| Nine Inch Nails – God Given Lyrics | 18 years ago |
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I'd like to look into the second verse with more depth. Wait, step into the light How can this be right I'm afraid we're gonna ask you to leave Guess you cannot win With the color of your skin You won't be getting into the Promised Land The speaker is of the Religious Right that has gained power in this dystopic world of 2022. As he notices a new converted, he realizes that this person does not fit his "Ideal of a person". How can this be right? he asks, now that someone who is unlike me, has now stepped into the light. I take this as the speaker is referring to American hostility to immigrants. He doesn't want them to be a member of these chosen "Elect", "Elite", God Given race. The opponents of the Republicans, whose radicals are being personified as the speaker, the democrats have recently been more tolerant to minorities and immigrants. The Conservative ideology has been to instill border fences and national security to keep non-whites out of this coutry. I think Trent gave "The Promise Land" a double meaning with Heaven and America, the land of opportunity. This is just another case You people still don't know your place Given the previous logic, here Trent has placed another double meaning on "place" as in place in Society, or place in Geography. Step aside, out the way, wipe that look off your face The foriegners are being persecuted. Imagine an immigration officer saying something like this to someone being deported. 'Cause we are the divine Separated from the swine Come on, sing along, everybody now I especially like this part, because he enforces the fact that there is a distinction between the God Given and those who are not, which is most unlike the Christianity of years past, where they babtised everyone and anyone, trying to get the maximum of people to believe. Trent then makes this comment ironic by stating "C'mon EVERYBODY now" Everybody is not everybody, but in fact only those who are god given. This is a stark deviation from the first verse, which attempts to convert people to christianity. "You should get where you belong Everything you know is wrong" I picture the difference as trying to convert white americans who may be jewish or atheist of some sort to christians in the first verse, while in the second blocking out others who want to become christians. Quite the interesting contrast, don't you think? I can also look at this part as the speaker attempting to reference the poor conditiions of 3rd world countries, where "the swine" may try to immigrate to the United States. The United States and its standard of living have separted itself from the poor areas that control the majority of the world, not to mention the Muslim world. |
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| Beck – E-Pro Lyrics | 19 years ago |
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The title is short for Environmental Protection. But the song is about cleaning the inner projects The whole song gives imagry of Beck walking through a dump of a house in the inner city. See me comin to town with my soul - Beck's hometown Straight down out of the world with my fingers - he knows the area Holding onto the devil I know - memories All my troubles'll hang on your trigger - its inner city, with crime and violence Take your eyes and your mind from the road - look at the house Shoot your mouth off but look where you're aiming - you complain about it Don't forget to pick up what you sow - but you don't do anyhting Talking trash to the garbage around you - I wish someone would get this town in order, but it never happens. The chanting na nas, give a sense of repetitoin of the same problems without doing anything about it, ignoring the problem and putting your head in the sand. See me kickin the door with my boots - So now Beck enters the house Broke down out in a ditch of old rubbish - and its filthy Snakes and bones in the back of your room - finds skeletons in your closet Handing out a confection of venom - which stings at the heart Heaven's drunk from the poison you use - But you keep ignoring the probelms Charm the wolves with the eyes of a gambler - waste your life with gambling Now I see it's a comfort to you - ignorace is bliss Hammer my bones on the anvil of daylight - during the night, its dark, and badness can't be seen, but in the morning the problems are noticable again I won't give up that ghost - I will start to do something about it It's sick the way these tongues are twisted - in the midst of all this conversation The good in us is all we know - theres good in the world (we can make the world cleaner and better) There's too much left to taste that's bitter - but some people like the bitter taste, so they don't do anything. |
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