I'm just an aging drummer boy and in the wars I used to play
And I've called the tune to many a torching session
Now they say I am a war criminal and I'm fading away
Father, please, hear my confession
I have legalized robbery, called it belief
I have run with the money, I have hid like a thief
Rewritten history with my armies of my crooks
Invented memories; I did burn all the books
And I can still hear his laughter and I can still hear his song
The man's too big, the man's too strong
Well, I have tried to be meek and I have tried to be mild
But I spat like a woman and I sulked like a child
I have lived behind walls that have made me alone
Striven for peace, which I never have known
And I can still hear his laughter and I can still hear his song
The man's too big, the man's too strong
Well, the sun rose on the courtyard and they all did hear him say
You always was a Judas, but I got you anyway
You may have got your silver, but I swear upon my life
Your sister gave me diamonds and I gave them to your wife
Oh, father, please, help me for I have done wrong
The man's too big, the man's too strong
And I've called the tune to many a torching session
Now they say I am a war criminal and I'm fading away
Father, please, hear my confession
I have legalized robbery, called it belief
I have run with the money, I have hid like a thief
Rewritten history with my armies of my crooks
Invented memories; I did burn all the books
And I can still hear his laughter and I can still hear his song
The man's too big, the man's too strong
Well, I have tried to be meek and I have tried to be mild
But I spat like a woman and I sulked like a child
I have lived behind walls that have made me alone
Striven for peace, which I never have known
And I can still hear his laughter and I can still hear his song
The man's too big, the man's too strong
Well, the sun rose on the courtyard and they all did hear him say
You always was a Judas, but I got you anyway
You may have got your silver, but I swear upon my life
Your sister gave me diamonds and I gave them to your wife
Oh, father, please, help me for I have done wrong
The man's too big, the man's too strong
Lyrics submitted by kevin, edited by OtterSpotter
"The Man's Too Strong" as written by Mark Knopfler
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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I've pondered this for nearly 25 years, and look forward to any and all feedback, critisism(s), and general thoughts on the matter.
I think the very obvious, dominant, reading is always going to be the idea that this is some sort of underling of some monster from history like Adolf Hitler, making excuses for getting swept up in Fuhrer-mania and being, as a result, partially (or greatly) responsible.
Someone else suggested the song might be about Rudolf Hess; however, as much as Hess wasn't directly responsible for most Nazi atrocities due to being imprisoned in London for most of the war, he was still a pretty avid Nazi. While his life sentence in Spandau seemed excessive for someone who wasn't actually there when these things were happening, he doesn't strike me as particularly repentant. I view this more along the lines of a lower-level soldier or functionary who either went along blindly or did so out of fear of recriminations.
BUT
Your interpretation is going to depend on who you think "The Man" might be. What if it's not a real person but a metaphor? What if "wars", "torture" and so forth are also metaphors on various levels?
"The Man" could be the base savagery within the human psyche. I did these things (literal or metaphorical) because I can't control myself.
"The Man" could be The Devil -- "I can still hear his (beguiling) song", references to Judas Iscariot (silver) and the possibility that "father" here is a priest at a confessional. The devil made me do it!
"The Man" could be an organisation or group or even an ideology that it is difficult to go against. Could we be talking about some of the negative history of the church? "legalised robbery and called it belief". The confessional vibe could be one of bitter irony. Could the wars and armies refer to the crusades? I think it's quite clear that we're drawing quite heavily on Nazi activities such as rewriting history via book burning; however, these could be symbolic of similar concepts employed elsewhere.
To some extent, exactly who you view "Father" to be can also influence your reading.
Is it a priest?
Is it the speaker's actual father?
Is it God?
Is it someone else?
Now, all that's left for me is to leave a big GRRRRRR here for my class if they are reading this. I told you guys not to Google the answer! :)
Knopfler delivers one of my favorite vocal performances in this song. He’s typically so very dry in his delivery, but the subtlety he brings in this piece shows he is a skilled actor delivering what he calls “an experiment in character and playwriting.” (members.tripod.com/~Dire_Straits/…) Though Lloyd never experienced the chilling betrayal the song's protagonist relays ("Your sister gave me diamonds... and ah give 'em to your wife..."), he experienced nearly as bad, or in some ways even worse, at the hands of The Man. This song, in my imagination, allowed me to combine Lloyd’s universe with the blind followers of Flagg's many personas in The Dark Tower, Eyes of the Dragon, and more of Stephen King’s books. Lloyd was asking himself, “How did I get here? How did I become such an agent of evil?”
Called it belief"
Among other things made me think it was a song about organized religion and all the problems it's caused and that. Though I'm probobly wrong...
God doesn't laugh at those He judges. The "man" is the dictator who caught his former supporter when he could no longer be part of his system. On hanging day, the rest the dictator's men call him Judas. The diamonds are really love or at least sex. So he gets in an obscene gesture towards the dictator before the sudden drop.
I think it's pretty likely that "The Man" is Satan (I am an agnostic - so I don't usually look to biblical references).
I think the Singer/Protagonist was finally caught (brought to justice) - and he is giving his final confession to a priest (or God) having been turned in by one a Traitor (Judas) who was paid in Silver for betraying him.
The Singer/Protagonist when In the courtyard - about to be executed - and having given his final confession - turns to his betrayer (Judas character) - and in one Final act of Sin (In front of the entire onlooking crowd) - tells his Judas that while Judas may have got his Silver for the betrayal - the Protagonist had Already committed a much worse Sin/Betrayal of having "Relationships - Sex" etc...) with Judas' Daughter who gave him Diamonds - Which he then gave to Judas Wife - Probably the most Painful act of betrayal a human could perform - and proving that Satan is to Big and Strong to be resisted even seconds before the singer dies.
...commonly misheard lyric: "They masturbate, the man's too strong"
He can still hear his laughter and his song; I think he's talking about the impression his own father made on him as a little boy, a man that was could be cruel and mocking, and yet the boy looked up to him and was influenced by him: he was too big and strong to stand against.
I think that dictators can also assume that role - "father of the nation" - and people both fear and admire them.
The burning of books reminds me of Hitler.
The Father mentioned in the lyrics of course is God.
When he sings the man's too STRONG, I have to raise my arm in a Heil Hitler salute - I'm not some creepy Nazi. Try it, but not in public!