Karen Silkwood's Last Song
By Sonya D. Dollins-Colton
The very last scenes of the movie Silkwood lay out Karen Silkwood’s movements on the day she died. Accompanying these shots are the first three verses of the folk song “Amazing Grace.†“Amazing Grace†was chosen, I believe, on purpose, by the director and writers because of its message of forgiveness and redemption. Upon closer examination each line of “Amazing Grace†corresponds to a specific action Karen is making or an event that took place that day. This essay will examine each line of “Amazing Grace†and its corresponding scene and analyze the important connections if they exist.
Line one of the song, “Amazing grace, how sweet the sound,†corresponds to Karen driving off in her car. This is foreshadowing her death to come later that evening.
“That saved a wretch like me†is a shot of Drew watching Karen drive off. Karen is considered loose because of all the men she had slept with and because she was living with her boyfriend.
In the lines “I once was lost but now I’m found; was blind, but now I see,†the film shows Karen walking out of the café after the union meeting. The director is hinting that Karen no longer walks blindly about the Kerr-McGee plant and her eyes have been opened to the dangers that her employer exposed her and her fellow workers to. Karen is holding a folder that probably contains the evidence she will be giving to the New York Times reporter later that evening.
“Twas grace that taught†corresponds to Karen driving alone, and it is a dark, black night.
During the line “My heart to fear,†the viewer first sees the truck headlights. The truck correlates with fear.
“And grace my fears relieved,†the full truck is in view.
“How precious did that grace appear,†the camera moves closer to Karen, framing her face, and the truck headlights get closer.
“The hour I first believed,†Karen is looking in the rear-view mirror, the light reflecting in her eyes, the truck headlight bright on the left side of the screen. The shot is set up to lead the viewer to believe something is about to happen.
“Through many dangers, toils, and snares,†the screen is filled with the truck headlight, fades to black, and then the viewer sees the wrecked car. This is Karen’s final moments, and she has survived many dangers and overcome much, but she dies presumably because of truck behind her.
“I have already come; ‘Twas grace that brought us safe thus far†-- the corresponding scene is shot with the plant workers looking out the café window watching the tow truck drive by with Karen’s crashed car. The camera is behind the workers, seeing what they see. The camera follows the truck down the street. The plant workers have been safe so far, but now one of them has died. What will happen now?
“And grace will lead us home†-- the camera stops on Dolly, who is shedding a single tear for Karen. It is a powerful shot, a friend mourning for another. Dolly also represented home for Karen.
“When we’ve been there ten thousand years†-- the camera is focused on Karen’s tombstone. The viewer can interpret this to mean that things have been the same for a very long time.
“Bright shining as the sun†-- we once again see Karen standing by her car as she is leaving Drew’s apartment. She flashes her shirt at Drew, smiles, and laughs. Karen is a free spirit, and she is happy. She was happy in life, and she is happy in death.
“We’ve no less days†-- she is getting in her car to leave Drew’s. Karen has no more days. She is gone.
“To sing God’s praise, as when we first begun†-- the camera shows a quick shot of Drew and then Karen backing up and waving good-bye to Drew. If Karen had not died, Karen and Drew’s relationship would have began again, and maybe they even had children like they discussed in the previous scenes.
“Amazing Grace†starts over again to reinforce the tragedy of Karen’s death. As we see her driving away, only the first few lines of the song are used: “Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me, I once was lost, but now I’m found, was bound, but now I’m free.†She is like the prostitute that Jesus saves in the Bible. God can save even the lowest person, and Karen the sinful woman is saved. She is no longer bound by the Kerr-McGee plant or life. She is free.
