Alice+Ahn-+Transcendental+Song

=LISTEN By Beyonce Knowles =

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"Listen" by Beyonce Knowles ** Listen to the song here in my heart A melody I start but can't complete

Listen to the sound from deep within It's only beginning to find release

Ohh the time has come for my dreams to be heard They will not be pushed aside and turned Into your own, all 'cause you won't listen Listen I am alone at a crossroads I'm not at home in my own home And I've tried and tried To say what's on my mind You should have known Now I'm done believing you You don't know what I'm feeling I'm more than what You've made of me I followed the voice, you gave to me But now I've gotta find my own You should have listened

There was someone here inside Someone I thought had died So long ago Oh I'm screaming out And my dreams will be heard They will not be pushed Aside or turned Into your own All 'cause you won't listen

Listen I am alone at a crossroads I'm not at home in my own home And I've tried and tried To say what's on my mind You should have known Now I'm done believing you You don't know what I'm feeling I'm more than what You've made of me I followed the voice, you gave to me But now I've gotta find my own

I don't know where I belong But I'll be moving on If you don't, if you won't

Listen to the song here in my heart A melody I start, but I will complete

Now I am done believing you You don't know not what I am feeling I'm more than what you've made of me I followed the voice you think you gave to me

But now I got to find my own - my own

Explanation:
"Listen" is one of the most well-known songs by Beyonce. It is not only popular because it is not the typical love songs that are sung by almost all the singers but because it contains confidence, self-reliance, and nonconformity in the song.

One of the ideas of Transcendentalism that this song contains is self-reliance. //"Ohh the time has come for my dreams to be heard/ They will not be pushed aside and turned/ Into your own, all 'cause you won't listen"// (This part of the lyric is written in the color red above) The lyric mentioned above explains to the listeners that the protagonist of the song would not listen to other people but follow what one's own mind says and what one thinks. Self-reliance means the reliance on one's own powers and resources rather than those of other. Since no one is listening to what one is saying, the protagonist is saying that she or he would follow what her mind says and accomplish her dreams. The protagonist of the song is becoming independent instead of depending on others like one did in the past.
 * Self-Reliance:**

Along with self-reliance, the most clearly shown idea of transcendentalism is confidence. Throughout the lyric, the protagonist is emphasizing that one is confident about oneself and therefore one would rely on others, instead of following other people's opinions and ending up like one of them. //" There was someone here inside/ Someone I thought had died/ So long ago/ Oh I'm screaming out/ And my dreams will be heard"// (This part of the lyric is written in the color green above) The sense of confidence is described the most in the lyric mentioned above because it describes the process of one gaining back one's confidence. In the beginning, the lyric mentions how one thought one's own voice has died out but as time passed one realized that it was there all the time and now one is going to show one's dream to the public. One now has the confidence to present to the public and be evaluated by the public. The entire song has the mood of confidence in one self and that adds to the characteristic of being a song that contains the ideas of transcendentalism. **Nonconformity:** Last but not least, the song also contains nonconformity. The definition of nonconformity is failure or refusal to conform to a prevailing rule or practice. //" Now I'm done believing you/ You don't know what I'm feeling/ I'm more than what/ You've made of me/ I followed the voice, you gave to me/ But now I've gotta find my own/ You should have listened"// (This part of the lyric is written in the color blue above) The lyric mentioned above explains to the listeners that one is not going to listen to the other people, becoming like what the people "made of" one, but stand up as an independent individual and find oneself in the world. The protagonist also emphasizes the fact that the other people did not listen to her or him at all, but instead forced their opinion upon one, trying to conform one as others. The idea of nonconformity is well submerged throughout the entire song, once again, proving that the song, "Listen" by Beyonce Knowles, qualifies the requirements of a song that contains ideas of transcendentalism.
 * Confidence:**

Citation:
__Lyrics from:__ Kai, Oshiro. "LISTEN Lyrics - BEYONCE." //Song Lyrics//. Web. 17 Oct. 2009. .

__Video from:__ Rainbowbowsergirl999. "YouTube - listen-beyonce." //YouTube - Broadcast Yourself.// 12 July 2007. Web. 17 Oct. 2009. .

__Definition of words from:__ "Self-Confidence." //New Oxford American Dictionary//. Online. "Nonconformity." //New Oxford American Dictionary//. Online. "Confidence." //New Oxford American Dictionary//. Online.