where does between the world and me take place
Between the World and Me Between the World and Me takes the form of a book-length letter from the author to his son, adopting the structure of Baldwin's The Fire Next Time; the latter is directed, in part, towards Baldwin's nephew, while the former addresses Coates's 15-year-old son.[2] Coates's letter is divided into three parts, recounting Coates's experiences as a young man, after the birth of his son, and during a visit with Mable Jones. Coates contemplates the feelings, symbolism, and realities associated with being black in the United States.[6] He recapitulates the American history of violence against black people and the incommensurate policing of black youth.[10] The book's tone is poetic and bleak, guided by his experiences growing up poor and always at risk of bodily harm. He prioritizes the physical security of African-American bodies over the tradition in black Christianity of optimism, "uplift," and faith in eventual justice (i.e., being on God's side). His background, which he describes as "physicality and chaos," leads him to emphasize the daily corporeal concerns he experiences as an African-American in U.S. culture. Coates's position is that absent the religious rhetoric of "hope and dreams and faith and progress," only systems of white supremacy remain along with no real evidence that those systems are bound to change.[2] In this way, he disagrees with Martin Luther King, Jr.'s optimism about integration and Malcolm X's optimism about nationalism.
We Are the World "We Are the World" is sung from a first person viewpoint, allowing the audience to "internalize" the message by singing the word we together.[21] It has been described as "an appeal to human compassion".[22] The first lines in the song's repetitive chorus proclaim, "We are the world, we are the children, we are the ones who make a brighter day, so let's start giving".[22] "We Are the World" opens with Lionel Richie, Stevie Wonder, Paul Simon, Kenny Rogers, James Ingram, Tina Turner and Billy Joel singing the first verse.[23] Michael Jackson and Diana Ross follow, completing the first chorus together.[23] Dionne Warwick, Willie Nelson and Al Jarreau sing the second verse, before Bruce Springsteen, Kenny Loggins, Steve Perry and Daryl Hall go through the second chorus.[23] Co-writer Jackson, Huey Lewis, Cyndi Lauper and Kim Carnes follow with the song's bridge.[23] This structuring of the song is said to "create a sense of continuous surprise and emotional buildup".[3] "We Are the World" concludes with Bob Dylan and Ray Charles singing a full chorus, Wonder and Springsteen duetting, and ad libs from Charles and Ingram.[23]