Loved the song lyrics assignment from last week, so I decided to continue with the same theme.

Heart In A Cage- The Strokes

Well I don't feel better
When I'm fucking around
And I don't rise better
When I'm stuck in the ground
So don't teach me a lesson
Cause I've already learned
Yeah the sun will be shining
And my children will burn

Oh the heart beats in its cage
I don't want what you want
I don't feel what you feel
See I'm stuck in a city
But I belong in a field

Yeah we got (laugh7x)

Now it's three in the morning and
You're eating alone

Oh the heart beats in its cage
All our friends they're laughing at us
All of those you loved, you mistrust
Help me, I'm just not quite myself
Look around there's no one else left

I went to the concert and I fought through the crowd
Guess I got too excited when I thought you were around

Oh, we gotta (laugh7x),

I'm sorry you were thinking I would steal your fire

Oh the heart beats in its cage
Yes the heart beats in its cage
Alright
And the heart beats in its cage


Pain, too strong to rip out of feeble flesh and serve on a platter, too strong to grasp, too strong to consummate, too strong to bear. The song is angry, remorseful, sad and alive. I love the way it switches subtly between anger and remorse/hopelessness. while there are several different meanings intertwined the imagery and symbolism of "the heart beats in its cage" carried through he entire piece

By saying the heart instead of my heart shows how distant and severed his emotions have become because of this other destructive character. Because she made him wait for her and hurt him he has become bitter and resentful. He knows how much damage she has caused and wants nothing to do with her as he is watching everything decay.

Although there are a lot of these angry and hurt emotions there is a sliver of hope at the end. As with many relationships it seems that even though he is constantly hurt and left feeling sorry for himself he still goes back to her in the end, in a vicious cycle. He is battered and bruised emotionally and continues to endure this pain and trapped feeling which is why his "heart is in a cage"; trapped in a cycle trapped with her, and he cant break away. Its he who has trapped himself which is where a lot of the pain comes from.

A Stroke of Thought

Reptilia: The Strokes

He seemed impressed by the way you came in.
"Tell us a story
I know you're not boring"

I was afraid that you would not insist.
"You sound so sleepy
just take this, now leave me"

I said please don't slow me down
If I'm going too fast
You're in a strange part of our town...

Yeah, the night's not over
You're not trying hard enough,
Our lives are changing lanes
You ran me off the road,
The wait is over
I'm now taking over,
You're no longer laughing
I'm not drowning fast enough.

Now every time that I look at myself
"I thought I told you
this world is not for you"

The room is on fire as she's fixing her hair
"you sound so angry
just calm down, you found me"

I said please don't slow me down
If I'm going too fast
You're in a strange part of our town...

Yeah, the night's not over
You're not trying hard enough,
Our lives are changing lanes
You ran me off the road,
The wait is over
I'm now taking over,
You're no longer laughing
I'm not drowning fast enough.

There's always someone right? The clingy friend, the obsessive girlfriend, the possessive boyfriend. Who you used to like maybe even love, but now that affection has grown cold bitter and hateful. You could have spent two weeks with the person, or you could have spent fifteen years with them. But now every breath every syllable every flaw every quality is everything you despise. You see death and torture and pain in their face as cycles of regret, pain, longing and hate unravel. That one beloved or well liked person is now nothing but anger and despair. How does this happen? The look they give you, a seemingly sweet gesture that strikes a sour note. When this impermeable hate takes hold of you how do you let go?

In Reptilla by the Strokes there are a lot of hidden meanings and details to dig out in the song, there are many lines and phrases to interpret as well as having a good instrumental portion, which I really like about it, that is has another dimension besides it being a good song.

I printed out the lyrics and drew connections and took apart each sentence which really helped to understand the meaning of the song. In this song even though there are a lot of contrasting lines and sharp changes in both music and the feel of the words the song is very tastefully spewing and also withholding that unwanted and the painful feeling of getting beaten down again and again. The song is basically about the narrator who is sick and tired of the seemingly clingy and egocentric girlfriend who wont let go of him.

The almost dodgy, obscure and contradicting stanzas. I think that four of my favorite lines are “The room is on fire as she’s fixing her hair.” And “Yeah the nights not over you’re not trying hard enough” I think that these lines both convey a lot of the same message in different ways. “The room is on fire as she’s fixing her hair.” Is really showing how oblivious this person is to how much damage they are really causing to the people around her. “Yeah the nights not over, you’re not trying hard enough” Is a bit of a confusing line because of two meanings. I think it means that the tables have turned a little bit and now, the main guy is outwitting the woman like a child telling her that there is still time to make apologies is one meaning, but it contradicts the rest of the song because of the unwanted and fed up with her, complex feelings in the beginning.

A little sceptical about the premise of this post but here it is (in honor of our poetry unit)

i carry your heart with me- e.e cummings

i carry your heart with me(i carry it in my heart)i am never without it(anywhere i go you go,my dear; and whatever is done by only me is your doing,my darling) i fear no fate(for you are my fate,my sweet)i want no world(for beautiful you are my world,my true) and it's you are whatever a moon has always meant and whatever a sun will always sing is you here is the deepest secret nobody knows (here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud and the sky of the sky of a tree called life;which grows higher than the soul can hope or mind can hide) and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart i carry your heart(i carry it in my heart

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

Now I can break down the poem. First of all I love e.e cummings. I think he was a brilliant and thought provoking man who wrote brilliant and thought provoking poems. The poem is for a love of cummings'.

The line "whatever is done by only me is your doing my darling", I love that line. I think that cummings is implying that this love of his is so important and such an influence of his life because of his love for them affects every choice he makes which is a very powerful statement.

"i fear no fate for you are my fate my sweet" Also another great line. I think that Cummings is saying that with his undying love for this person he is unafraid of pain, death or the unknown. With this person, who he knows he will be with forever, he implies that they will be with each other in the end so he fears and worries about nothing.

"i want no world for beautiful you are my world, my true" By this line I think that cummings implies that he is very happy and in love, and he wants nothing but the person he is writing about they mean everything to him and because he is in love his life is revolving around them.

When e.e cummings compares the person to the sun and the moon, he is not only describing two opposite sides of the person, he also relates the two descriptions and intertwines them into a very meaningful and beautiful sentence

The last few lines are like a conclusion but at the same time reveal a lot of the meaning and purpose in the poem. The deepest secret that nobody knows I think is very hidden and subtle but it still is there. I think that the meaning and secret in the poem is just how much he loves that person. With all of the similar-structured lines earlier in the poem and the statement showing such beautiful language and deep meaning this is definitely one of my favourites.