I agree that this song is about people in positions of power and wealth exerting dominance over those less well of than ourselves (e.g. in the 3rd world), but i'd also like to add a different interpretation of the song...
The lyrics of the song remind me of human abuse of animals for meat (and dairy) production. Taking a more literal interpretation of the lyrics, the overall theme of food and a hunger strike could be seen as a protest against the treatment of animals for the food industry. "But it's on the table, The fire is cooking" - cooking and serving food of animal origin, "farming babies" - rearing young specifically to be killed and eaten. "But I can't feed on the powerless" could be interpreted as the fact that animals are unable to communicate with people effectively enough to protest against their mistreatment, and the idea that animals are infact enslaved by us ("While the slaves are working"). The reference to blood is also obviously linked to the preparation of animals for meat products. Overall the fact that the food choice to be 'stolen' in replacement of this system is bread - a non-animal food product.
This is a personal interpretation, so not what I think the song was intentially written about, but possibly an interesting way of looking at the lyrics.
P.S who is this Thruthusedtohurt guy and why is he/she writing about kurt cobain on a page about Temple of the Dog lyrics?!
Also, whether it is "going" or "growing", the message is pretty much the same.
Peace out dudes :)
@right-in-two this came on the radio the other night and i thought the same thing. Im close to 100% sure that the song was not written with animals in mind as the state of factory farming simply wasnt known then. But the lyrics struck me the same way. Obviously by refusing to eat the powerless you are on strike. I agree with the rest of your interpretations, except the ‘slaves are working’ part. To me, that is the shit icing on the shit cake of factory farming - the poorest of the poor, illegal immigrants, people who dont have another...
@right-in-two this came on the radio the other night and i thought the same thing. Im close to 100% sure that the song was not written with animals in mind as the state of factory farming simply wasnt known then. But the lyrics struck me the same way. Obviously by refusing to eat the powerless you are on strike. I agree with the rest of your interpretations, except the ‘slaves are working’ part. To me, that is the shit icing on the shit cake of factory farming - the poorest of the poor, illegal immigrants, people who dont have another option make up much of the staff in there.
It wraps up the whole system - greed at the very top, greed and softness and obesity in the consumers, terrorized victims and traumatized workers - even if it wasnt written that way on purpose.
I agree that this song is about people in positions of power and wealth exerting dominance over those less well of than ourselves (e.g. in the 3rd world), but i'd also like to add a different interpretation of the song... The lyrics of the song remind me of human abuse of animals for meat (and dairy) production. Taking a more literal interpretation of the lyrics, the overall theme of food and a hunger strike could be seen as a protest against the treatment of animals for the food industry. "But it's on the table, The fire is cooking" - cooking and serving food of animal origin, "farming babies" - rearing young specifically to be killed and eaten. "But I can't feed on the powerless" could be interpreted as the fact that animals are unable to communicate with people effectively enough to protest against their mistreatment, and the idea that animals are infact enslaved by us ("While the slaves are working"). The reference to blood is also obviously linked to the preparation of animals for meat products. Overall the fact that the food choice to be 'stolen' in replacement of this system is bread - a non-animal food product. This is a personal interpretation, so not what I think the song was intentially written about, but possibly an interesting way of looking at the lyrics.
P.S who is this Thruthusedtohurt guy and why is he/she writing about kurt cobain on a page about Temple of the Dog lyrics?! Also, whether it is "going" or "growing", the message is pretty much the same. Peace out dudes :)
@right-in-two, you’re brilliant!
@right-in-two, you’re brilliant!
@right-in-two this came on the radio the other night and i thought the same thing. Im close to 100% sure that the song was not written with animals in mind as the state of factory farming simply wasnt known then. But the lyrics struck me the same way. Obviously by refusing to eat the powerless you are on strike. I agree with the rest of your interpretations, except the ‘slaves are working’ part. To me, that is the shit icing on the shit cake of factory farming - the poorest of the poor, illegal immigrants, people who dont have another...
@right-in-two this came on the radio the other night and i thought the same thing. Im close to 100% sure that the song was not written with animals in mind as the state of factory farming simply wasnt known then. But the lyrics struck me the same way. Obviously by refusing to eat the powerless you are on strike. I agree with the rest of your interpretations, except the ‘slaves are working’ part. To me, that is the shit icing on the shit cake of factory farming - the poorest of the poor, illegal immigrants, people who dont have another option make up much of the staff in there. It wraps up the whole system - greed at the very top, greed and softness and obesity in the consumers, terrorized victims and traumatized workers - even if it wasnt written that way on purpose.
@right-in-two 18 years later, but right on my friend.This is exactly how I always interpreted this song.
@right-in-two 18 years later, but right on my friend.This is exactly how I always interpreted this song.