Rose Xu

Prof. Rodriguez

ENGL 1010

1.29.2020

Still need to keep going

According to ‘The Punishment of Sisyphus’, people always wonder whether we

should fight for our dreams with the growth of age in life. The story used in the song

is a classic example to refer to futility and the song writer Ka used this story to

discuss his humility. People may get punishments if they try to fight for their dream,

the ways of metaphor are the main characteristic in this hip-hop song, the rhetoric of

this whole song was mainly made by rap. When I was listening to this song and

understood Ka thought Sisyphus was correct, he used his music to show why can’t

Sisyphus believe he has become more powerful than god? The main idea I stand is

that there is always one dream in my mind, we cannot be defeated by temporary

difficulties or confusion. However, Ka used this story to claim he wants people to

recognize themselves like Sisyphus. Young people should not be stuck in a rut, they

need passion and unconventional beliefs, they should not stay in an endless cycle

because people’s own personality is depended on themselves. The song is to analyze

another side of Sisyphus, people should live for themselves.

This song makes me feel the author's bold, but I still have another question: Is an

ancient Greek mythology fit perfectly in the hip-pop song? Although the story is
 very meaningful and directly expresses the purpose of the song, actually I still need

to research the original story to get the best expression. I do not deny that I come

from another country, cultural differences also hinder my understanding of this song.

I tried to find hints through the lyrics and pitch of the song. There is no doubt that

this song is a successful innovation because Ka successfully combine the content of

the story with the lyrics, but to know every background of the songs is essential to

make you feel the sense of intension.

In my opinion, the mythology is the main guide for listeners to understand what

the main idea of the work is. Modesty is the theme of the whole song, Ka's lyricism

can also attract more attention from the audience because they will be more curious

about the content of this song and how Ka will use the song to combine the story with

his music style. Rap is the leading vocalist of his entire song, and he manages to blend

this avant-garde style of singing with profound ideas. Singers in this field always tend

to judge something like wealth, identity or social media which means it is a rare

method to use rap as the main structure to find the most appropriate rhetoric for the

audience and make them directly feel the author's mood. For example, the lyric

mentioned ‘Feeding my pride humbly, dreams that I die hungry, did well not to fell,

could tell seeds relied on me, relied on me.’ This lyric has been consulted the story as

this part is a type of simile. Otherwise, ‘Relied on me’ is one of the ascensive lyric for

the audience to cheer up young people. Ka thought the society needs to innovate and

let young people live for themselves, not being limited by traditional rules.
 Works Cited

1. Mack, Raven. "SONG OF THE DAY: The Punishment of Sisyphus." Rojonekku,

21 Feb. 2019, www.rojonekku.com/2019/02/song-of-day-punishment-of-
sisyphus.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter.