John Henry

The story of John Henry is about a man named John Henry, who was born a slave and grew up as a slave. He was described as a strong and giant man. He worked as a steeldriver, which was a job involving the very dangerous and strenuous activity of driving the nails into the railroad tracks. John Henry said that he would die with a hammer in his hand. Steeldriving was all he has known since he was a little boy. In this story, John Henry challenges a steam drill driven by a white man threatening to take all of the steeldriver’s jobs. He feels like he must prove himself against the steam drill, as well as the white man. John Henry wants to prove his worth against whatever oppression is against him. In the end, John Henry defeats the steam drill, but he dies from exhaustion. Even though he dies, he has proved himself against the white man and the steam drill.
Even though the times of John Henry and “The Message” and “N.Y. State of Mind” are very different, and deal with different things, they all have a similar theme.
Each one of these ballads or songs deal with a young man in a horrible situation. For John Henry, this situation is the daily conditions he faces in his dangerous job as a steeldriver. He works so hard everyday just to survive, and the work he does involves his entire body.
In “The Message” and “N.Y. State of Mind”, the speakers go through their lives with their daily struggles as well. Even though these struggles are different than John Henry’s, they are still difficulties that these speakers face everyday. The entire message is to still try your best even if people, or something, is up against you. It shows the value of persistence, trying very hard, and perseverance. It is a bit different in “The Message” than it is in “N.Y. State of Mind” because in “The Message” the speaker is trying not to go past the edge. He is trying to keep his cool and keep doing the right thing through his struggle, just like John Henry did.