Little Boxes

Pete Seeger

Little boxes on the hillside,
Little boxes made of ticky tacky
Little boxes on the hillside,
Little boxes all the same,
There's a green one and a pink one
And a blue on and a yellow one
And they're all made out of ticky tacky
And they all look the same.

And the people in the houses
All went to the university
Where they were but in boxes
And they came out all the same
And there's doctors and lawyers
And business executives
And they're all made out of ticky tacky
And they all look just the same.

And they all play on the golf course
And drink their martinis dry
And they all have pretty children
And the children go to school,
And the children go to summer camp
And then to the university
Where they are put in boxes
And they come out all the same.

And the boys go into business
And marry and raise a family
In boxes made of ticky tacky
And they all look just the same,
There's a green one and a pink one
And a blue one and a yellow one
And they're all made out of ticky tacky
And they all look just the same.


Lyrics submitted by RawkCHiK04

Little Boxes song meanings
Add Your Thoughts

12 Comments

sort form View by:
  • +2
    General Comment
    This song almost explicitly says what the meaning is. It is a clear opposition to conformity. It frowns upon the idea of suburbia, talking about more than just the houses but about the way people lived. Everyone tried to conform to have the ideal house and the ideal children. It was the age when the middle class rose up and everyone tried to be like their neighbors. The boxes may be different colors but they are actually all the same, all made out of ticky-tacky. The people, before they lived in the boxes went to the university where they were all "put in boxes just the same." The institution of education attempts to conform everyone as well. They all play golf (very typical middle and upper class leisure activity) All the boys go into the business, and all the girls marry the boys in business, and everyone has "pretty" children. Pretty being white, middle class, typical children. This song raises the issue of challenging convention and conformity, and mostly reflected the era that it was composed in, but has also established meaning today.
    missjulieon January 25, 2011   Link
  • +1
    General Comment
    This song is a critique of the Post-World War II trend of building neighborhoods and even towns out of copycat houses. Seeger is saying that these houses have no personality and the inhabitants are empty because the individual is not celebrated. Places like Levittown NY were "manufactured" communities where houses were put up in a matter of weeks and one neighborhood looked the same as the next.
    Vozzyon April 18, 2003   Link
  • +1
    General Comment
    Cookie cutter towns, cookie cutter personalities, cookie cutter lives....they all look just the same.
    sakeboxon April 14, 2004   Link
  • +1
    General Comment
    Actually, Silver, i wouldnt be too quick to call names. The song was not originally sung by Malvina. It was WRITTEN by her, for Pete Seegers to sing, so it is incorrect to say he covered it. However, she *did* write the song, not Seegers...so Silver, dont call names.
    janelleon October 11, 2005   Link
  • +1
    General Comment
    I dont think he is just talking about houses, I mean that has to be a part of it. but I feel like he is also talking about the people that are a part of that same institution. We make the houses and live in them, so we are also really all being trained to be the same. And they came out all the same And there's doctors and lawyers And business executives And they're all made out of ticky tacky And they all look just the same.
    doctorbravo384on February 04, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment
    This is a bit countryish and I usually hate that stuff, but I love this song cuz it reminds me soooo much of my hometown. Jeeze people! ever heard of the word 'unique'?
    RawkCHiK04on August 14, 2002   Link
  • 0
    General Comment
    Just to add credit where it's due: this song was originally by Malvina Reynolds. Seeger definitely does it a compliment by covering it though.
    Skaman2on May 07, 2005   Link
  • 0
    General Comment
    my neighorhood is the same too, and it's not changing as well, here in las vegas... From a birds-eye view they look like concentration camps.
    Apothon September 02, 2006   Link
  • 0
    General Comment
    I live in Las Vegas too, Apoth. I agree completely. Bleh. Conformity..
    amberloveson November 23, 2006   Link
  • 0
    General Comment
    vozzy hit the nail on the head. Cookie cutter neighborhoods that reflect the lack of individuality of the people. People conform to society's values and raise their kids to conform too because thats whats expected.
    ruelloon March 13, 2007   Link

Add your thoughts

Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.

Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!

More Featured Meanings

Album art
Another Love
Tom Odell
I think the meaning is pretty clear. This person got really burned in a previous relationship, and because of this is unable to love and show care in his present one, even though he so badly wants to. It's lovely song, and very sad. You can really feel how defeated and frustrated he is with himself.
Album art
Somewhere Only We Know
Keane
Per the FAQ on Keane's website, Keane's drummer Richard Hughes, stated the following: "We've been asked whether "Somewhere Only We Know" is about a specific place, and Tim has been saying that, for him, or us as individuals, it might be about a geographical space, or a feeling; it can mean something individual to each person, and they can interpret it to a memory of theirs... It's perhaps more of a theme rather than a specific message... Feelings that may be universal, without necessarily being totally specific to us, or a place, or a time..." With the nostalgic sentiment and the overall tone of the song, I think Keane is attempting to express a Portuguese term known as 'saudade', which does not have a direct English translation but roughly means "that which we remember because it is gone."
Album art
Mad Hatter
Avenged Sevenfold
Matt Shadows their lead singer says the song was written as per request from the developers of Call of Duty: Black Ops 4. Watching the initial trailers for the game & looking at production sketches reminded him of the 'S-Town' podcast & its main protagonist, John B. McLemore. Matt also comments specifically on the lyrics: "I decided that the lyrics would shadow McLemore's life." In 2012, antiquarian horologist John B. McLemore sent an email to the staff of the show 'This American Life' asking them to investigate an alleged murder in his hometown of Woodstock, Alabama, a place McLemore claimed to despise. After a year of exchanging emails & several months of conversation with McLemore, producer Brian Reed traveled to Woodstock to investigate. Reed investigated the crime & eventually found that no such murder took place, though he struck up a friendship with the depressed but colorful character of McLemore. He recorded conversations with McLemore & other people in Woodstock. McLemore killed himself by drinking potassium cyanide on June 22, 2015 while the podcast was still in production. In the narrative of the podcast, this occurs at the end of the second episode; subsequent episodes deal with the fallout from McLemore's death while exploring more of McLemore's life & character.
Album art
Hypnotized
River Tiber
This standout psychedelic track was produced in its entirety by River Tiber, being released to all major digital streaming platforms on December 29, 2020.
Album art
Still Luv
Kennedy Rd.
This standout song off her eponymously named album was produced by AVB & Itsashleetho and released on December 28, 2020.