| Mumford & Sons – Little Lion Man Lyrics | 15 years ago |
| Interesting idea. I hadn't considered that. Were Marcus and Charlie friends? | |
| Mumford & Sons – Little Lion Man Lyrics | 15 years ago |
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I wholeheartedly agree with this interpretation. It is amazing to me how many people seem to think this song is about a romantic relationship gone bad and/or that it is sarcastic. I feel that it is quite clearly a heart-wrenching apology for being a crappy father. "However screwed up you are, it is my fault, because you loved me and your happiness was my responsibility, and I was careless and callous when I should have loved you unconditionally and held your feelings above my own." Actually, I feel like a lot of the songs on this album seem like they are related to recovery, so my first thought about this song is that it is an alcoholic dad apologizing for screwing up his son's life while at the same time warning him not to end up the same way. Of course, if it is indeed sarcastic, it could be the angry son taunting his father. I wanted to add that "biting your own neck" is not a vampiric reference. If a snake bites its own neck, the pain it inflicits upon itself causes it to bite down harder, so it won't let go. A serpent biting its tail is, for this reason, a symbol of eternity. "Biting your own neck" is symbolic of fighting a futile battle against an imagined enemy, when in fact you are only fighting yourself. I also wonder if "courage" in the first verse is a reference to alcohol, as in "a shot of courage," so that the little lion man is using the problems he's made up as his excuse to abuse alcohol. |
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