Before his death, performer, educator and humanitarian Joe Carter introduced the Spiritual to audiences from Novosibirsk to Nigeria. He had a singular understanding of the religious sensibility of this music and its hidden meanings.

Classroom Materials

• Transcript (PDF - 136 K)
• Segment 1: Introduction and the Purpose of Spirituals
  Listen (12:54)
  • Listening Comprehension (PDF - 190 K)
  • Critical Thinking and Research Challenges (PDF - 179 K)
  • Key Terms (PDF - 169 K)
  
  
• Segment 2: Spirit of Christianity with African Sensibilities
  Listen (04:46)
  • Listening Comprehension (PDF - 145 K)
  • Critical Thinking and Research (PDF - 194 K)
  • Key Terms (PDF - 169 K)
  
  
• Segment 3: Spirituals as Resistance
  Listen (16:51)
  • Listening Comprehension (PDF - 149 K)
  • Critical Thinking and Research (PDF - 214 K)
  • Key Terms (PDF - 169 K)
  
  
• Segment 4: Universal Appeal of Spirituals
  Listen (12:07)
  • Listening Comprehension (PDF - 149 K)
  • Critical Thinking and Research (PDF - 214 K)
  • Key Terms (PDF - 169 K)
  
  
• Companion Website:
  Joe Carter and the Legacy of the African-American Spiritual