-- "And Dream of Sheep" - (little light/great hope… face lit up by both… ‘IF they find me…’ = doubting/hurting) -
-- is followed by a dream that turns… ‘I can't be left to my imagination!’ …into a nightmare ("Under Ice").
-- Then another nightmare. THE WITCH-HUNT is like being surrounded by a ring of damning accusers and silent witnesses…
-- On 'Red, red roses,/Pinks and posies' see the sea shanty “Blood Red Roses” (http://www.sailorsongs.com/blood_red_roses_.htm)
-- ‘Red, red rose!’ = love/desire/courage/Christ/rosary/etc.
-- Witchcraft in Europe was often associated with weather-making.
-- In England, witch-pricking was common. It was believed that the diabolical mark would neither bleed, hurt nor show a wound when stabbed by a needle.
-- “The beautiful song of the blackbird makes it a symbol of temptations, especially sexual ones. The devil once took on the shape of a blackbird and flew into St. Benedict's face, thereby causing the saint to be troubled by an intense desire for a beautiful girl he had once seen. In order to save himself, St. Benedict [The Exorcist; patron against witchcraft and those fighting temptation, etc.] tore off his clothes and jumped into a thorn bush. This painful act is said to have freed him from sexual temptations for the rest of his life.”
-- Catholic guilt? … By the end of the song, the protagonist also identifies herself as a blackbird! … ‘Go down!’
-- "And Dream of Sheep" - (little light/great hope… face lit up by both… ‘IF they find me…’ = doubting/hurting) - -- is followed by a dream that turns… ‘I can't be left to my imagination!’ …into a nightmare ("Under Ice"). -- Then another nightmare. THE WITCH-HUNT is like being surrounded by a ring of damning accusers and silent witnesses… -- On 'Red, red roses,/Pinks and posies' see the sea shanty “Blood Red Roses” (http://www.sailorsongs.com/blood_red_roses_.htm) -- ‘Red, red rose!’ = love/desire/courage/Christ/rosary/etc. -- Witchcraft in Europe was often associated with weather-making. -- In England, witch-pricking was common. It was believed that the diabolical mark would neither bleed, hurt nor show a wound when stabbed by a needle. -- “The beautiful song of the blackbird makes it a symbol of temptations, especially sexual ones. The devil once took on the shape of a blackbird and flew into St. Benedict's face, thereby causing the saint to be troubled by an intense desire for a beautiful girl he had once seen. In order to save himself, St. Benedict [The Exorcist; patron against witchcraft and those fighting temptation, etc.] tore off his clothes and jumped into a thorn bush. This painful act is said to have freed him from sexual temptations for the rest of his life.” -- Catholic guilt? … By the end of the song, the protagonist also identifies herself as a blackbird! … ‘Go down!’