| Bear's Den – Pompeii Lyrics | 8 years ago |
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The other comments here have inferred that there was trauma in the death of the mother, either that there was an accident caused by the father or that the mother took her own life. I don't see anything in the lyrics that make me think that way so I thought I would add my own interpretation. "We built our home...she lay above How she haunted our home You were a god in my eyes" The loss of a mother and a spouse would weigh heavily on any home, both father and son are grieving. The child imagines the mother is in heaven/above. It's not uncommon for a child to see their father as a giant/god. Shows that the author was very young at the time. "You showed me the statues underground Said just don't they look in peace Sometimes I wish that was me" When Pompeii was buried statues were formed of the people in the town fast enough that some are in poses that look serene, peaceful. The child envies the peaceful visage and perhaps sometimes wishes he were with his mother in heaven. "Don't cry Hold your head up high She would want you to" Mother would want father to be strong and go on, despite the loss he feels. "You said stay in the car and wait There's just some things I have to say Don't you know I miss her, too I miss her just as much as you" A child unable to understand his fathers grief, nor the need for a moment alone. Almost could be construed as a petulant tantrum. "So my father and my son As you end what she's begun You'll lie patient by her side With roses red come lilies white" This to me suggests now that the child is grown, mature, and has come to feel responsible for his elderly father (and is also referring to his father as his son). He cares for his father as death approaches, and reflects on how father has completed the task his mother started by giving birth (caring for their son). "I was too young to understand The flowers slipping from your hands The flowers sleeping in her hands" A father overcome with grief drops the flowers he is holding, child doesn't understand the process of a funeral, just too young. Remember that he see's his father as a God, and God's don't cry. Nothing makes sense to the child right now. This is an absolutely beautiful song, a wonderful half of a touching conversation as a son comes to understand his father. |
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