Abolitionist Rhetoric and the Campaign Song in 1860
Faculty Mentor(s) Name(s)
Dana Gorzelany-Mostak
Abstract
Music has played a significant role in presidential campaigning since the 1840 campaign of William Henry Harrison (Scott, 2017). This music was circulated in small, printed booklets called “songsters.” In the 19th century, campaign songs typically praised one candidate, or denigrated others, but sometimes lyrics expressed specific viewpoints or outlined aspects of the candidates’ policy platforms (Miles, 1990). The campaign of 1860 was no exception. There were four major candidates for this election: Abraham Lincoln (Republican party), John Breckinridge (Southern Democratic party), John Bell (Constitutional Union), and Stephen Douglas (Democratic Party). The candidates debated many topics, but the main issue at this time was slavery, and candidates turned to the power of song to sway public opinion. Songs for the Great Campaign of 1860 is a collection compiled for the campaign of Abraham Lincoln and his running mate, Hannibal Hamlin. This collection includes “Help! O Help!,” an abolitionist song composed during the period. Unlike the traditional campaign song, “Help! O Help” makes an emotional appeal by offering a poignant narrative of an enslaved mother. “Help! O Help!” tugs at the heartstrings of those that listen to it and exposes them to the grief and loss that enslaved individuals faced on a daily basis. While several scholars have turned a critical lens to campaign music, few have analyzed how songs in campaign songsters dialogue with other abolitionist texts. Drawing on anti-slavery rhetoric in newspapers, pamphlets, and personal narratives, this paper analyzes “Help! O Help!” against the backdrop of these texts, illustrating the vital role music played in the circulation of ideas in the campaign of 1860.
Start Date
27-3-2024 4:30 PM
End Date
27-3-2024 4:38 PM
Location
Atkinson 107
Abolitionist Rhetoric and the Campaign Song in 1860
Atkinson 107
Music has played a significant role in presidential campaigning since the 1840 campaign of William Henry Harrison (Scott, 2017). This music was circulated in small, printed booklets called “songsters.” In the 19th century, campaign songs typically praised one candidate, or denigrated others, but sometimes lyrics expressed specific viewpoints or outlined aspects of the candidates’ policy platforms (Miles, 1990). The campaign of 1860 was no exception. There were four major candidates for this election: Abraham Lincoln (Republican party), John Breckinridge (Southern Democratic party), John Bell (Constitutional Union), and Stephen Douglas (Democratic Party). The candidates debated many topics, but the main issue at this time was slavery, and candidates turned to the power of song to sway public opinion. Songs for the Great Campaign of 1860 is a collection compiled for the campaign of Abraham Lincoln and his running mate, Hannibal Hamlin. This collection includes “Help! O Help!,” an abolitionist song composed during the period. Unlike the traditional campaign song, “Help! O Help” makes an emotional appeal by offering a poignant narrative of an enslaved mother. “Help! O Help!” tugs at the heartstrings of those that listen to it and exposes them to the grief and loss that enslaved individuals faced on a daily basis. While several scholars have turned a critical lens to campaign music, few have analyzed how songs in campaign songsters dialogue with other abolitionist texts. Drawing on anti-slavery rhetoric in newspapers, pamphlets, and personal narratives, this paper analyzes “Help! O Help!” against the backdrop of these texts, illustrating the vital role music played in the circulation of ideas in the campaign of 1860.