Refuge in Music - Research Paper Example

Refuge in Music Music has much deeper influence over one`s psyche, mood and even personality at times than one can even imagine. For this reason, many people are found seeking refuge in music while others tend to find meaning in lyrics of songs to relate to their own feelings. Similarly, a few people like to indulge in trance music to get in touch with their inner souls. In other words music is more like a communication between the artist and his audience. The singer conveys meanings via lyrics and tone, also the style of song delivery, while the musician adds to the aura of the song by virtue of musical rhythms. Similarly, the audience feels the music and tries to understand the lyrics, depending on the inherent personality characteristics and past experiences. To further understand the context, an analysis over the song “RAM-RAMelia” can estimate how music may impact the emotional intelligence of the humans. The song holds a unique position due to the fact that the song was composed for the deceased wife of Ram, named Amelia. The context of the song is quite apparent in the composition and thus, analyzing its impacts and implications may help understand the concept a little better. The Song RAMelia is a soft melodious one with simple yet powerful lyrics. The composers Susan and Ram tend to add meanings to the lyrics by virtue of the context in which it is written. The main intention behind producing the song is to make a tribute to the deceased wife of RAM, not just because she held immense importance in his life, but also because she was a person worth remembering. Furthermore, the purpose of the artists in creating the song also relates to expressing the inner feelings, more like venting out. Since RAM clearly had suppressed feelings and emotions for his wife, he felt the need to vent them out and enlighten the world with all these feelings. Furthermore, he also wants the audience to feel the pain and contention both at the same time by virtue of the song. In addition, the artist aims at channeling the sole function of offering entertainment to the music lover. Furthermore, the song is a timeless addition to the genre which many people appreciate. Thus, the artists intends on getting the message across to the audience that death of someone close can be an extra-ordinary experience. On one hand where it brings sorrow and hardships, on the other hand, it gives one an opportunity to appreciate life and also the ones who are lost in this lifetime. Also, the song helps in realizing that some people can never really fade away for the ones who loved them, and thus there are a million ways of keeping them alive. The author of the song has been quite successful in getting the message across, since not only can the audience relate to the entire experience, but also experience Ram`s wife in one way or another. In other words, the song in itself brings her back to life and gives the audience a chance to see the glare in her personality. As mentioned above as well, music is more of a communication amongst a community and between the artist and his audience, and this song in particular makes the communication as effective as it can ever be. The song begins with a sense of optimism and emotional intensity where the singer says, that with a simple smile and a gentle touch, the deceased gave him everything. These words being so simple deliver such a strong message. Especially for the ones who had lost their loved ones, this opening part explains how simple things in life can have a deep lasting impact and thus, they must not be taken for granted. Also, it tells the audience how it`s not the extravagance which makes something extraordinary, rather even the simplest of gestures can sometimes lead to extraordinary things. Further as the song propels, the artist conveys how it`s really hard to forget the warmth which he felt as if it`s coming directly from her heart. The audience can perceive this imagery as rather purity and emotions. The deceased was so pure in her emotions that it seemed as if there is warmth propelling from her heart. The audience can feel the warmth as well while listening to the song for people who they`ve been close to and can relate how no matter what, the feeling is really hard rather impossible to get over from. Further relating to the significance of the person in his life, the artists explains hoe the feeling is so hard to let go because his wife meant everything to him. The audience can also relate to this experience of how difficult it can be to let go of someone who was simple yet pure, and the centre of attention thus their absence is quite hard to get over from. This first stanza of the song rather expresses love and intimacy, where the element of pain isn`t being exaggerated, rather the sense of attachment is the focus. Moving further to the second stanza, one can feel pain and melancholy which is apparent from the fact that leaving this world doesn’t imply that the person also leaves the hearts. The beginning line of the stanza is the most striking, painful and the most effective one from the entire song. It depicts how the shooting stars which are symbolic for people who died remind the twinkle in the eyes of his wife. This illustration and analogy is quite impactful for the listeners as creates a connection between the shooting star and the one they lost, since it is now implanted in their psyche how shooting star can be symbolic of something so intimate. Right after this line, the artists expresses how he misses his love so much. This form of expression also intrigues the audience of the song to directly communicate with the ones they love inside their hearts on how they miss them. Furthermore, he says how the deceased was so bright and full of live, i.e. so colorful that even the darkest days seemed to be shining in her presence and thus, the love with never fade away just like her personality never faded away even in the hardest of the times. Thus, the audience also makes an emotional connection between a person who makes them pass through difficult and dark times and thus, the spirit will help them pass through the time without them. The song ends with saying the love will last forever no matter what, since the person was more than just an individual, and thus, those listening to the song also tend to understand the feeling of never letting go of someone even when they are physically not present. Considering the use of emotional management techniques in this song, a multitude of means can be identified. Firstly, the song has been sung in a female voice though it was intended as a message conveyed by Ram to his wife. The female voice adds an element of softness and intensifies the emotional elements. Furthermore, the entire song is sung in a sorrowful yet balanced tone which touches the heart and leaves an impact. Also, the music is soft but not boring and thus, it leaves a soothing impact of the audience yet wants them to replay the song to replay the rush of emotions felt via this song. Imagery and Analogy are also a few tools of emotional management which makes the experience new and brings back several memories in such a way that they are lasting and effective. In essence, the entire look and feel of the song, combined with the context in which is has been composed proves to be a power intensifier of feelings for its audience. Furthermore, it serves the purpose of creating a dialogue amongst people having similar experiences, for instance the song can be played at someone wake or at a funeral to celebrate the love of a person who`s not with them anymore but have held an important place in their lives. Thus, this proves how music can be more than just a form of entertainment for people. 2. Emotional Intelligence is a phenomenon which helps one in understanding the concept of empathy amongst people. In other words, every person sees the world in a certain way and thus, reacts in a certain way as well depending on the emotional intelligence level. Most of what people do in real lives depend on their emotional intelligence and emotions are what drive us towards taking certain decisions. For this reason, it is important to understand the emotional buildup of humans and also how the human buildup of emotions can be transformed and what really effects these emotions in a person. For this reason, many scholars have written over time over the concept trying to explain what effects the emotional intelligence in an individual and how it can be shaped. However, connecting the concept with entertainment is a new development in the field. With easier access to entertainment channels like internet, music, movies, news, television and multitude of other entertainment modes, it has become crucial to understand the apparent link between the emotional intelligence and entertainment. After rigorous research, it can evidently be stated that the entertainment has a strong impact on the emotional intelligence of a person. In other words, the kind of entertainment, the level and also the quality of entertainment one is exposed to tends to affect the emotional intelligence of an individual in a multitude of ways. The concept of “flow” often floats in this context while studying rhetoric on entertainment and emotional intelligence. The concept tends to relate to a psychological state where humans are quite focused which elates their performance indicators. This term is best explained in terms of musicians, where those who are most focused and are in flow tend to implicate high indicators of health, performance and even personality variables (Porter & Goleman 2011). This implies that practicing music creates a psychological vibe within an individual which gives him a sense of satisfaction and confidence which enhances the overall personality of that individual. The same concept can be applied to those exposed to the music, since they can also feel the same rhythm and tone, which in turn elates their personality variables as well. Thus, in this context, there is a positive link between emotional intelligence and entertainment. The same relationship can also be applied to other forms of entertainment. A human mind can deviate and be littered with abstract and directionless thoughts. However, with the exposure to quality entertainment, the mind can achieve a considerable level of flow, making them better off in terms of emotional intelligence. This directly implies that entertainment brings the emotional makeup of an individual in line with the healthier levels, and thus making them most focused ambitious and driven. Research also indicates that emotional intelligence can be tamed with practice, meditation and other behavior changing techniques. Emotional intelligence implies the improvisation of the emotional makeup of an individual in such a way that there is balance in the standard emotional setup of most individuals in a society with little variance. Only by achieving this balance can there be peace and optimality since individuals would understand each other`s responses and cope up well with the environment. The same science can be applied to entertainment and its link with emotional intelligence. The mainstream techniques like meditation, yoga, exposure and even practice to tame the emotional intelligence serve the same purpose which the entertainment industry can also serve with minimal effects (Pelliteri 2009). Thus, in an effort to strike a balance and intending on equipping the individuals in a society to understand how emotions are effected and developed, the entertainment industry can offer many different means and modes. The entertainment alternatives offer situational analysis of concepts like love and institutions like marriage and religion which offer an exposure to individuals and help them cope up. Thus, entertainment can prove to be a constructive medium for positively affecting the emotional intelligence in individuals. However, research also shows that in a few cases entertainment may also have negative impacts on the emotional intelligence as well. Addiction is one form of destructive behavior which imbalances the emotional intelligence variables which may be explained by an overly intensive attachment to an object of admiration to an unhealthy level. Similarly, exposure to violence and aggression may also inflict negative indicators on individuals. In a few cases, individuals may even get alien to the concept of reality per se, and fall under the influence of delusion. In these cases, the individuals may find themselves out of place and fallen rather prey to unreal emotions which creates negative influence in general (Shastri 2007). However, these cases still doesn’t represent the standard influence of entertainment of emotional intelligence, and only call out a few exceptions and thus couldn’t be considered fair. Since emotional intelligence deals with the effective management of emotions, entertainment pertains to be a crucial aspect in this context. The entire paradigm of emotional intelligence revolves around how one can be in touch with one`s feelings to know oneself, and after having realized that, how to motivate oneself to undergo the needed transformations. Furthermore, the individual also needs to understand others` emotions and learn how to deal with them. Scholars suggest that socialization in a particular society naturally instills the required elements of emotional intelligence in individuals, however, with the evolution in technology the part of socialization is rather played by the entertainment sources. In other words, nowadays people spend more time listening to music and watching TV content than any other activity (Nesbaum 2001). Thus, it can safely be assumed that emotional intelligence is built around these entertainment series. Also, research indicates that modern children are emotionally smarter than those belonging from generations of the past. Further studies also imply that entertainment has a huge part to play in this context, as these modern children have more exposure to modern entertainment content. Thus conclusively, connecting the concept with entertainment is a new development in the field of psychology. With easier access to entertainment channels like internet, music, movies, news, television and multitude of other entertainment modes, it has become crucial to understand the apparent link between the emotional intelligence and entertainment. After rigorous research, it can evidently be stated that the entertainment has a strong impact on the emotional intelligence of a person. In other words, the kind of entertainment, the level and also the quality of entertainment one is exposed to tends to affect the emotional intelligence of an individual in a multitude of ways. Research indicates that many of the indicators connected with entertainment industry and exposure to content directly influences the emotional intelligence of individuals. Works Cited: Nussbaum, M. C. (2001). Upheavals of thought: The intelligence of emotions. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Pellitteri, J. (2009). Emotional processes in music therapy. Gilsum, N.H: Barcelona Publishers. Porter, J. E., Goleman, D., Goleman, D., Goleman, D., & StressStop.com (Firm). (2011).Understanding emotional intelligence. Norwalk, CT: StressStop.com. Shastri, I. (2007). Emotional intelligence, creativity, and music learning practices. Newai: Navjeewan Publication. Read More