1. Watch “Strange Fruit,” sung by Billy Holiday.
2. Watch Jon Batiste’s music video “Freedom,” then the clip of his live performance on The Late Show.
3. Read The Book of Revelation Chapter 21, verses 1-22 and Chapter 22, verses 1-5.
4. Read “Three Japanese Poems” by Murasaki Shikibu, Sōku and Dogen.
5. Finally, read “Do Not Go Gentle into that Good Night,” by Dylan Thomas on pp. 432 and 433 in Being Human.
+What (obvious) similarities do these works have?
+What Big Question are they all addressing?
+What is “Freedom” in Batiste’s first clip, and what is it in the second? How are they different?
+How many different cultures do these works re/present? How similar or different are their answers to this question—and why are they different? +Which two are most at odds with each other Why? +Which of these generated the most thought on your part? +You should identify the main idea in each of these works and be able to indicate what makes them work.
