I'm Not Angry

I take the line "there's no such thing as an original sin" to be a classic case of context changing the meaning of a word. Normally, the term "original sin" refers to a specific, ancient sin from which all others arise. Here, it really just sounds like Elvis is using "original" in the more commonly used sense.

I take the line "there's no such thing as an original sin" to be a classic case of context changing the meaning of a word. Normally, the term "original sin" refers to a specific, ancient sin from which all others arise. Here, it really just sounds like Elvis is using "original" in the more commonly used sense.

Essentially, he's being deeply sarcastic. She's following in the footsteps of human beings everywhere and he's deploring her lack of "originality". I suppose the narrator is pretty frustrated with the predictability of people.

Essentially, he's being deeply sarcastic. She's following in the footsteps of human beings everywhere and he's deploring her lack of "originality". I suppose the narrator is pretty frustrated with the predictability of people.

So there's...

So there's no such thing as an original sin. We're all just plowing the same earth, as it were.

Great song, and way too appropriate for me currently. Glad I just discovered Elvis Costello.

@karmakgb Good point about the use of "original sin". He sings "an original sin", whereas in the biblical use it is just original sin, no article before it. Although if he is deploring her lack of originality with her "sin", he must either be self righteous about not sinning or else be throwing himself in the pool of deplorable for not being able to pull off an original sin, since there is no such thing as one (according to him). Maybe he's admitting that he has done the same "sin" to her, so what she did is not original to...

@karmakgb Good point about the use of "original sin". He sings "an original sin", whereas in the biblical use it is just original sin, no article before it. Although if he is deploring her lack of originality with her "sin", he must either be self righteous about not sinning or else be throwing himself in the pool of deplorable for not being able to pull off an original sin, since there is no such thing as one (according to him). Maybe he's admitting that he has done the same "sin" to her, so what she did is not original to their relationship and he has no right to be angry. He's obviously angry though, and one can do something to hurt another and still be angry when that person does the same to them.