Environmentalism of the 1960s: Stasis Theory in "Big Yellow Taxi"

Monday, October 3, 2016

Stasis Theory in "Big Yellow Taxi"

In the song, “Big Yellow Taxi,” Joni Mitchell utilizes the Stasis Theory to present her support of the environmentalist movement, most strongly, the stasis of consequence/cause and effect. Throughout the song, Mitchell explains the impact certain events have had on the environment. For example, she writes, “Hey farmer farmer put away that DDT now give me spots on my apples but leave me the birds and the bees please!” This line describes a clear cause and effect relationship of how DDT usage as a pesticide consequently killed much wildlife. Additionally, Mitchell repeatedly sings the line “They paved paradise and put up a parking lot.” What this shows is the contrast between nature in its purest state, a sort of paradise, and the mundane and drab parking lots that are paved overtop nature’s beauty. This line is repeated at many points during the song, which successfully drives its message into the minds of the audience members. By expressing the consequences human actions have on the environment, Mitchell is able to form a solid argument for why society must pay more attention to environmental wellbeing. Using stasis theory, Mitchell presents the causes and effects of mistreatment towards the environment in her song “Big Yellow Taxi” with the intent to inform and persuade.

Sarah Neydon

5 comments:

Civil Rights: Police BrutalityOctober 3, 2016 at 8:14 PM
I agree with your point that "Big Yellow Taxi" utilized the stasis theory cause and effect. Human abandoning the nature and putting in artificial buildings and roads that destroy nature, which in turn would only hurt us in the long run. The song shows the cause of natural destruction and the effect of it.
-Ruoping Li
ReplyDelete
Replies
UnknownOctober 3, 2016 at 8:40 PM
I agree that this song used the cause and effect stasis theory. One of the major topics which you wrote about was the use of DDT. This is one of the many reasons american eagles are endangered, it softened their eggs and the chicks died easier before they were born.
ReplyDelete
Replies
UnknownOctober 3, 2016 at 8:45 PM
I think your analysis of stasis theory in "Big Yellow Taxi" was good. Many people don't think about the consequences of their actions and mainly think about the now. Admittedly, companies and people were greatly guilty of this in the 1960's. For instance people got wrapped up on "spots on [sic] apples" but never thought of the consequences of using chemicals and insecticides.
ReplyDelete
Replies

Add comment

Critical Introduction

Hello reader and welcome to our blog, “Environmentalism of the 1960s”! We are a group of freshman College Park Scholars at The University of Maryland, and all highly interested in the environment and the various movements to protect it. The Environmentalist Movement of the 1960s was one of the especially big motions in our history, and of the time and therefore many works were produced pushing the environmentalist agenda. Two of these works, which we discuss more thoroughly in our blog, are the book Silent Spring by Rachel Carson and the song “Big Yellow Taxi” by Joni Mitchell. These two works differ greatly on the basis of presentation, syntax, general message, and more, however both support the same general stance that human’s need to protect and stop inflicting such excessive harm on the environment. Our blog explores how the differences in these works enable each author to form concrete arguments backing the Environmentalist movement. In Joni Mitchell’s song “Big Yellow Taxi” and Rachel Carson’s book Silent Spring, the ideas of the environmentalist movement are pushed onto the audience using strong figurative language in the former and concrete facts in the latter.

In “Big Yellow Taxi” figurative language, specifically imagery, plays an important role in expressing Mitchell’s opinions on the environmentalist movement. Using pleas such as “hey farmer farmer put away that DDT now. Give me spots on my apples but leave me the birds and the bees please” Mitchell creates a visual imagery ‘ultimatum’ for her audience, showing what is being given up for relatively unimportant benefits. Silent Spring appeals to logos and utilizes research-based statistics to instill credibility into the argument presented. The work is flooded with facts which are intertwined with Carson’s opinions on those topics. The major arguments of both works is that a greater public concentration on conservation is needed, and that without this we will surely lose things that can never be replaced. They use stases of action making it clear that unless society changes its ways and evaluates its actions, this planet and all that was once good about it will be lost.

The Environmentalist movement is one that has gained steam throughout the years, yet still has been unable to find truly effective solutions. Finding these solutions has become more difficult as society has grown and industrialization has progressed. A major issue in the 1960s and 70s was the usage of a chemical pesticide, DDT, which is explained further in our blog and the two main works referenced in our blog. Although DDT use is now largely banned, other, debatably worse, problems have presented themselves. We move closer and closer to these issues causing irreversible damage, making it clear just how essential modern environmentalist thought is. For example, air pollution is the world’s number one preventable cause of death, lending credence to the idea that the Environmentalist movement has much further to go before finding true success. With help from activists such as Mitchell and Carson and their works, this movement is able to progress and continue spreading awareness to the importance of protecting the environment.

After reading our blog, you will have gained a better understanding of this movement as a whole, and two influential pieces that supported the movement. We do not have a perfectly ordered approach, as we felt that a more piecemeal approach allows the topic to blend more efficiently and organically, with less of didactic nature. We prove our major arguments by thoroughly examining all the stases and rhetorical appeals from several angles and applying them to both texts with great efficiency and care. We hope you will appreciate the consequences of carelessness in the environment and the true impact mankind has on this one environment we have been given. A feeling that mankind is to blame for many issues should not be a rare feeling, and yet this should also be coupled with hope that we have time to fix it. Have fun reading and learning how together we can all conserve this planet!