Comparing Hamilton and Burr through "Wait for It" and "My Shot"
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Review the text for the songs "Wait for It" and "My Shot." Then reply to this prompt with a short paragraph comparing the characters of Hamilton and Burr as portrayed in these songs. You should incorporate one short quote from each song to illustrate your point. (Feel free to also reply to your classmates to keep the dialog/discussion moving.)
Both of these songs really explained and gave us a deeper look on who each of them are. Hamilton in “My Shot” showed that he will not stop for anything to show what he is capable of doing to everyone. He is really willing to do what ever he has to do to make the change within the colonies. Hamilton saying “Hey, yo, I’m just like my country I’m young, scrappy and hungry” he’s hungry to make the change in the country to get away from Britain. “I will lay down my life if it sets us free” Hamilton just wants the colonies to be free and will literally die for it. He’s ready right now and will not be waiting for someone else to do it. Burr in “Wait for it” is a 180 compared to Hamilton. This whole song talks about how he will wait for his chance to help. Burr has a legacy left from he late parents that he has to protect while Hamilton doesn’t. “He has something to prove. He has nothing to lose” Burr said this about Hamilton who really doesn’t have anything to lose due to not having a background or parents that let stuff behind for him to follow. Burr is much less ambitious then Hamilton because he can’t make mistakes because he has to protect his dead parent/grandparents legacy. Hamilton is now just making a name for himself so he can do all the crazy ideas he has.
Both characters are showing their thoughts on how they are handling the revolution and feelings about how things should be done.
In “My Shot” Hamilton shows that he wants to be a part of the revolution. The quote “Hey yo, I’m just like my country I’m young, scrappy, and hungry.” Hamilton shows that he is hungry to fight. Hungry to help set America free from England. “My Shot” goes into more detail on why Hamilton wants to be involved and why he has that hunger. In “Wait For It” Burr talks about his new love interest Theodosia. He also talks about his family legacy. “Wait For It” goes more into detail about Burr’s life. Burr came from a wealthy family. The quote “When they died they left no instructions. Just a legacy to protect.” Shows that Burr comes from a family who had a name and a legacy. This is why Burr hesitates and holds back. He has a legacy to protect. When Burr says “Hamilton doesn’t hesitate.” this shows the difference between them. Hamilton doesn’t have to hesitate because he came from a poor family versus Burr has to hold back because he has a legacy from his family to protect.
Therefore, “My Shot” and “Wait For It” do show a difference between Hamilton and Burr in several ways.
In “Wait For It” Burr speaks about how his is “willing to wait” for what he wants. He is willing to wait for Theodosia, saying, “And if there’s a reason I’m by her side when so many have tried then I’m willing to wait for it”. Unlike Hamilton, Burr already has status and money, all he has to do is protect the legacy of his parents, while Hamilton continues to fight for recognition. Hamilton makes the comparison to the colonies: “I’m just like my country, young scrappy and hungry”. Here, he shows that he is starting at the bottom and must earn his way up, he must take his “shot”. Burr, on the other hand, would rather stay where he is and wait for his lover.
Both of the songs “My Shot” and “Wait For It” explained Burr and Hamilton’s characters. One example of this is in the song “My Shot” This song explains how Hamilton isn’t going to waste time and is going to take every advantage he has to succeed this is different from “Wait For It” Which has the line “I’m not standing still, I am lying in wait.” This shows that Burr waits around for a good opportunity to arise before he makes his move while “My Shot” has the line “The plan is to fan this spark into a flame” This shows that Hamilton isn’t going to wait for something to happen he is going to make it happen himself, directly opposing Burr’s point of view
For example, one similarity between Burr and Hamilton shown in the songs is that they are both not willing to let their shots and opportunities pass by them. This is proven in “My Shot” when Hamilton says, “I am not throwing away my shot”, and in “Wait For It” when Burr states, “I am lying in wait”. This justfies that they are both not willing to let their shots slip by because Hamilton is adament about seizing his shot before it evens arrives, while Burr is lying in wait for it to come to him. An example of a difference between Hamilton and Burr is that Hamilton never restrains himself from taking action while Burr likes to bite his tongue. This is proven in “My Shot” when Hamilton states “There will be a revolution in this century, enter me” and in “Wait For It” when Burr says “I’m willing to wait for it”. This exemplifies how Hamilton does not restrain himself because he announces that he will help start the revolution. This also exemplfies how Burr bites his tongue because he always waiting for his shot, never taking action.
In the songs “My Shot” and “Wait For It” the character of focus has the opportunity to give the audience a peak into their personal life. Their traits, their relationships, and their dreams, goals, and aspirations.
“My Shot” had the features of the main characters, they sang briefly about their goals and gave a quick introduction. In “Wait For It” strictly Burr sings about himself. Hamilton’s song shows he’s open and selfless. He’s giving the spotlight to those around him and letting them have their moment. “Wait For It” shows Burr’s character as self-centered. He only sings about himself and his back story, only mentions a girl he’s in love with, and doesn’t let anyone else give their 2 cents. Although, he does mention Hamilton in 21st stanza and some proceeding stanza’s too (or text chunk I guess, I’m not sure if it’s technically a stanza), it isn’t in a positive light. He shows jealousy.
The most major difference between the two songs is the tone. “My Shot” is a song of hope, Alexander sings about all the things he will do in the future, all the potential he has. “So there will be a revolution in this century / Enter me!” (LMM pg. 8). Along with, “Don’t be shocked when your hist’ry book mentions me / I will lay down my life if it sets us free,” (LMM pg. 8).
Burr’s tone is negative, almost like a guilt trip. He speaks of death, heartbreak, and jealousy to make the audience feel for him. “And if there’s a reason I’m still alive / when everyone who loves me has died” (LMM pg. 50) “What is it like in his shoes? / Hamilton doesn’t hesitate. / He exhibits no restraint. / he takes nad he takes and he takes / and he keeps winning anyway,” (LMM pg. 50).
Both characters speak of themselves but Hamilton has a much better self image and mindset than Burr.
In Hamilton, it is commonly believed that Hamilton and Burr are foil characters, meaning that they have opposing and contrasting characters. The different characteristics between Hamilton and Burr are shown all throughout the musical, but they are really highlighted in the songs “Wait for It” and “My Shot”. The song “My Shot” reveals a lot about Hamilton’s character and why he acts the way he does, and the song “Wait for It” does the exact same thing, but for Burr’s character. The thoughts and beliefs of each character in these two songs illustrate the differences between Hamilton and Burr’s characters.
In Hamilton, Lin-Manuel Miranda characterizes Hamilton as a young, confident, adventurous immigrant who is willing to die for his country, to allow his country to gain its independence from Britain. A quote that shows this is “I am not throwing away my shot. I am not throwing away my shot. Hey yo, I’m just like my country. I’m young, scrappy, and hungry.” This shows that Hamilton does not want to waste his opportunity to fight in the war. He just wants to fight in the war for the benefit of his country. The fact that he says that he is “just like his country” shows that Hamilton wants to do anything for his country, no matter how dangerous it may be or that he could possibly die by doing so. That is also shown by the quote “I will lay down my life if it sets us free.” Hamilton says that he is similar to his country, meaning that he relates to it, which is why he wants to do anything for his country. His tone of voice while he is singing this song also reveals that he is confident and brave. He is not scared to die for his nation. On the other hand, Burr is characterized the exact opposite. He is not willing to do anything for his country and he would not want to die for his country, which is shown in the quote “I’m with you, but the situation is fraught. You’ve got to be carefully taught: If you talk, you’re gonna get shot!” This quote shows that Burr differs from Hamilton. While Hamilton is not afraid to die for his country, Burr is. He is not willing to die for his country, meaning that he is not willing to do anything for his country, unlike Hamilton. Burr wants to help out with his nation, but he does not want to lose his life to help out his country. He is not as dedicated to winning the war as Hamilton. In “Wait for It”, it is revealed that Burr believes in waiting for things to happen. He believes that waiting for things will end up paying off and be better than doing things right away. This is shown in the following quote “And if there’s a reason I’m by her side when so many have tried then I’m willing to wait for it. I’m willing to wait for it.” This shows that Burr wants to wait for things. He wants to wait to marry Theodosia until she is free from her husband. If Burr did not wait, it would be problematic. Hamilton, on the other hand, does not wait for it, and Burr knows this, which is shown by the quote “Hamilton doesn’t hesitate. He exhibits no restraint. He takes and he takes and he takes and he keeps winning anyway.” This means that unlike Burr, Hamilton does everything right away, which illustrates contrasting characterization between Hamilton and Burr. This quote also shows that Hamilton’s methods seem to be working, which is shown by the fact that Burr says he keeps “winning”. Hamilton’s methods work, but Burr does not believe in them. He believes that he will achieve a better outcome if he just waits for it.
In the songs “Wait for It” and “My Shot” Alexander Hamilton and Arron Burr are portrayed in 2 different ways. In “My Shot” we see how fast Hamilton wants to build his legacy in the quote "I am not throwing away my shot. Hamilton worked really hard to get to America and he is trying to build a legacy for himself so he doesn’t want to throw away his choice to build that legacy. But in the song “Wait for It” we see in the quote “I am lying in wait” that Arron Burr already has a legacy and he is waiting for his opportunity to prove himself where Hamilton is rushing to prove himself.
these two songs tell us a lot about how both characters look at life and how they go about it. Hamilton is a man who is trying to find his fame and reputation he deserves, he goes out fighting and will not stop until he is satisfied with his work and accomplishments. He strives to make all these changes that are better for the New Nation. he says, “I’m just like my country I’m young, scrappy, and hungry. And i’m not going to throw away my shot.” This tells alot about him. He fights for everything he has and hes got a hunger that he wants to chance. He wants to be the best and to make the new nation the best as it can be, he is a fighter and he will not stop until he shows the world who he is. Now Burr also wants a reputation but he goes at it a whole different way. He is more shy and watchful. He listens in the back while Hamilton fights up in the front. He wants this girl who is married yet he will not fight for her. He wants to have a reputation but he stays behind while Hamilton soaks up the sun while all his great deeds. Burr is very intelligent and a great lawyer but he just sits behind and hopes he gets a reputation. He constantly says, “I’m willing to wait for it.” This just shows that he is waiting for his time or shot but he is not like Hamilton who will take it for himself. Hamilton fights for his reputation while Burr listens for his time in the sun.
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While in “wait for it” the title alone tells us everything, Burrs a reserved man that’s willing to bid his time and wait for his chance to rise up the social ladder.
As for similarity’s between the characters, their both ambitious,orphan,geniuses that just want to leave their mark on the world.
We can see how they are both orphans with the war as an opportunity to prove themselves, but in different ways and for different reasons. In “Wait For It”, Burr explains how the people in his family were important and how, “When they died they left no instructions. Just a legacy to protect.” Burr does prove himself in the war and after, but he can’t do what Hamilton does with fear of ruining his family’s legacy. Considering Burr’s feelings towards Theodosia, it’s possible that he doesn’t care about his legacy, unlike Hamilton, because his wife would be more important to him. For Hamilton this is the opposite. His young and strong ambition is shown right away in “My Shot”. He states, “I am not throwing away my shot!” and “For the first time, I’m thinking past tomorrow.” Hamilton started from nothing and doesn’t have anything to lose by taking any chance he can get. Along with not being held back, he wants a legacy for himself by his own will. He believes he can do something big and will prove it. For Burr this is just expected because of his name. Also, Hamilton deals with the issue of his legacy or his family whereas Burr’s chooses family.
Hamilton and Burr have very different characteristics in Hamilton. Hamilton is a person that does not like to wait for what he wants. He likes telling people what he wants to do and what he wants to happen in his life. He shows this a lot in “My Shot.” This song shows how he doesn’t want to let go of any chance he has. Burr is the opposite of this. He always talks about waiting for the things he wants to come to him on their own. He doesn’t want to force anything to happen. In “Wait for It” he sings over and over that he’s “willing to wait for it” which shows that he believes he is where he should be. Hamilton and Burr have very different views about their lives.
In Hamilton, Burr and Hamilton are very conflicting characters. Both of them believe there separate things, and this leads to them being portrayed very differently. In the song “my shot” Hamilton is singing about how there needs to be a revolutionary war so he can help fight for the freedom of their country. Hamilton is a very outgoing man while Burr keeps more to himself and doesn’t really talk about what he thinks. In “my shot”, Hamilton says, “don’t be shocked when your hist’ry book mentions me, I will lay down my life if it sets us free”. This shows that he is willing to do anything, even die, if it means his country will be free. Meanwhile, in “wait for it”, Burr is talking about how much he loves Theodosia and how he just wants to be with her. He says “He has something to prove, he has nothing to lose” talking about Hamilton. This almost puts Burr in a place where he sounds jealous of Hamilton and how he isn’t scared to do anything. But Burr is more trapped in his own body, and doesn’t like sharing why and how he feels the way he does. Hamilton is more open and outgoing, while Burr is shy and keeps to himself.
In “My Shot” Hamilton talked about how rough of a childhood he had but that won’t stop him. Hamilton has plans and goals about what he wants and how he is going to achieve them. For example, “I’mma get scholarship to King’s College, I probably shouldn’t brag, but dag, I amaze and astonish” He is being confident in his abilities go achieve. He is saying over and over again that he is taking his chances because if he doesn’t he might lose his shot. In “Wait For It” Burr is kind of explaining what is going on in his life. He talks about how he is an orphan too. Burr is almost opposite of Hamilton though by saying that he is going to wait for it to happen to him instead of try and go get it. Burr also seems a little bit jealous of Hamilton in one of the sections. For example, “He takes and takes and takes and he keeps winning anyway” he is explaining all that Hamilton got and is getting but if Burr was trying then he could probably reach his goals too
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