Essay on Joe Hill: The Man Who Never Died by Wayne Hampton

Joe Hill: The Man Who Never Died is the fourth chapter of a book by Wayne Hampton titled Guerrilla Minstrels: John Lennon, Joe Hill, Woody Guthrie, and Bob Dylan. It tells the story of a radical labor activist called Joe Hill who was executed in Utah in 1915. For many years, he had been an active member of the Industrial workers of the World, also referred to as the Wobbles, and was also a well-known songwriter. Hills trial for the murder of two people attracted a lot of attention from the public, with the subsequent conviction trigger a major campaign to save him from the death penalty.

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Hill was born in Sweden but relocated to the United States in 1902. He became interested in politics while working in various parts of the country, and eventually joined the Wobblies. The organization sought to represent workers who were avoided by the more mainstream trade unions, including unskilled laborers, migrants and immigrants, and those from minority communities. It was trying to bring the entire working class together under a single major union. As a member, Hill actively fought for free speech in San Diego and Fresno, took part in a railroad construction workers strike in British Columbia, and even participated in the Mexican Revolution.

Although Joe Hill was not a native English speaker, he showed an excellent understanding of the various forms of American popular and folk music as well as slang and humor. He was part of a long lasting tradition of the so-called organic intellectuals in the United States. In addition, he was quite intelligent, as is evident in his lyrics and other works of literature. He was self-educated and was obsessed with coming up with great ideas. Trade unions often had libraries in which workers could access books and other related materials about various topics such as economics and poetry. Affordable pamphlets in the then current issues, including Marxism were readily available in the years following the Civil War and in early twentieth century.

Hill was quite talented in the genre of vernacular speech. Even better, he had mastered the wobbly slang of the time and the then latest vaudeville, music-hall of the time. Also, Hills work is full of irony, sarcasm and humor- skills that not many people can gain in their second language. There is a high likelihood that he picked all this up from Wobblies and labor activists, as well as his keen interest in music. Hill underwent music training and has a passion for music, all of which are evident in his lyrical approach. From his lyrics, it can be seen that he paid keen attention to the Tin Pan Alley and musical hall writers of the time. A majority of these writers also immigrants who were quite skilled in lyrical twists, slang, and brilliant utilization of idioms. As a matter of fact, Hills choice of songs and lyrics had a lot in common with composers of music hall.

Together with other Wobbly writers and musicians, Joe Hill deserves some credit for the manner in which they used irony and sarcasm in developing American literature. Their sharp wits and fiery tongues worked rapidly and efficiently; a situation that only pissed off their harsh and insensitive superiors, the ruling elite, and the law even more. People in positions of power and authority dislike radical trade unionists even more if they are smarter than them.