9 Meanings
Add Yours
Follow
Share
Q&A
Your Congratulations Lyrics
I wouldn't have compromised as much
so much of myself for fear of
having you hating me
I would've sung so loudly
it would've cracked myself!
I became self-conscious
of anything exuberant
I wouldn't have sold myself short
I wouldn't have kept my eyes
glued to the ground
if I hadn've known my invisibility
would not make a difference
I would've run around screaming proudly
at the top of my voice
I wouldn't have said it was in fact luck
i'm talking idealism here
I would not have been so self depricating
I wouldn't have cowered
for fear of having my eyes cut my comfort off
I wouldn't have feigned needlessness
I would not have discredited
every one of their compliments
it was your approval I wanted
your congratulations
so much of myself for fear of
having you hating me
I would've sung so loudly
it would've cracked myself!
I became self-conscious
of anything exuberant
I wouldn't have sold myself short
I wouldn't have kept my eyes
glued to the ground
if I hadn've known my invisibility
would not make a difference
I would've run around screaming proudly
at the top of my voice
I wouldn't have said it was in fact luck
i'm talking idealism here
I would not have been so self depricating
I wouldn't have cowered
for fear of having my eyes cut my comfort off
I wouldn't have feigned needlessness
I would not have discredited
every one of their compliments
it was your approval I wanted
your congratulations
Add your song meanings, interpretations, facts, memories & more to the community.
I think this song is about her father. What a wonderful way to end the album with such personal tributes to her mother and her father.
I don't necessarily think it's about a boyfriend or a father. Could be anyone really.. we constantly search for approval, and we so rarely get it :( In my case it was definetely my father...
I always thought this was how she wanted the approval of critics and music lovers and the general population when she created songs and albums... and how she spent so much time trying to write the perfect songs that it actually deteriorated what made her songwriting special -- genuine desire to make a song. And how she had to abandon wanting congratulations and applause from the masses in lieu of creating what she wants to create.
And this verse "I wouldn't have said it was in fact luck/I'm talking idealism here/I would not have been so self deprecating/I wouldn't have cowered For fear of having my eyes scratched out" is about her remaining humble when she's complimented from the success of "Jagged Little Pill" rather than owning up to the fact that she is talented and maybe even superior to a lot of other musicians -- because if she took this angle, she feared that the world would turn on her and say she is arrogant.
And this verse "I wouldn't have said it was in fact luck/I'm talking idealism here/I would not have been so self deprecating/I wouldn't have cowered For fear of having my eyes scratched out" is about her remaining humble when she's complimented from the success of "Jagged Little Pill" rather than owning up to the fact that she is talented and maybe even superior to a lot of other musicians -- because if she took this angle, she feared that the world would turn on her and say she is arrogant.
regretting changing yourself for someone's approval. she thought this guy would like her more if she was all shy and didn't ever need anything, but he left anyway.
this is probably my favourite song off SFIJ. it is v touching and powerfull and it reminds me of a lad i really liked. I wanted him to like me so much that i changed myself and my tastes. he saw right through me and wasnt interested, and i feel that if he had seen the right side of me things would have been a bit different. It certainly taught me that accepting yourself as you are is one of the most attractive things in a person
OMG this song made me cry the first time I heard it!! Ragin Awesome!! Its about wanting someone's acceptance.. I can so relate.
such a sad song. sometimes it brings me to tears. i completely relate with this song. it really hurts when someone doesn't see how good you are. alanis is a genius.
I've always seen this song positively... as a reflection on how someone saw through her facade, but loved what was there instead of what was not.
The way her voice sounds like a violin is beautiful...
"Feeling for so long that i had to compromise/downplay my power, intelligence or talent in order not to threaten and lose the affection of those that i loved. there being this underlying belief that somehow both people couldn’t share the power, that one person had to win and that the other had to “lose.” my wanting for it to have been possible for both people to “win.” with being in the public eye since i was young, those that were close to me often felt as though i was being inundated with praise from so many people that they themselves (the people i was closest to) wouldn’t acknowledge what "i was doing”."