This song goes way beyond the personification of the gun and Nas' ability to make it seem more like a human, that's not very innovative at all. I think the brilliant part of this song is how it's a social commentary by nature. Nas chose to use the gun because it represents something violent and emotionless to reflect the state of mind had by most underprivelaged youths during the period (and today). Nas isn't talking about a gun with feelings, the gun represents the hood as a whole and our current society isn't structured to provide any positives or benefits to people in the ghetto. In actuality, society is designed so that these groups of people fail and that's what Nasir means when he uses the gun metaphor. He condemns prison with the line:
"I was laid in a shelf, with a grenade
Met a wrecked-up tech with numbers on his chest that say
Five-two-oh-nine-three-eight-five and zero
Had a serial defaced, hopin one day, police would place
where he came from, a name or some sort of person to claim him
Tired of murderin, made him wanna be a plain gun"
The shelf is prison and the wrecked up tec and grenade are felons (the ghetto dwellers all take on a dangerous object when being personified) and the serial number on the tecs chest is his prison number. Prison is a place where we send people that society doesn't want to deal with, not for rehabiliation but for punishment. The tec hopes someday "someone will claim him" or he will find some stability or structure in the world. Nas declares that he's tired of murderin' and wants to be a plain gun, echoing the fact that the plight of the ghetto that produces so many fuck ups is not directly related to the individuals, it's the society they're placed in that causes them to murder, rob, steal, etc. This song is incredibly deep and I could honestly analyze every single lyric but I ain't got that kinda time (although I'd love to). This is probably my favorite song of all time, not just rap song, but song in general.
This song goes way beyond the personification of the gun and Nas' ability to make it seem more like a human, that's not very innovative at all. I think the brilliant part of this song is how it's a social commentary by nature. Nas chose to use the gun because it represents something violent and emotionless to reflect the state of mind had by most underprivelaged youths during the period (and today). Nas isn't talking about a gun with feelings, the gun represents the hood as a whole and our current society isn't structured to provide any positives or benefits to people in the ghetto. In actuality, society is designed so that these groups of people fail and that's what Nasir means when he uses the gun metaphor. He condemns prison with the line: "I was laid in a shelf, with a grenade Met a wrecked-up tech with numbers on his chest that say Five-two-oh-nine-three-eight-five and zero Had a serial defaced, hopin one day, police would place where he came from, a name or some sort of person to claim him Tired of murderin, made him wanna be a plain gun"
The shelf is prison and the wrecked up tec and grenade are felons (the ghetto dwellers all take on a dangerous object when being personified) and the serial number on the tecs chest is his prison number. Prison is a place where we send people that society doesn't want to deal with, not for rehabiliation but for punishment. The tec hopes someday "someone will claim him" or he will find some stability or structure in the world. Nas declares that he's tired of murderin' and wants to be a plain gun, echoing the fact that the plight of the ghetto that produces so many fuck ups is not directly related to the individuals, it's the society they're placed in that causes them to murder, rob, steal, etc. This song is incredibly deep and I could honestly analyze every single lyric but I ain't got that kinda time (although I'd love to). This is probably my favorite song of all time, not just rap song, but song in general.
wow, i like how you put this. very nice and yes, VERY powerful.
wow, i like how you put this. very nice and yes, VERY powerful.