Summary Of Believing By Bob Kaufman

Sloane Brzezinski

Ms. DeDeo

E9U

28 February 2023

Art and Government in “Believe, Believe”

Many people feel that art and music are outlets for them when faced with tough situations. Bob Kaufman reveals in his poem “Believe, Believe,” that government is not always right but the arts can always be an outlet for people. At the start of the poem, the speaker attempts to advise the reader about what will help them out in life. He writes about how the government is breaking into society and destroying what we have, all in contrast to the good that the arts create. Throughout the entire poem, the speaker is suggesting that art and music will lead society to much better things than the government will.

In the first stanza of the poem, Kaufman uses

In this section of the poem, the speaker mentions music and how it brings the world together in different ways. He then compares music and its light to the people who create to destroy because they are direct opposites. Kaufman uses repetition in his poem when he says “believe in” which shows how he is attempting to influence the reader and their beliefs (1,5). These words and their repetition helps the poem sound more persuasive. The repetition of the words “believe in” paints the author as someone trustworthy who wants to help society be better (1,5). The poem has alliteration in it, which helps enhance the experience of the poem. The line, “believe in the swinging sounds of jazz” helps the reader hear the music and advises the reader (5). The author is also telling the reader to follow the music and let it take them away from the pain and stress of the world. He wants the reader to leave behind their world of suffering and join the love of music. Kaufman then speaks about how music tears “the night” apart but then puts it back together in “cool logical patterns” (6-8). In these lines, the night sky represents the world and how music breaks down the barriers of society and puts them back together again in new and different ways. Kaufman also mentions the people who created “the Bomb” (10). He believes that they are sick and bad people who only created something to destroy the world around them. This phrase is used as the direct opposite of the love and warmth of the music. The word “Bomb” represents the evils in the world and the horrors of society while music represents the exact opposite. The speaker talks about the love and warmth in the world and compares it to the evil people who create items to destroy the world and society. By doing this, he suggests to