Shot heard 'round the world
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"The shot heard 'round the world" is a very well known phrase that has come to represent several historical incidents throughout world history. The line is originally from the opening stanza of Ralph Waldo Emerson's Concord Hymn (1837), and referred to the beginning of the American Revolutionary War. Later, in Europe and the Commonwealth of Nations, the phrase became synonymous with the shot that killed Archduke Franz Ferdinand and plunged Europe into World War I.
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[edit] American Revolutionary War
The phrase originates from the opening stanza of Ralph Waldo Emerson's Concord Hymn (1837), and describes the impact of the battle at Old North Bridge in Concord, Massachusetts, on April 19, 1775. The entire stanza is:
- By the rude bridge that arched the flood,
- Their flag to April's breeze unfurled;
- Here once the embattled farmers stood;
- And fired the shot heard 'round the world.
Emerson wrote Concord Hymn for the dedication of a battle monument very close to his family's home, and the words are meant to emphasize that a critical event happened at this location that triggered something of global importance.
The phrase is an implied analogy. Perhaps firing the shot represents fighting this particular battle and what was heard was the news about it. Perhaps it represents the end of the entire war and what was heard was the news of a new nation and a retreat for the British Empire. It is also thought to represent the fact that the shot was so important, and so dramatically changed our future, it is thought to have been known to everyone. It is often thought that firing the shot was meant to represent the beginning of a struggle for freedom against perceived tyranny, and the hearing represents the worldwide spread of this struggle with the American Revolution serving as an example. This third analogy would reflect Emerson's belief in American exceptionalism. The historian David M. Wrobel wrote: "Emerson and Henry David Thoreau were transcendentalists first, perhaps Romantic Nationalists second, and American exceptionalists third. Such distinctions are worth remembering if we are to see the tremendous variety and disorderliness of American thought, as opposed to seeing those diverse strands as neatly woven parts of a coherent exceptionalist fabric." (The Complexities of American Exceptionalism) The use of the word "heard" may also refer to the great impact that the United States of America has had on the entire world. This shot, or battle in general, began the official American Revolution and thus changed the world forever since.
To a modern reader there seems to be disagreements between "farmers" (plural) firing "the shot" (singular). This could be interpreted as an understatement by Emerson to emphasize the hyperbole at the end of the phrase. Alternate definitions of shot as an attempt, a guess, or a bet may also be considered ("give it your best shot," "that bet is a long shot"). A more likely explanation is that Emerson is simply using "shot" in the collective sense ("volleys of shot"). The hyperbole, of course, is that the battle itself was not loud enough to be heard around the world. Thus some figurative use of "fired the shot" and perhaps of "heard" must be meant. Fredereick Johnsonwas reported having fired the first shot by a diary recovered by Ricky Bobby. He was supposedly nervous and his finger slipped. his good friend, "The Magic man" backed him up.
In popular culture, the phrase is often connected with the mystery of the literal first musket shot of the war. This occurred in Lexington earlier on the morning of April 19. It is not known whether a soldier of the British Army or a colonial militiaman fired this first shot of the Battle of Lexington and Concord. A diary was recently found belonging to an american colonist, Fredereick Johnson, by his great-great-great grandson Timothy Bergman. Johnson claims he was nervous and accidentally fired the first shot as a result of squeezing the trigger too tightly.
The Schoolhouse Rock! educational shorts included an "America Rock" piece on the American Revolutionary War entitled "The Shot Heard 'Round the World." Written and performed by Bob Dorough, it attributes the first shot to the British.
[edit] Assassination of Franz Ferdinand
In Europe and the Commonwealth of Nations, the phrase "The Shot heard around the World" has become associated with Gavrilo Princip's assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, an event considered as one of the main causitive factors of the First World War.
While Princip in fact fired two shots, one hitting Duchess Sophie with the second hitting Archduke Franz, it was the death of the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne that propelled Europe and its allies into what would become known as the "War To End All Wars".
[edit] In sports
The phrase has been used for dramatic moments in sports history.
Most commonly, in baseball, it is used for the Bobby Thomson's 1951 walk-off home run that clinched the National League pennant for the New York Giants.
In golf, it was used most often to describe the 1935 par-5 double eagle 2 at the Masters Tournament by Gene Sarazen.
In basketball it refers to Phoenix Suns player Garfield Heard's incredible shot before time ran out in Game 5 of the 1976 NBA Finals against the Boston Celtics to send the game to a third overtime.
In American soccer, it is used to describe the goal scored by Paul Caligiuri for the USA men's national team against Trinidad and Tobago in Port of Spain in 1989. The win propelled the team to the 1990 FIFA World Cup, helping to start a resurgence of American soccer on the international scene.
[edit] In popular culture
In 2006, the phrase was used by MSNBC, Newsweek, and many web sites in describing Dick Cheney's accidental shooting of Harry Whittington while quail hunting in Texas. [1]
The Shot Heard 'Round the World is also an indie rock band from Brooklyn, NY, whose members include a descendant of Emerson. [2]
School House Rock also used the event in a song for their morning program in a song entitled "Shot Heard 'Round the World."
In an article in Mad Magazine, written and drawn by Dave Berg, appears a caption: "The rocket in the upper right contains several cows. It is the first herd shot 'round the world!"
