The song Imagine was composed by John Lennon in March 1971 and was originally inspired by a book called Grapefruit written by Yoko Ono. During this time the Vietnam War played an important role in society because a few years before, in 1968, the horrific Tet Offensive took place. It was then that North Vietnam attacked the American base at Khe Sanh. The result was the death of 205 American soldiers (1,600 of whom were wounded) and over 1,000 South Vietnamese soldiers. For North Vietnam the attack was a catastrophe with the loss of 10-15 thousand soldiers, although it was an important victory from a psychological and propaganda point of view. The war was between communist North Vietnam and the Viet Cong and South Vietnam and the United States. It was an ongoing war from 1955 until Ho Chi Minh with his North Vietnamese troops took control of South Vietnam and US forces withdrew in 1975. Many people died during the war, approximately 2-3 million people. Souls all over the world began to protest against the war after seeing war pictures and films on television. This also created difficulties in diplomatic relations between Sweden and the United States. Many people protested because seeing how many soldiers and civilians were dying, they also thought that the United States should not have interfered in the conflict. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay The Meaning of the Song: Sending Peace to the World John Lennon uses repetition and repeats the word “imagine” throughout the song. He does this because he wants the listener to imagine a place where everyone is equal. “Imagine not owning, I wonder if you can” Here he asks a rhetorical question to the listener that makes you wonder if it is actually possible to imagine not owning. Imagine a place where you should put aside your selfishness and greed. He also hopes that one day the world will become one, which is hyperbole since it does not mean that the world should literally be one. “I hope that one day you will join us and that the world will be one.” He is also trying to tell us that we should live for today and not worry too much about the future. “Below us there is no hell. Above us there is only the sky. Imagine all the people living for today… Ha-ha…”. Hell symbolizes something bad and the only thing that is above us is heaven which is a symbol of something great. John Lennon is trying to tell us that we shouldn't worry about going to hell, which goes against religion. “Nothing to kill or die for, and not even a religion.” So basically, we shouldn't think much about what will happen in the future and just live in the present and make the best of it. The message of the song could also be associated with these groups and events, for example Band-Aid, 1984. They were a group of elite British and Irish musicians, led by Bob Geldof, formed to carry out a fundraising event in Ethiopia. They recorded the song "Do They Know It's Christmas?". They received enormous support around the world and encouraged a sense of solidarity globally. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay In conclusion, there was also a group of famous musicians/artists who collaborated for the fundraiser for starving people in Africa, called USA for Africa, 1985. They played together in the song “We Are the World" written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie. It relied even more on global solidarity to eradicate hunger and poverty. The original idea in the early years was to counter violence, racism and xenophobia in Borlänge e, 157, 1-18.