English through music · Bob Dylan · B2. Guarda il video, leggi l’analisi della canzone, poi rifletti sulle domande. Gli esempi e gli spezzoni citati sono in inglese, con traduzione.
Released in 1964, “The Times They Are a-Changin’” is one of Bob Dylan’s most powerful songs about social change. Its title has become a common English phrase, used whenever people want to say that the world is changing quickly.
Pubblicata nel 1964, «The Times They Are a-Changin’» è una delle canzoni più potenti di Bob Dylan sul cambiamento sociale. Il suo titolo è diventato un’espressione inglese comune, usata ogni volta che si vuole dire che il mondo sta cambiando in fretta.
Publicada en 1964, «The Times They Are a-Changin’» es una de las canciones más poderosas de Bob Dylan sobre el cambio social. Su título se ha convertido en una expresión inglesa común, usada cada vez que se quiere decir que el mundo está cambiando deprisa.
Sortie en 1964, « The Times They Are a-Changin’ » est l’une des chansons les plus puissantes de Bob Dylan sur le changement social. Son titre est devenu une expression anglaise courante, employée chaque fois que l’on veut dire que le monde change rapidement.
Das 1964 veröffentlichte „The Times They Are a-Changin’“ ist eines von Bob Dylans kraftvollsten Liedern über den sozialen Wandel. Sein Titel ist zu einer geläufigen englischen Redewendung geworden, die man benutzt, wenn man sagen will, dass sich die Welt schnell verändert.
Выпущенная в 1964 году, «The Times They Are a-Changin’» — одна из самых сильных песен Боба Дилана о социальных переменах. Её название стало распространённым английским выражением, которое используют, когда хотят сказать, что мир быстро меняется.
صدرت أغنية «The Times They Are a-Changin’» عام 1964، وهي من أقوى أغاني بوب ديلان عن التغيير الاجتماعي. وقد صار عنوانها عبارة إنجليزية شائعة تُستعمل كلما أراد المرء أن يقول إن العالم يتغيّر بسرعة.
《The Times They Are a-Changin’》发行于1964年，是鲍勃·迪伦关于社会变革最有力的歌曲之一。它的标题已成为一句常用的英语表达，用来表示世界正在迅速改变。
1964年に発表された「The Times They Are a-Changin’」は、社会の変化についてのボブ・ディランの最も力強い曲の一つです。そのタイトルは、世界が急速に変わりつつあると言いたいときに使われる、ありふれた英語表現になりました。
The song speaks directly to different groups of people and warns them that the world around them is changing. It addresses writers and critics, politicians, and above all parents, telling them that the old ways are passing and that a new generation is arriving.
Rather than describing a single event, the song describes a process: change is happening now, everywhere, and no one can stop it.
One of the song’s main themes is the distance between parents and their children. In the 1960s many young people had very different ideas from their parents about war, freedom and society.
Dylan gives a voice to that younger generation and asks the older one not to stand in the way of what is coming. The message is serious but also hopeful: change can be difficult, but it can also make the world better.
More than sixty years later, the song is still used all over the world, in films, in advertisements and in political speeches. Every generation seems to find its own meaning in it, because every generation lives through its own period of change.
This is one of the reasons Dylan’s work has lasted: he wrote about a particular moment, but he touched something universal.
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The very title of this song is a perfect example of the present continuous: “the times they are a-changing” simply means “the times are changing”. This tense is ideal for describing things that are happening now or that are in the middle of changing.
We form it with am, is or are plus a verb ending in -ing: The world is changing. / Young people are asking new questions.
We often use it with now, at the moment, these days and currently. Compare it with the present simple, used for permanent facts: The sun rises in the east (always true) but Society is changing fast (happening now). Describe three things that are changing in your country at the moment.
Change is the act of becoming different. A generation is all the people of about the same age. To warn someone means to tell them about a possible danger or problem.
A critic is a person who judges books, films or music. Society is the people of a country considered as a group. To stand in the way of something means to try to stop it from happening.
- Why do you think young people and their parents often disagree about how the world should change?
- The song’s title has become a common phrase; why do you think it is still popular?
- Can you think of something important that is changing in the world right now?
- If you wrote a song about change today, what would it be about?
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