Song Analysis

llllllShe's in the school library, a wooden table is her only shelter from the war scene above. The gunman saunters over to the table, slams his hand down and says with a smerk, "peekaboo" (Cullen, par. 48-49). She's staring down the barrel of the gun; "Do you believe in God" ("Cassie", line 6) is written on the bullet. A question. A gun. A decision of life or death. What will she choose? What would you choose?
llllllCassie Bernall said yes. She chose death. She chose to die for her beliefs. On April 20, 1999, two armed students entered Columbine High School with the hunger to kill. They mapped their destinations, planted their bombs, and loaded their weapons. Thirteen victims later, the high school as well as the country was left in shock. Lacey Mosley, lead singer of Flyleaf, embraced this tragedy into a song entitled, "Cassie."

llllll"I will die for my God. I will die for my faith. It's the least I can do for Christ dying for me." wrote Cassie Bernall, a student at Columbine High School (Waxman, par. 16). Cassie was strong in her faith and regularly attended church, but she had not always been an avid Christian (Bernall, par. 7-9).
llllllPrior to finding God, Cassie had been plotting to kill her parents (Cullen, pg. 223). She had written a letter to a friend that included a graphic drawing of two gravestones labeled "Ma and Pa Bernall" with a sketch of her parents hung by their intestines (Cullen, pg. 223). Misty, Cassie's mother, found the letter in Cassie's room next to her bible (Cullen, pg. 223) and immediately took action to save her family. She notified the authorities about Cassie's behavior, and when Cassie was confronted, she threatened to commit suicide (Cullen, pg. 223). After Misty and Brad withdrew Cassie from Columbine High and placed her into private school, Cassie revolted and began cutting her wrists and bashing her head against the bathroom sink repeatedly (Cullen, pg. 223). As she spent more time at her new christian high school, she began to connect with other religious teens and further develop her relationship with Christ (Waxman, par. 13). Cassie's attitude took a drastic turn after she attended a retreat with church (Cullen, pg. 224). Misty and Brad noticed Cassie's change and allowed her to transfer back to Columbine High (Cullen, pg. 224). At the time, the Bernall's were unaware that this simple choice would cause the death of their daughter.
llllllEven this radical change in personality couldn't prepare anyone for what would happen on that terrible day. Cassie was in the library sitting at a table with Emily Wyant (Cullen, pg. 226). Both girls were studying when they were instructed to get under the table (Cullen, pg. 226). They pulled chairs around their table to create a barricade and a sense of security from danger above (Cullen, pg. 226). As Dylan Klebold and Ryan Harris entered the library, Cassie sat under the temporary shelter and prayed quietly (Cullen, pg. 226). Her prayers were interrupted by two smacks on the table covering her head (Cullen, pg. 227). Eric knelt down awkwardly and sneered, "Peekaboo" as he lifted his gun to Cassie's head (Cullen, pg. 228). Emily watched in horror as Eric pulled the trigger; no words were spoken between the murderer and the victim (Cullen, pg. 227).
llllllThis story is contrary to the one leaked to the media. Cassie was supposed to be the girl that said yes. She was supposed to profess her faith. In all actuality, the exchange never occured. Emily Wyant and Bree Pasquale gave detailed descriptions of the incident to authorities (Cullen, pg. 229). Audio tapes proved that Emily and Bree's account was accurate, but this information was not released to the media because it was considered graphic (Cullen, pg. 229). People all over the country were receiving faulty information about Cassie's death.
llllllThe tale of a teenage girl professing her faith is not entirely false, though. Craig Scott was also a student who resided in the library when the shootings took place (Cullen, pg. 231). When he told the story of Cassie's murder to police, he pointed to the opposite side of the library from where Cassie was shot; the area where Val Schnurr had been hiding (Cullen, pg. 231). Dylan Klebold had questioned Val about her faith in God, but Craig had mixed up the two stories (Cullen, pg. 231). By the time Craig realized his mistake, the information of Cassie's martyrdom had already been released to the press (Cullen, pg. 231). It was too late to fix the mistake and Val's inspiring story was shoved aside.

llllllThe song "Cassie" by Flyleaf was written in honor of Cassie Bernall, but can be transferred to all the victims of the Columbine High School shootings. While the song does focus on Cassie and the killings, the lyrics portray a deeper message and induce the listener to contemplatee how strong his or her faith in God really is. As the song begins, a sense of urgency is immediately conveyed as the lyrics, "The question asked in order/To save her life or take it" ("Cassie", lines 1-2) play. Flyleaf's words exhibit that one question was the one difference determining life or death. The concise verses are utilized to indicate that Cassie had a short amount of time to consider her answer to the question. As the song progresses, the tone of urgency continues with the lyrics, "Do you believe in God/Written on the bullet/Say yes to pull the trigger" ("Cassie", lines 6-8). The text is taunting Cassie to pull the trigger and pursuading her to die for her beliefs. llllllThe tone of the song changes as it questions the listener. Lacey Mosley sings, "Do you believe in God/Do you believe in God" ("Cassie", lines 32-33) at the end of the song to compel the listener to scrutinize his or her own personal beliefs. Flyleaf utilizes the words to make the biggest impact on the reader as possible. Repetition is used throughout the piece to encourage listeners to empathize with Cassie. The same thoughts were traveling through her mind as the gunman asked her the crucial question. "The answer no to avoid death/The answer yes would make it/Make it" ("Cassie", lines 1-5). The Repetition of the phrase “the answer” shows that Cassie’s death was based on her answer. The phrase is reiterated to signify the importance of her decision. “Make it” is repeated in the same stanza as “the answer” to solidify the fact that her answer caused her death. Repetition is again used in the phrase, "Her last words still hanging in the air/In the air" ("Cassie", lines 15-16). "In the air" is repeated to show that Cassie's death still effected people for a long time. Her death "hung in the air" around her family and community. It made a substantial impact. In addition to repetition, metaphors were used to portray the story of Cassie Bernall. "Do you believe in God/Written on the bullet" ("Cassie", lines 6-7). Nothing is actually written on the bullet, but this simple metaphor emphasizes the point that her answer determined if the bullet would take her life. "And Cassie pulled the trigger" ("Cassie", line 11). Also, Cassie did not literally pull the trigger. Her response to the shooter's question made the outcome of being killed inevitable.
llllllCassie Bernall inspired not only Flyleaf, but the entire country as her tale of martyrdom came forth into the media. Flyleaf used a haunting melody, touching lyrics, and a questioning tone to honor Cassie's death and bring her story alive for music lovers around the globe.


llllllThe song also brought attention to other, more improtant issues. School security was not a new concern before Columbine transpired. A Safe Schools Security Act bill was passed by President Clinton just one year prior to the school shootings ("Sen, Jeff Bingaman names Sandia to head new School Security Technology Center",par. 6). This high school tragedy came as a shock to the country. Especially when a similar incident happened to three students in Kentucky ("Sen, Jeff Bingaman names Sandia to head new School Security Technology Center",par. 2). Clinton wanted to increase school security, and the bill was part of his plan ("Sen, Jeff Bingaman names Sandia to head new School Security Technology Center",par. 2). This did not move as quickly as they had hoped, and and unfortunately, the bill was was still inactive when Columbine happened. Although, Columbine was the fuel the government needed in order to properly enact school safety. President Clinton said, "something profound has happened to your country because of this'' (Simpson, par. 3). Even though the government thought schools were prepared for this, in reality, no one ever really could be.

llllllThe first lady also struck a chord with listeners when she said that all of America identified with the spirit and resolve that those directly involved in the tragedy have displayed in the past month. She asked her audience to fight bitterness and reach out." (Simpson, par. 16). This was stated after President Clinton made an appearance at Columbine, shortly after the shootings. At this point, everyone noticed a change. People were mortified over what happened, and even more shaken up when stories were released about the innocent people who had been murdered. It became well known very quickly. Columbinis is a play written in 2005 about social order in high school. It contains dialog from interviews pertaining to the Columbine shootings (Shepard, par. 9). While it became more popular spreading the story through the media other changes were noticed as well. Schools were on alarm as a result of event and consequently security was increased.
llllllThese shootings were the end of the road for 13 young students, but just the beginning for the rest of the country. Cassie's inspirational story led people not only to Christ, but also gave others courage to stand up for their beliefs. Along with that, the story possibly saved others lives through the escalating security to prevent situations like Columbine from happening again.Lyrics from Cassie's song say, "the answer yes would make it" (Mosely, line 4). And, that's exactly what it did.