DIRECTIONS The following is a rough draft of a research paper about the historical background of folk songs about John Henry. Th
e draft contains errors in development and organization. Some of the questions refer to numbered sentences within the text. Read the paper and answer the following questions. The Steely Story of John Henry (1) Children know the words “Once upon a time.” (2) To children, they promise an entertaining tale. (3) To folklorists such as Jane Yolen, they offer a glimpse into history and the oral tradition: “Folktales . . . carry with them the thumbprints of history” (Yolen 5). (4) The oral tradition is still alive today in folk songs. (5) Some stories change as they are sung over and over. (6) One story kept alive in folk songs is the tale of John Henry. (7) This story of one man’s battle against a machine is based in fact, but several versions of the song have developed over time. (8) Singers have kept to the facts. (9) The basic story of John Henry remains the same in all versions of the song. (10) John Henry is always a large, powerful man. (11) He is admired for his speed and his skill with a heavy hammer. (12) John Henry agrees to compete with a steam-powered drill. (13) He participates in the fierce competition. (14) He beats the machine and then dies (“John Henry” 543). (15) All versions of the story stress John Henry’s strength, courage, and determination. (16) In all versions, he is a hero. (17) The songs about John Henry are based in fact. (18) Experts agree that a man named John Henry was born into slavery in Virginia or North Carolina around 1850. (19) After the Civil War, the freed John Henry was hired by the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad as a steel driver, a worker who made holes in rock by using a heavy hammer to drive steel drills or spikes into the rock. (20) According to the Web site John Henry—The Steel Driving Man, the railroad was to run through Big Bend Mountain in West Virginia and was such a huge project that it took a thousand men three years to complete. (21) While driving steel through Big Bend, John Henry was challenged by the owner of a pneumatic drill, a new invention at that time. (22) Some believe that John Henry died of exhaustion or from a stroke after the contest (Hempel, Procopio, Shaver, and Novak). (23) By the time the songs were first recorded in 1909, several versions had developed. (24) Each has a different focus that reveals something about the people who enjoyed it. (25) In one, Henry’s heroism comes from being an African American who dared to test his strength against a machine run by a white man (Hempel, Procopio, Shaver, and Novak). (26) Zora Neale Hurston, a collector of African American folk tales, disagrees, however, about the song’s ties to the African American tradition. (27) In fact, the version Hurston includes in her book Mules and Men does not even mention that John Henry was African American or that the steam drill operator was white (257–259). (28) The story of John Henry appears to have its deepest ties to the tradition of workers. (29) The versions of the song within this tradition emphasize John Henry’s feat as a man who beats a machine that threatened the jobs of railroad workers. (30) The song was sung by workers of all types who prized the story of the determined man and the clear rhythms of the song. (31) “[T]he song also reflects many faces, many lives. (32) Some consider it a protest anthem, an attempt by the laborers to denounce—without facing punishment or dismissal by their superiors—the wretched conditions under which John Henry worked” (Hempel, Procopio, Shaver, and Novak). (33) Clearly all the versions of the story of John Henry have their place in U.S. history and culture. (34) Today, the story is often taught in literature classes and appears quaint to young readers who will never have to pick up a steel-driving hammer. (35) However, for more than one hundred years, the story of John Henry has inspired many people. (36) Perhaps today’s students should take another look at John Henry and be inspired, too. Works Cited Hempel, Carlene, Deb Procopio, Dan Shaver, and Beth Novak. John Henry—The Steel Driving Man. University of North Carolina— Chapel Hill. 10 Nov. 2001 . Hurston, Zora Neale. Mules and Men. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 1935, 1978. “John Henry.” Benet’s Reader’s Encyclopedia of American Literature. 1st ed., 1991. Infotrac. 10 Nov. 2001 . Yolen, Jane, ed. Favorite Folktales from Around the World. New York: Pantheon Books, 1986. Which question would BEST help the writer narrow the focus of the paper? a. When did the oral tradition begin? b. When was the steam drill invented? c. Was John Henry a real person? d. What was the source of the melodies of the folk songs? Please select the best answer from the choices provided A B C D
