1. Assn. 45 JOURNAL
WHAT ROLE DID YOU PLAY TODAY (SLAVE, OVERSEER, ETC). HOW DID IT MAKE YOU FEEL TO BE ASSIGNED A ROLE WITH NO CHOICE? HOW DID THE JOB/ROLE MAKE YOU FEEL? WHAT WOULD LIFE BE LIKE IF YOU HAD TO DO THIS JOB/ROLE EVERYDAY AND NOT JUST FOR A FEW MINUTES?

2. Songs of Complaint – note the dialect
We raise de wheat, dey gib us de corn;
We bake de bread, dey gib us de cruss;
We sif de meal, dey gib us de huss;
We peal de meat, dey gib us de skin;
And dat’s de way dye takes us in.
We skim de pot, dey gib us de liquor;

3. INTRODUCTION TO CODE SONGS
SPIRITUALS AND SLAVE NARRATIVES WERE A PART OF THE WRITING IN THE PERIOD OF REALISM
SLAVES WERE ENCOURAGED TO SING SO MASTERS COULD KEEP TRACK OF THEM MORE EASILY.
MANY SLAVES USED THESE SONGS TO PASS ON ESCAPE INFORMATION USING A CODE WITHIN THE SONG

4. Wade in the Water
Wade in the water. Wade in the water, children. Wade in the water. God's gonna trouble the water.
Well, who are these children all dressed in red? God's a-gonna trouble the water Must be the children that Moses led God's a-gonna trouble the water.
Chorus
Who's that young girl dressed in white Wade in the Water Must be the Children of Israelites God's gonna trouble the Water.

5. Follow the Drinking Gourd
Pg. 415
When the sun comes back and the first quail calls, Follow the Drinking Gourd. For the old man is waiting for to carry you to freedom, If you follow the Drinking Gourd.

6. When the sun comes back" means winter
When the sun comes back" means winter. Quail are migratory birds wintering in the South. The Drinking Gourd is the Big Dipper. The old man is Peg Leg Joe. Peg Leg Joe was a conductor on the Underground Railroad.

7. The river bank makes a very good road, The dead trees show you the way, Left foot, peg foot, traveling on Follow the Drinking Gourd.

8. This verse taught slaves to follow the bank of the Tombigbee River north looking for dead trees that were marked with drawings of a left foot and a peg foot. The markings distinguished the Tombigbee from other north-south rivers that flow into it.

9. The river ends between two hills, Follow the Drinking Gourd
The river ends between two hills, Follow the Drinking Gourd. There's another river on the other side, Follow the Drinking Gourd.

10. These words told the slaves that when they reached the headwaters of the Tombigbee, they were to continue north over the hills until they met another river. Then they were to travel north along the new river which is the Tennessee River. A number of the southern escape routes converged on the Tennessee.

11. Where the great big river meets the little river, Follow the Drinking Gourd. For the old man is awaiting to carry you to freedom if you follow the Drinking Gourd.

12. This verse told the slaves the Tennessee joined another river
This verse told the slaves the Tennessee joined another river. They were to cross that river (which is the Ohio River), and on the north bank, meet a guide from the Underground Railroad

14. YOUR TURN
CREATE A “CODE” SONG – GIVE DIRECTIONS FROM THIS ROOM TO A LOCATION ON CAMPUS OR NEARBY – YOU CAN’T JUST TELL SOMEONE TO GO FROM ROOM 225 TO THE LIBRARY DIRECTLY (OR SOME OTHER LOCATION) – USE CLUES/HINTS – BUT YOUR CLUES CAN’T BE SO CODED THAT NOONE CAN FOLLOW THEM! WHEN YOUR SONG IS FINISHED GIVE THEM TO A CLASSMATE – CAN THEY FIGURE OUT WHERE TO GO? (FOLLOW ON PAPER ONLY PLEASE – YOU NEED TO STAY IN CLASS!)