The song that Luke sings when he finds out his mother has ...



NOTES on Cool Hand Luke:

Song Lyrics (in case you missed them):

The spiritual that’s being sung when Luke returns from his mother’s visit is called “Just A Closer Walk With Thee,” and the verse that’s given most emphasis goes like this:

“Through this world of toil and snares,

If I falter, Lord, who cares?

Who with me my burden shares?

None but Thee, dear Lord, none but Thee.”

The song that Luke sings when he finds out his mother has died is called “Plastic Jesus,” and goes like this:

“I don't care if it rains or freezes,

long as I got my plastic Jesus,

sittin' on the dashboard of my car.

Comes in colors, pink and pleasant,

glows in the dark cause it's irridescent

Take it with you when you travel far.

Get yourself a sweet Madonna,

dressed in rhinestones sittin' on a

pedestal of abalone shell

Goin' ninety, I ain't scary,

'cause I've got the Virgin Mary,

assurin' me that I won't go to Hell.”

The prisoners play three different songs in the background while Luke digs his (symbolic) grave:

Song One (Midnight Special):

“Well, you wake up in the mornin,’ hear the ding-dong ring,

Go marchin’ to the table, see the same damn thing.

Well it’s sittin’ on the table, a knife, a fork, and a pan,

Say anythin’ about it, you get in trouble with the man.

Let the Midnight Special shine a light on me.

Let the Midnight Special shine an ever-lovin’ light on me.

If you ever go to Houston, boy, you better walk right,

And you better not stagger, and you better not fight,

Cause the sheriff’s gonna arrest you, gonna take you down,

Say anythin’ about it, your penitentiary-bound.

Let the Midnight Special shine a light on me.

Let the Midnight Special shine an ever-lovin’ light on me.”

Song Two (Ain’t No Grave):

“Ain’t no grave gonna hold my body down!

Keep your mind on me above,

Keep your heart full of love,

Ain’t no grave gonna hold my body down…"

Song Three (Cotton Fields Back Home):

“When I was a little bitty baby,

my momma used to rock me in the cradle,

in those old cotton fields back home…”

For a line-by-line script of the movie, go to:



Just be careful—this is the original script, and there are some alterations in the final film. Use this as a reference, but always favor the film in its final form.

A nice summary of the entire movie can be found at:



Let me stress, it’s no substitute for seeing the film. But it’s a handy reference for remembering some specific lines, and it gives some commentary too. As with all other sites you might use in developing your argument, please properly cite your sources.

A series of brief commentaries on the film can be found here:



These are too casual to count as scholarly sources, but if you find some useful information among them, please cite them as well.

Luke certainly seems to be intended as a Christ figure. The excerpt below from “The Rise and Fall and Rise of Movie Messiahs” by Matt McEver explains it all pretty clearly:

"Cool Hand Luke" (1967) marked a crucial transition and a defining moment in the way movies presented Jesus. Screenwriters discovered that it is not only possible, but also quite effective, to take the bare elements of the Jesus story and place them in a present-day setting.

Paul Newman plays Luke Jackson, a man sentenced to hard labor for destroying parking meters. In prison, Luke recruits "disciples" and tries to make hard time more endurable, even fun--doing things like wagering on whether he can eat 50 boiled eggs at once. Of course, conflict with the prison establishment is inevitable for this rebel. When he turns the arduous task of repaving a highway into a joyous game, the guards begin to fear his influence. From that moment on, the establishment knows there is a troublemaker in their midst, and they plot to ruin Luke.

"Cool Hand Luke" even concludes with two scenes that recall Jesus’ Gethsemane and crucifixion. Pursued by the prison guards, Luke stands in an abandoned chapel and asks God, "Is this the way it has to be?" Then he is gunned down unjustly by the guards’ fearsome leader who hides behind his ever-present sunglasses--the spiritually blind "man with no eyes." A "post-resurrection" scene follows in which Luke’s disciples reflect on their experiences with him.

The "Cool Hand Luke" formula was later duplicated with critical success in "One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest" (1975) and "Dead Poets Society" (1989). Both films have a "Judas" and a resurrection scene that vindicates the martyred nonconformist.

(from )

This source will also NOT COUNT as one of your scholarly sources, though if you use it in your paper, you ought to cite it, using the website linked above as your reference.

Finally, as you work on your essay, you may wish to refer to the following general academic writing sites:

This site features advice on writing specifically prepared for Harvard undergraduates:



This site is the “go to” site for all basic questions about style and composition:



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