and oppression, and then responds with one repeated, cryptic reply: "The
answer, my friends, is blowin' in the wind." Finding an end to human cruelty, the
song suggests, is a matter of understanding a truth that's all around—but
paradoxically impossible to grasp.

●​ The poet was restless due to the violation of human rights and the
indifferent attitude of people towards the crucial problems
confronting the society.

Poem

How many roads must a man walk down

Before you call him a man?

How many seas must a white dove sail

Before she sleeps in the sand?

 Blowing in the wind - Bob dylan

Yes, and how many times must the cannonballs fly

Before they're forever banned?

The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind

The answer is blowin' in the wind

Yes, and how many years must a mountain exist

Before it is washed to the sea?

And how many years can some people exist

Before they're allowed to be free?

Yes, and how many times can a man turn his head

And pretend that he just doesn't see?

The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind

The answer is blowin' in the wind

Yes, and how many times must a man look up

Before he can see the sky?

And how many ears must one man have

Before he can hear people cry?

Yes, and how many deaths will it take 'til he knows

That too many people have died?

The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind

The answer is blowin' in the wind
 Blowing in the wind - Bob dylan

Summary:
​ How many paths does a Man (symbolizes the people who face injustice and
hope for justice.)have to walk along before they're treated like a human being?
​
​ How many oceans does a white dove (emblem of peace and reminds us of the
enduring struggle for harmony and equality.) have to fly over before she can rest
on dry land?
​
​ And how many times must weapons of war be fired before they're outlawed
forever?
​
​ The answer to these questions is just moving through the air, my friend, it's just
moving through the air.​

​ How long can a mountain(represents the rigidity of life) be around before it

crumbles into the sea(represents change and true freedom that slowly erodes the
rigidity of mountains)?
​
​ How long can some human beings be around before they're finally freed from
oppression?
​
​ And how many times can a person look away from that oppression, acting like
they simply don't see it?
​
​ The answer to these questions is just moving through the air, my friend, it's just
moving through the air​

​ How many times does a person have to look up before they actually see the
sky(freedom)?
​
​ How many ears does a single person have to have before they'll actually listen to
other people weeping?
 Blowing in the wind - Bob dylan

​ And how many people have to die for that same person to understand that
there's too much death in the world?
​ The answer to these questions is just moving through the air, my friend, it's just
moving through the air.

Glossary
Allow- to give
Anthem- song of praise
Blow- to move along as current of air
Banned- prohibited
Cannon- large heavy gun
Exist- continue to live
Pretend- act

THEME OF THE POEM (reference to teachers and students)

●​ Bowin' in the wind is a famous song written by famous American singer, artist
and composer Bob Dylan.
●​ This is a protest song sung by him. It was written in a mood to make aware the
people of the violation of freedom, peace and disharmony.
●​ The poet was restless due to the violation of human rights and the indifferent
attitude of people towards the crucial problems confronts the society.
●​ He exhorts the people to refrain from conflicts and stop waging war in the name
of insignificant things.
●​ He felt that peace, harmony and unity were absent in the society and turned his
attention to restore them.
●​ This situation forced him to compose this poem which became a popular anthem
in the civil rights movement in America in 1960s.

FIGURE OF SPEECH:
1. SIMILE
A simile is a direct comparison of two unlike things using the words "like" or "as."
Visions sprang like poppy
II. ALLITERATION
Alliteration is the repetition of words beginning with the same consonant in a line.
Seas- sail
Sleeps-sand
III. IMAGES
 Blowing in the wind - Bob dylan

Imagery is the name given to the elements in a poem that spark off the senses.
Despite "image" being a synonym for "picture", images need not be only visual; any of
the five senses (sight, hearing, touch, taste and smell) can respond to what a poet
writes.
1. Auditory
Cry, answer, wind
2. Visual
Sky, mountain, cannon balls, sea
3. Olfactory: The sense of smell
4. Tactile: The sense of touch
5. Gustatory: The sense of taste
IV. Refrain :It is a literary device that involves repeating a line, phrase, or word
in a poem or song. It's a way to build emphasis or drama, and to tie ideas
together.
V. Rhetorical question : a question asked in order to create a dramatic effect or to make a
point rather than to get an answer.

APPRECIATION OF THE POEM

Blowin' in the Wind is a song composed by Bob Dylan, the famous American song writer
and artist. It has been written as a protest song which poses a series of rhetorical
questions about peace, war and humanity. The singer creates highly motivating and
inspiring mood that turned out to be a marching song of the oppressed. The attitude of
the poet is reflected in the refrain. This is a beautiful poem which talks of the genuine
problems of political discourses and the poet raises social issues of the people to fight
for justice.
The poet talks of indifferent attitude of people to the major issues of society. The poet
firmly believes that people should turn their keen attention to eradicate injustice,
inequality and denial of freedom and should establish unrestrained life in the society.
The poet says that injustice may be as firm as mountains but it can be washed out to
the sea, if the oppressed stands united. The oppressors cannot turn a deaf ear to the
song of the protest. Change is imminent and inevitable.
A man, a dove, the mountain, the sea, and cannon balls are the images used by the
poet to evoke senses in the poem.

●​ Man symbolizes the people who face injustice and hope for justice.
●​ Mountain represents the rigidity of life; it reminds us of peace and harmony of
life.
 Blowing in the wind - Bob dylan

●​ Dove is an emblem of peace and reminds us of the enduring struggle for

harmony and equality.
●​ Sea represents change and true freedom that slowly erodes the rigidity of
mountains.
●​ The poet uses images such as cannon balls flying and white doves to add to the
beauty and charm of the poem immensely. These qualities make the poem more
appealing and enchanting.

1.​ What does the word 'roads' refer to here?

The word 'roads' refers to the life experiences.

2.​ Do these questions given here demand a specific answer? What do you call
such questions?

No, these questions do not demand a specific answer. We call such questions open
ended questions

3.​ Why does the writer say that the answer is blowing in the wind?

Answer is known to all and it is everywhere.

4.​ How are the questions about the mountain related to the other two questions in
stanza 2?

Mountain symbolizes ego. The poet says that one day or the other, all humans will have
to face the same difficult situation.

5.​ How may be the 'people' and 'man' referred to in stanza 2? What is the attitude
of the writer towards them?
 Blowing in the wind - Bob dylan

Here 'people' represents a group who are downtrodden. Man represents the modern
man who pretends not to see the sufferings of the poor.

6.​ Pick out the lines from the song that refer to the denial of civil right.

...how many times can a man turn his head and pretend that he just doesn't see?
How many ears must one man have before he can hear people cry?

7.​ What attitude of the people is reflected in the refrain, 'The answer is blow in in the
wind?

indifference of the people.

8.​ How many questions are there in the first stanza? What are they?

Three questions. How many roads must a man walk before you call him a man?
How many seas must a white dove sail before she sleeps in the sand? How many times
must the cannon balls fly before they are forever banned?