I don't want to say that I think you misinterpreted the song, but I interpret the lyrics very differently...
I don't think that the main character is OBVIOUSLY dead, as you say, because that is not necessarily implied by his creeping around the church. I think that his beloved died a year ago and that he has gone insane since that time (Sorrow took all his senses away), which is why he spends every night sleeping at her grave.
I agree with you about the bells representing the church and the main character being the only one who actually cares about his beloved's death. I don't really have a better interpretation for the rooster either, so I'm just going to agree with you that he was either the woman's pet or simply a dear animal to her.
About the fear on the fence: In the German lyrics, it says 'Die Furcht auf diesen Zaun gespiesst/Geh ich nun graben jede Nacht', which I would translate as 'Having impaled my fear on this fence/I go digging every night'. So the word 'driven' in the translation above might be a bit misleading, since 'aufspiessen' literally means 'to impale'. Within the context of the lyrics, this means that the main character has basically left his fear of being discovered digging up the grave at the fence. And as you said, he is digging in order to be together again with his loved one.
'There by the bells I'm spending the night
There among snails a lonely animal
During the day I run after the night
You escape me for the second time'
These lines again state that he visits the grave every night. During the day, however, he longs to see his beloved as soon as possible, which he can't do during the day since he would be discovered - so he longs for the night (During the day I run after the night). And then he says that his beloved escapes him a second time, at which point the words 'Marry me!' pop in. It seems that the main character had asked this woman to marry him before and she probably declined - so she escaped him. But at least she was still alive and he could see her daily and hope that she changes her mind, but then she died and she escaped him a second time.
So, in the next stanza, he continues digging in order to reach the woman he still loves, but as he reaches her and tries to embrace her, her skin tears off and body parts fall off of her - which gives another meaning to the words 'you escape me for the second time', since even in death she escapes him by disintegrating.
But in the end, he doesn't even care about her condition anymore and simply wants to be with her, so he picks up what's left of her. This is why I do indeed believe that this song IS about necrophilia, since he has picked up the remaining parts to have sex with the woman who escaped him. And as he is having sex with the dead body, the rooster 'greets the morning', meaning that it's time for him to leave if he doesn't want to be discovered. He is understandably angry about this and hacks off the head of the rooster for bringing in the day... kind of like killing the messenger.
So, to summarize, the main character has been visiting the grave of his beloved every night for an entire year now, and his insanity has given him the ability to leave his fear behind and dig up the grave every night to have sex with the woman who denied him her love while she was alive.
I don't want to say that I think you misinterpreted the song, but I interpret the lyrics very differently...
I don't think that the main character is OBVIOUSLY dead, as you say, because that is not necessarily implied by his creeping around the church. I think that his beloved died a year ago and that he has gone insane since that time (Sorrow took all his senses away), which is why he spends every night sleeping at her grave.
I agree with you about the bells representing the church and the main character being the only one who actually cares about his beloved's death. I don't really have a better interpretation for the rooster either, so I'm just going to agree with you that he was either the woman's pet or simply a dear animal to her. About the fear on the fence: In the German lyrics, it says 'Die Furcht auf diesen Zaun gespiesst/Geh ich nun graben jede Nacht', which I would translate as 'Having impaled my fear on this fence/I go digging every night'. So the word 'driven' in the translation above might be a bit misleading, since 'aufspiessen' literally means 'to impale'. Within the context of the lyrics, this means that the main character has basically left his fear of being discovered digging up the grave at the fence. And as you said, he is digging in order to be together again with his loved one.
'There by the bells I'm spending the night There among snails a lonely animal During the day I run after the night You escape me for the second time' These lines again state that he visits the grave every night. During the day, however, he longs to see his beloved as soon as possible, which he can't do during the day since he would be discovered - so he longs for the night (During the day I run after the night). And then he says that his beloved escapes him a second time, at which point the words 'Marry me!' pop in. It seems that the main character had asked this woman to marry him before and she probably declined - so she escaped him. But at least she was still alive and he could see her daily and hope that she changes her mind, but then she died and she escaped him a second time.
So, in the next stanza, he continues digging in order to reach the woman he still loves, but as he reaches her and tries to embrace her, her skin tears off and body parts fall off of her - which gives another meaning to the words 'you escape me for the second time', since even in death she escapes him by disintegrating.
But in the end, he doesn't even care about her condition anymore and simply wants to be with her, so he picks up what's left of her. This is why I do indeed believe that this song IS about necrophilia, since he has picked up the remaining parts to have sex with the woman who escaped him. And as he is having sex with the dead body, the rooster 'greets the morning', meaning that it's time for him to leave if he doesn't want to be discovered. He is understandably angry about this and hacks off the head of the rooster for bringing in the day... kind of like killing the messenger.
So, to summarize, the main character has been visiting the grave of his beloved every night for an entire year now, and his insanity has given him the ability to leave his fear behind and dig up the grave every night to have sex with the woman who denied him her love while she was alive.