Respect Her

Aretha Franklin’s R-E-S-P-E-C-T was assigned to me to be listened to and analyzed this week.  I read over the lyrics first and realized I didn’t need to listen. The song had already been played for me many times and I've internalized it along with the many other hit songs I heard over and over.  Like most hit songs it is quite upbeat and the message is a little more so than other songs discussed. Instead of telling of harsh violent incidents, Franklin just wants a little respect from her husband.  There are those who use this song in the Civil Rights Movement to demand respect on a much larger scale across millions of Americans, but I like to think of it as her just speaking to her husband. It singles her out as a woman willing to stand for her rights whether it's to the oppression on African Americans or her own husband. That quality alone demands respect.