The Moment I Said It

I think that Tally is pretty close in her interpretiation, but I'll add this:

True, Imogen said something to him that set him off. However, it doesn't matter so much what it was, and moreover, anything too specific would lose its mass appeal to myriad listeners. What is clear is that he's making more of it than she had intended... (although in a manner of speaking she's disrespecting him... since as is true with all communication there is the message as it was intended, the message as it is interpreted and the message as it is objectively. Yet who are we to say that any one viewpoint is any less significant than the other). At any rate, she's telling him that he's misinterpreted her meaning when she says you're not thinking straight - this explanation adequately refutes any idea that he's drunk, or in a drugged state, etc., (he could be, but it's not at the crux of the issue, and it's not essential to the theme of acting irrationally). Not thinking straight is a state of mind one would expect in someone who is acting emotionally, rather than logically, especially in state of anger.

The idea that she was unfaithful to him, or broke up with him, etc., are interesting speculations of what she said, but it's not relevant to the theme of the song, and again would only serve to narrow the breadth of the song and limit the impact of the song on myriad of listeners' points of view, who by their nature bring their own set of issues, emotional baggage, life experience to bear on their understanding of the lyrics. At issue is his ostensible over reaction. There is little reason to believe that her concerns over him hurting someone in the car is meant to be taken literally. This is not a song about the dangers of driving under the influence of alcohol, drugs anger, etc. What she is saying by somebody's going to get hurt is that if he goes beyond what is reasonable in his reaction to what she said, i.e., over reacts... someone's going to get hurt in a pscyhologic/spiritual sense; songs of this nature are often meant to infer emotional injury, or rather in this case the hurt or injury that is potentially being done to the relationship.

Also refuting the previous claims that she's ending the relationship is when she says we'll work it out TOGETHER. Generally, people that are breaking up have failed to work it out together... they may resolve their difference independently and move on but they don't work things out together... Also, she in both words and tone are worried that's she's losing him. One does not worry about losing someone they've broken up with. NO, she is not breaking up with him. She is compelling him not leave to sit with her and reasonably address the problems in their relationship.

She may be insecure, and may have acted jealously, but this is speculation on my part. I offer this speculation based upon the her question and statement, which inspires one to consider jealously as the theme of what she said that set him off, since she asks AND state two things which are not consistent with other parts of the song, such that without fully exploring their meaning these components are oddly out of place in the song. This are:

1. "It's not even light out, but you've somewhere to be.

2. "Who are you calling at this hour?"

Perhaps she's being jealous and controlling or maybe her fears are not without reason. Eitherway, it seems to be a tone she's set in motions and possible the issue that is related to his hasty departure.

I will say that JORDANCEE has a valid point about her breaking up with him, because in the spoken word the male says "I'll be fine", which one often say, when they are on the heels of just being rejected, however there is not enough supporting evidence in the rest of the song to make this idea take flight.

Why is it that we allow relationships to end over mere misunderstandings, I seems that love should be made of sterner stuff than that.