The man of a thousand faces
Sits down at the table
Eats a small lump of sugar
And smiles at the moon like he knows her

He begins his quiet ascension
Without anyone's steady instruction
To a place with no religion
He's found a path to her likeness

His words are quiet like stains are
On a tablecloth washed in a river
Stains that are trying to cover
For each other
Or at least blend in with the pattern

Good is better than perfect
Scrub till your fingers are bleeding
And I'm crying for things that
I tell others to do without crying

He used to go to his favorite bookstores
And rip out his favorite pages
And stuff 'em into his breast pockets
The moon, to him, was a stranger

Now he sits down at a table
Right next to the window
And begins his quiet ascension
Without anyone's steady instruction
To a place with no religion

He's found a path to her likeness
He eats a small lump of sugar
Smiles at the moon like he knows her


Lyrics submitted by just_old_light, edited by DDWWW, nickireland7, Alanner, Aether, LianaLizard, dirky, Delira, drmstx94, sodafat, cesium14, LukeUs, Kow

Man of a Thousand Faces Lyrics as written by Regina Spektor

Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC

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Man of a Thousand Faces song meanings
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  • +2
    General Comment

    Lozeli: Actually, split-personality disorder and schizophrenia are two entirely different disorders. It's a common misconception that the symptoms of schizophrenia include multiple personalities.

    I think this song is about a man that feels he has to be something different for everyone he knows, he's never himself and wears a thousand faces, He's lost because he doesn't know who he really is because he's always being what other people want him to be. He feels everyone is a stranger, even the moon. Everyone is kept at a distance and he feels lost and alone because of it. I think kaysntees is right, the small lump of sugar is a drug reference, The second and fourth stanzas sound like they have something to do with obsesive compulsive disorder, self-harm and thoughts about going to heaven. I'm not sure the exact intent of this song, but i think we've put a lot of pieces together. I'm not sure Regina even knows the exact intent of every word in this song, that's what makes it absolutley lovely though. It just makes so much sense and there's so much feeling without it having to make complete sense or be at all clear.

    love_is_freeon January 18, 2008   Link

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