By Edwin Starr

War, huh, yeahWhat is it good forAbsolutely nothing

Uh-huhWar, huh, yeah

What is it good forAbsolutely nothingSay it again,

y'all

War, huh, good GodWhat is it good forAbsolutely nothing

Listen to me

Ohhh, war, I despiseBecause it means destruction

Of innocent lives

War means tearsTo thousands of mothers eyes

When their sons go to fightAnd lose their lives

I said, war, huhGood God, y'all

What is it good forAbsolutely nothing

Say it again

War, whoa, LordWhat is it good forAbsolutely nothing

Listen to me

War, it ain't nothingBut a heartbreaker

War, friend only to the undertakerOoooh, war

It's an enemy to all mankindThe point of war blows my mind

War has caused unrestWithin the younger generation

Induction then destruction

Who wants to dieAaaaah, war-huh

Good God y'allWhat is it good forAbsolutely nothingSay it, say it, say it

War, huhWhat is it good forAbsolutely nothing

Listen to me

War, huh, yeahWhat is it good forAbsolutely nothing

Uh-huhWar, huh, yeah

What is it good forAbsolutely nothing

Say it again y'allWar, huh, good GodWhat is it good forAbsolutely nothing

Listen to me

War, it ain't nothing but a heartbreaker

War, it's got one friendThat's the undertaker

Ooooh, war, has shatteredMany a young mans dreams

Made him disabled, bitter and meanLife is much to short and preciousTo spend fighting wars these days

War can't give lifeIt can only take it away

Ooooh, war, huhGood God y'all

What is it good forAbsolutely nothing

Say it again

War, whoa, LordWhat is it good forAbsolutely nothing

Listen to me

War, it ain't nothing but a heartbreakerWar, friend only to the undertaker

Peace, love and understandingTell me, is there no place for them today

They say we must fight to keep our freedomBut Lord knows there's got to be a better way

Ooooooh, war, huhGood God y'all

What is it good forYou tell me

Say it, say it, say it, say it

War, huhGood God y'all

What is it good forStand up and shout it

Nothing

Edwin Starr He was born Charles Hatcher on January

21, 1942 in Nashville, Tennessee. He was the cousin of soul music performer Roger Hatcher, but grew up in a non-musical household. He enlisted in the U.S. Army and was transferred to Europe. While in Europe, he performed in numerous clubs between Berlin and Amsterdam, honing the style that would eventually bring him fame when he returned to the United States. When Edwin returned to the U.S., he was invited to join Bill Doggett’s band as a featured vocalist. Shortly after, he formed a new band called the Future Tones. His most popular song was “War”, which he first sang in 1968. Edwin Starr died of a heart attack in England in 2003. (Walker)

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Vietnam War The Vietnam War was a conflict that took

place in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. The main purpose of this war was stopping the spread of communism. Most U.S. citizens did not like this war at all. There were many anti-war protests against the U.S. involvement in Vietnam. It was a very unpopular war and many people thought it was useless. (“The Vietnam War”)

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Theme “Absolutely nothing” is a good

theme for this song because the main idea is about anti-war. In the song, Edwin Starr asks the question, what is war good for? He goes on to say that it is good for absolutely nothing. When he says this, he is showing the anti-war theme that was popular during his time.

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Destruction There were over 2.5 million men and women that

served in the Vietnam War. Almost 60,000 of these soldiers were killed. More than 800,000 continue to suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders which have resulted in many suicides, incarcerations, and in alcohol and drug abuse. As you can see, when Edwin Starr was talking about destruction, he wasn’t joking. This goes along with the theme of anti-war and how war can lead to bad things. (Laurent)

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Innocent Lives In the Vietnam War, there was an

incident called the My Lai Massacre. It was a plan by an angry group soldiers in the U.S. army to go into a small Vietnamese village and kill everyone in it. Most of these people were unarmed citizens including women, children, and the elderly. The song says that in war, there are innocent people killed, and the My Lai Massacre is a good example of that. (“The My Lai Massacre”)

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Rhyme Scheme A rhyme scheme is a regular pattern of

rhyme, one that is consistent throughout the extent of a song or poem. In this particular verse, the rhyme scheme is AABCDC, which means that the first line rhymes with the second line, and the fourth line rhymes with the last line. The third and fifth lines do no rhyme with anything.

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Undertaker An undertaker is another name for a

funeral director. In this song, it says that war only has one friend, and that’s the undertaker. This is just saying that the only thing war does is take away lives. This is also talking more about the anti-war theme and how there is really no point to war.

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Metaphor A metaphor is a comparison between two

things where one thing is said to be another. In this song, Edwin Starr says that war is “an enemy to all mankind.” When he says this, he means that because of all the killing, war could potentially end human life. By comparing war to an enemy of mankind, Starr reminds us of how anti-war protests were a big part of the Vietnam War.

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Repetition Repetition is a technique in which a sound,

word, phrase, or line is repeated for effect or emphasis. In this verse of the song, the phrase “say it” is repeated three times. The artist is just indicating how important the previous lines are. This is also emphasizing the importance of war being good for nothing. (“A Glossary of Terms”)

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Allegory Allegory is a symbolic representation. It is

when an object, person, or action in a narrative is equated with a meaning outside the narrative itself. In this case, “heartbreaker” can be a representation of how the war had broken many people’s hearts. It can be literally breaking soldiers’ hearts when they die in battle, or if someone back at home has a broken heart because of someone they lost in the war.

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Disabled, bitter, and mean In this song, it says that the war has shattered

many of young men’s dreams, and that that it made them disabled, bitter, and mean. This is a good explanation of how the war changed people’s lives. After the war, soldiers came back to the U.S. very different from when they left. They had many physical and also psychological difficulties that resulted from being in war. Life was not the same for the returning soldiers, which made many people angry that we even fought in the Vietnam War. (Romo, Zastrow, and Miller)

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Peace, love, and understanding These three words are the main

ideas for this song. They are examples of what the anti-war movement was all about. Because of all the anti-war protests and ideas, the U.S. was taken out of Vietnam. Songs like this were a major part of the anti-war movement and they helped get the U.S. out of Vietnam.(“The United States”)

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CitationsWalker, Bruce. "Edwin Starr Biography." Musician Guide. Net Industries, n.d.

     Web. 18 May 2010. <http://www.musicianguide.com/biographies/1608004259/      Edwin-Starr.html>.

"The Vietnam War." The History Place. The History Place, 1999. Web. 31 May 2010.      <http://www.historyplace.com/unitedstates/vietnam/>.

Laurent, Pauline. "Vietnam: An Overview." Grief Denied: A Vietnam Widow's Story.      N.p., n.d. Web. 31 May 2010. <http://www.griefdenied.com/      overview.html>.

"The My Lai Massacre." American Experience. PBS, 29 Mar. 2005. Web. 31 May 2010.      <http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/vietnam/trenches/my_lai.html>.

Literary Devices. Online Learning Centre, Saskatoon Public Schools, 2008. Web.      31 May 2010. <http://olc.spsd.sk.ca/de/resources/litdevices/      index.html>.

"A Glossary of Terms for Literary Analysis." Wallkill Central School District.      N.p., n.d. Web. 31 May 2010. <http://www.wallkillcsd.k12.ny.us/      glt.htm>.

CitationsRomo, Barry, Pete Zastrow, and Joe Miller. "History of the U.S. War in Vietnam."

     Vietnam Veterans Against the War. N.p., 2002. Web. 31 May 2010.      <http://www.vvaw.org/about/warhistory.php>.

"The United States Antiwar Movement and the Vietnam War." Study World. Oakwood      Publishing Company, n.d. Web. 31 May 2010. <http://www.studyworld.com/      Antiwar_Movement.htm>.

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