The genius of “To Pimp a Butterfly” is clear even before the first drumbeat. The title itself is a metaphor for society’s “pimping” of young black men for their artistic talent — the butterfly — while simultaneously driving them towards materialistic self-destruction.
Rev. Joseph Pedersen, C.S.C. of Waterloo, Iowa, serves Notre Dame as the rector of Siegfried Hall. He has an extensive history with the university, receiving undergraduate degrees in philosophy and theology, a Master of Arts in theology from the university’s Echo Graduate Service Program, and a Master of Divinity.
Amidst the rage of World War II in the Aug. 14, 1942 issue of Scholastic, the students of this university faced a similarly complicated, unstable and daunting environment. At the onset of the fall semester, President of the University Rev. Hugh O’Donnell, C.S.C. issued a letter to the student body in order “to keep the students accurately informed of developments vital to their welfare in the current emergency.”