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Oleander Lyrics
You stood beside me when I was out of my mind
I broke the glass, and you were there to sweep it aside
And if you leave me, rest assured it would kill me
I make a mess and you'll be there to help me undress
I'll be unclean, I'll be obscene, you'll be the rest
And if you leave me, rest assured it would kill me
Like an oleander
White white leaves, of an oleander
White like me
I'm like a child in a sty
I play with vile
I burn you right out, I burned your bible
You tried to cry, put on a smile
And if you leave me rest assured it would kill me
Rest assured if you leave
Like an oleander
White white leaves, of an oleander
White like me
Of the oleander
White white leaves of an oleander
White like me
I broke the glass, and you were there to sweep it aside
And if you leave me, rest assured it would kill me
I'll be unclean, I'll be obscene, you'll be the rest
And if you leave me, rest assured it would kill me
White white leaves, of an oleander
White like me
I play with vile
I burn you right out, I burned your bible
You tried to cry, put on a smile
Rest assured if you leave
White white leaves, of an oleander
White like me
White white leaves of an oleander
White like me
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The oleander is a poisonous plant with white, rose or purple flowers. The character says she is like an oleander in the chorus, meaning that she is poisonous. The repetition of the white of the oleander is to emphasize its beauty.
She says she needs outside help. She broke the glass, meaning she she had a nervous breakdown. The other person she alludes to is either a friend or a lover. Either way, this person helped her when she was in trouble. This is where the image of the oleander brings meaning. She sees herself as an oleander to the other. In other word, she poisons her helper's life by being a nuisance. Or at least, that is how she perceives herself. This suggests that this state of mind of being like an oleander is recurrent.
I am not too sure about the part where the man (Ryan) sings. It seems to suggest that the man is the cause of this woman's trouble, as he plays with vile and burned her bible (her belief system). He is like Satan, but she needs him badly. Vice is necessary in her life. Its non presence would kill her. At the same time, this same vice is the cause of her mental breakdown.
At he end of his part, he says, "you tried to cry", then the voice changes to another person's, and it says, "put on a smile". This suggests that a movement away from the man leads to a smile, thus happiness. It can also mean outside help trying to lead her away from this man (probably without much success). In this case, she would be poison to this person trying to help her to get away from the man.
In the end, she remains an oleander, as the song ends on those lyrics. Although she is quite aware of her state, she decides to stick with it and not move towards happiness. If you don't understand why or think this is uncommon, think about women who stay with violent men, children who still love their parent even though they were raped by them, or women/men who stay with lovers who keep cheating on them. The point of this song is not so much to defend the righteousness of this attitude as to state the concequences it has on one's mind, where the person, instead os accusing the aggressor, sees herself as poison to other people.