Music's power to influence and entertain people

¶ … music has the power to influence as well as to entertain people?

Music -- the truly universal language

Although it is generally appreciated for its ability to entertain people, music is far more complex than it seems. Music has played an essential role in people's lives ever since the beginning of history, considering that all cultures have a rich background in music. Music has been proved to affect all individuals by inducing feelings that are either negative or positive and by eventually influencing the way that they act. Music accesses parts of the brain that are very important and makes it more difficult for the individual to concentrate on matters that are more significant. The contemporary society is dominated by music, as there is a genre for anyone, regardless of what they like and as people have come to use music for a wide range of purposes. Music is truly the universal language because no other art form affects our emotions, society, and behavior so profoundly.

II. Most cultures today have traditional music, this standing as proof that people have always used music as a technique to amplify or produce particular states of mind. Even though it is difficult to determine what each culture used music for in earlier times, it is generally accepted that most civilizations have come to use music as a means to accompany stories or in order to encourage people to let their imagination run free. Music also made it possible for warriors to employ more strength of mind at the time when they engaged in battle. Largely all important rituals in most cultures are accompanied by music, as people came to acknowledge that music was capable of intensifying events through affecting individuals on a more complex level. Music can be beneficial for people who have trouble remembering things, as it was found to assist patients suffering from maladies like Alzheimer's or dementia.

III. Music experienced notable progress in the second half of the twentieth century as it started to be associated with various movements and as people expressed an increasing demand for particular genres. The 1950s saw a large number of individuals being influenced by music, considering that singers like Elvis Presley experienced success and given that society started to be more permissive regarding the effects that music had on people. Jazz music is considered to be very important in assisting African-Americans as they struggled to make it in a discriminatory society. Through supporting Jazz, many people came to ignore the suffering they experienced as a result of being discriminated and were enabled to come together in communities that shared their beliefs. Music thus made it possible for them to undergo an emancipation process as they started to be less vulnerable and as they developed stronger cultural identities. Matters changed significantly during the 1960s as the counterculture started to produce music that fueled anti-war thinking. Through the messages that it sent and because of the general context where it was listened, music made it possible for individuals to get actively engaged in the anti-war movement. The Hippie community was rapidly expanding and its primary stimulator was music, as people were literally going through brain-affecting experiences as they listened to psychedelic music.

IV. Music is essential in some people's lives because they associate it with particular feelings. Patriotic music is a very important factor in most countries because it makes individuals identify with it and because it triggers sentiments related to belonging. Religious music is also important, considering that many religions accept that religious teachings can be expressed more efficiently by being sung. People often turn to music simply because they feel that it helps them as they try to relax or as they attempt to amplify their feelings.

Whereas music can be beneficial when used in certain contexts, it can be particularly harmful when used inappropriately. Aggressive language alongside of a rapid beats-per-minute tempo can influence listeners in adopting hostile attitudes and in behaving unethically. Many people have committed suicide as a result of having depressing sentiments strengthen by certain music styles. The contemporary society associates emotive rock music with people who commit suicide as a result of the depressing moods that this music is believed to induce in individuals. Music can be considered to be responsible for influencing individuals to behave immorally when "it conveys negative, false, venal, or evil emotions or states of being, such as rebellion, chaos, anger, violence, atheism, or moral relativism" (Bonta). Given that the contemporary society promotes freedom of speech, it is very difficult for the masses to filter positive music and some come to be negatively influenced as a result of listening to music that makes people express anti-social convictions.