| Jonathan Coulton – Nobody Loves You Like Me Lyrics | 11 years ago |
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I believe that "Nobody Loves You Like Me," by Jonathan Coulton, is about a man in a bar who eventually commits suicide because he thinks he is worthless and because the woman he loves does not seem to notice him. HERE'S WHY. (2k MMR, plz no flame) Here at the bar who cares what I do I'm all alone but I'm drinking for two Drowning the man that I used to be Nobody loves you like me The man in question spends his last night drinking away his troubles. He feels dejected and regretful, pointing out that nobody "cares what [he] does," and how worthless he thinks his own life is. -Alcohol is involved over a quarter of all suicides in the US (approximately 7500 per year). -Suicide is 120 times more prevalent among adult alcoholics than in the general population. -Alcohol abusers have higher rates of both attempted and completed suicide than non-abusers. -More than one-third of suicide victims used alcohol just prior to death (http://www.mces.org/pages/suicide_fact_alcohol.php) I won't sign a thing, or else if I do I'll use a pencil and that will show you How nothing lasts, how nothing is free Nobody loves you like me The man further justifies his suicide by pointing out "How nothing lasts [and] how nothing is free." This shows how he believes that living is pointless since we will eventually die anyway. I shouldn't stay, I think you'll agree It's no good for you, no better for me In the morning I'll go to a place far away Somewhere you'll never find me I'm sure we've all heard the common phrase when people are talking about a deceased loved one, they will often say their loved one "has gone to a better place" in order to be more polite. The man says that he will go to a place far away, possibly to the great beyond, where the person this song is directed to will "never find?" I catch a look, a thing that you say Out on the fire escape smoking all day Missing someone, now who could it be Nobody loves you like me I honestly have no idea what this verse means. The person he is talking about seems to be traumatized in some way if they feel the need to stand "out on the fire escape smoking all day." They may even be troubled by the loss of a loved one, as hinted by the line, "missing someone, now who could it be." Noises outside, the trucks in the street Will cover my flight, my hero's retreat I'm supposed to feel bad but I don't anymore Only when you remind me This is the part where things get interesting. Up until now, we have seen motive for suicide, but he hasn't actually talked about specifically doing it. The words, "the trucks in the street will cover my flight, my hero's retreat," seem to suggest the man's preferred way of suicide. He no longer wants to live, driven mad by love and the notion of his own worthlessness. Therefore, he decides to 'retreat' from his unwanted life, into death. He acknowledges that he is "supposed to feel bad" about taking his own life, but doesn't. The only time that he second guesses himself is when "[she] reminds [him]" that he can't be with her unless he is in the world of the living. Air in my lungs, a cough and a wheeze Holes in the bellows and blood on the keys You move along, there's nothing to see Nobody loves you like me Nobody loves you like me This verse is after his suicide, in his final moments and possibly beyond. This is suggested by the words "a cough and a wheeze," which show that the man is injured. "Holes in the bellows" is likely talking about his lungs, as they were referenced in the first line: "Air in my lungs." Some theories propose that these words prove the man has a lung disease, but I believe the suicidal thoughts in the previous verses of the song suggest otherwise. We can confirm that the man is injured with the line, "blood on the keys." This also connects with the first lines in the previous verse, which said, "the trucks in the street will cover my flight, my hero's retreat." The keys of a truck or car are likely what the man is talking about. We said earlier that these lines likely meant that the man was going to kill himself in some way involving "the trucks in the street." This further supports that theory with the word 'blood' referencing his suicide, and the word 'keys' referencing the keys in a car or truck. The man now brings us back to the woman (or man, but most likely woman) this song is intended for, by saying "[She] move[s] along, there's nothing to see." This might suggest that she walks away after looking at the man's dead body at the suicide site, the morgue, or the funeral. Thanks for reading! This is one of my favorite songs, and once I was convinced it was about suicide, it became one of my favorite S A D songs...2001 :( |
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