Miserable, Trapped and Hopeless:
A Thematic analysis of Aretha Franklin's "I Never Loved a Man (The Way I Loved You)"
ABSTRACT
I conducted a thematic analysis of the
lyrics to Aretha Franklin's 1967 hit "I Never
Loved a Man (The Way I Loved You).
Three themes emerged from the analysis
that reflected a time when most women
stayed in unhealthy and unfulfilling
relationships for practical purposes.
Miserable reflected pain from a unhappy
relationship. Trapped reflected a feeling of
being constrained in an unhealthy
relationship. Hopeless reflected the notion
that despite a unfulfilling relationship,
having a piece of a man is better than
having no man.
The themes are discussed through the
lenses of cultivation theory and compared
to past and recent media portrayals of
black women such as Beyonce or Cookie
from the FOX's "Empire." They are
portrayed as independent, sexy and men
are an option. Listen to song from mobile
device with your QR code reader.
Brittany Price, Jr. Journalism
Undergraduate Student at
NC A&T State University
Kim Smith, Ph.D, Faculty Mentor
kcsmith1@ncat.edu
Brittany Price, JOMC
INTRODUCTION
The Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin, is a R&B pioneer who embodies
what it means to have soul. Franklin released a monumental single
and album of the same name entitled, I Never Loved a Man (The Way
I Loved You) on February 10, 1967. I Never Loved a Man went to # 2
on the Billboard album chart and peaked at # 9 on the Billboard Hot
100 singles chart. The album was certified Gold in 1967. (Genius
Music Group, 2017
https://genius.com/albums/Aretha-franklin/I-never-loved-a-man-the-way
-i-love-you
). The song explains the thinking of many women of this era and how
they felt confined in their loves, marriages, and lives. Franklin
describes love as the only reason of staying in such a tumultuous
relationship.
THEORETICAL UNDERPINNINGS
Cultivation theory proposes that exposure to television or
other media, over time, subtly "cultivates" viewers'
perceptions of reality (Gerbner, G., Gross, L., Morgan, M.,
& Signorielli, N. (1986). "Living with television: The
dynamics of the cultivation process" in J. Bryant & D.
Zillman (Eds.), Perspectives on media effects (pp. 1740).
Hilldale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates) .The theory
suggests that societys perception of Black women is
cultivated over time through exposure to media messages,
whether positive or negative.
Franklins song was released when Black women still
played subservient roles to men and media images of them
reflected these roles as wise, soft spoken or overbearing
obese maids and cooks who were solely dependent upon
their sometimes cheating and abusive husbands for their
ultimate survival. (Donald Bogles book, Toms, Coons,
Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks, examines many of these
negative stereotypes in film but they also existed in
television).
Two notable exceptions to the stereotypes emerged in the
1960s. In 1966, Star Trek premiered, featuring the black
communications officer Lt. Nyota Uhura played by Nichelle
Nichols. She was bright, independent, dark-skinned but
proud and independent African-American woman (Nichols,
n.d.
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0629667/bio?ref_=nm_ov_b
io_sm
).
The other was the NBC TV show Julia. Starring Diahann
Carroll, the series featured a Black, single mother nurse
who was raising her son. It premiered in 1967 (Carroll, n.d.
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0140792/bio?ref_=nm_ov_b
io_sm
). But it was not just Black women who were portrayed as
DISCUSSION
The song is intense and expressed insurmountable feelings
of hurt and pain. Still, the song returned to its core concept:
I am hurt and suffering but Im staying in this relationship
because of the power of love.
Some time ago I thought/You had run out of fools/But I
was so wrong/You got one that you'll never lose/The
way you treat me is a shame/How could ya hurt me so
bad/Baby, you know that I'm the best thing/That you
Media also portrayed White women as submissive to men who primarily dealt with household
ever had/Kiss me once again/Don'cha never, never say
responsibilities during the 1950s and 60s. See Harriet Nelson of The Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet
that we we're through/Cause I ain't never/Never, Never,
Weintraub, B. (http://www.nytimes.com/1998/06/18/arts/dousing-the-glow-of-tv-s-first-family-time-for-
no, no (loved a man)/(The way that I, I love you)
the-truth-about-ozzie-and-harriet.html), among others.
The song, being written in 1967, gives us a view of a time
In general, society had already cultivated the idea, honed through decades of negative and
when most women were more submissive to their men, no
stereotypical portrayals (Gerbner et. al), that women, Black women in particular, were inferior to men.
matter how they were treated. Black women were more
likely to stay with a man because it gave them higher class
METHODOLOGY and status and was more economical for themselves and
their families. I argue that cultivation theory helped convince
The lyrics were analyzed using a qualitative research technique called thematic analysis. TA is a way to
society that this was the norm.
analyze text for deeper meanings by coding the lyrics that answer the question, What is going on here?
(Brian & Clark, 2006, https://sites.google.com/site/howtousethematicanalysis/home/what-is-thematic-
Cultivation theory suggests that long-term exposure to
analysis). The lyrics were analyzed one to two lines per song. A one-to-three-word phrase was used to
media messages about Black women help set in motion
summarize each line. After initial coding, like coded terms were placed in boxes and those terms were
how society perceived and continues to perceive them. That
summarized to come up with the themes.
perception is to a large degree negative, inaccurate,
RESULTS stereotypical. But like there were exceptions to the
stereotypes in the late 1960s Black women TV characters,
Theme 1 is MISERABLE. It is characterized by the following like codes: Hurt, Pain, Evil, Wicked, Bad, we have some exceptions to the stereotypes today.
Cautious, Scared, Reserved, Conservative, Unlovable, Miserable, Deplorable, Unsatisfied, Mistreatment,
Unappreciated, Insomnia, Restless, Sleeplessness, Damaged, Destroyed, Ruined, Passive. Black women TV characters, such as Cookie from FOXs
Empire or music icon Beyonce, embody the powerful,
The song provides an example of this with the lyrics: independent Black woman who send a message that having
You're a no good heart breaker/You're a liar and you're a cheat/ And I don't know why/ I let you do a man in their life is an option not a necessity. And let us not
these things to me forget the real-life impact of former First Lady Michelle
Obama. All of these women had a positive impact on the
Theme 2 is TRAPPED. It is characterized by the following like codes: Stuck, Bound, Trapped, Cornered, psyche of young African American women, including me.
Staying, Committed, Long-Haul, Possession, Owned, Handled, Remaining, Locked-In, Lasting, Encaged,
Captive, Incarcerated, Attached, Enslaved, Confined. This phenomenon suggests that if cultivation theory can
reflect negative stereotypes, it can also be used to reflect
The song provides an example of this with the lyrics: My friends keep telling me/That you ain't no positive images as well. And that is potentially good news
good/ But oh, they don't know/That I'd leave you if I could for young Black women in desperate need of powerful,
positive, Black female role models in a media world where
Theme 3 is HOPELESS. It is characterized by the following like codes: Unimaginable, Unseen, Advice,
there are too many negative images of African-American
DISCUSSION
Guidance, Realize, Inexperienced, Recalling, Remembering, Incorrect, Negative, Unaccepting, women.
Unforeseeable, Conniving, Deceitful, Unfaithful, My Secret, Deep-Down Feeling, Dishonest.
What we need are media content producers brave enough
The song provides an example of this with the lyrics: I can't sleep at night/And I can't eat a bite/ I guess
to reverse cultivation theory and use it to promote more
I'll never be free/ Since you got, your hooks, in me positive and balanced images of African-American women
and men.
Lyrics supplied by Google Play Music. Lyrics written by Ronnie Shannon