First of all the 4th line is wrong, the word come should be give.
Secondly is about CIRCUMCISION.
"watch the fingers close
when the hands are cold"
"with sellotape and knives"
Both are about cutting the foreskin.
So it's about circumcision and his ambivalence towards it.
"am i the happy loss
will i still recoil
when the skin is lost
am i the worthy cross
will i still be soiled
when the dirt is off "
There are many metaphors in the song, and it may have more than one meaning, but "the cutter" is about circumcision. I'm surprised no one else saw this, it's so obvious to me.
There may be allusions to circumcision, but that's not what the song is literally about. The song is about preparing yourself for some future you feel in your bones, overcoming your flaws to be who you need to be, and examining your personal meaning. Circumcision was a physical sign of being one of God's chosen people, and for Christians a "circumcision" of the heart means a cutting out of fleshly desires (which the literal circumcision symbolized). He's grappling with the idea that he may not be special or significant or worthy or possessing goodness - "not just another drop in...
There may be allusions to circumcision, but that's not what the song is literally about. The song is about preparing yourself for some future you feel in your bones, overcoming your flaws to be who you need to be, and examining your personal meaning. Circumcision was a physical sign of being one of God's chosen people, and for Christians a "circumcision" of the heart means a cutting out of fleshly desires (which the literal circumcision symbolized). He's grappling with the idea that he may not be special or significant or worthy or possessing goodness - "not just another drop in the ocean".
Perhaps he resents outward signs requires - ie. spare us the cutter could both being spared a sign like circumcision or - as someone else mentioned - a reference to money a la the film Clockwork Orange. Money of course is a symbol for outward value, worth, influence, etc.
First of all the 4th line is wrong, the word come should be give.
Secondly is about CIRCUMCISION.
"watch the fingers close when the hands are cold"
"with sellotape and knives"
Both are about cutting the foreskin.
So it's about circumcision and his ambivalence towards it.
"am i the happy loss will i still recoil when the skin is lost am i the worthy cross will i still be soiled when the dirt is off "
There are many metaphors in the song, and it may have more than one meaning, but "the cutter" is about circumcision. I'm surprised no one else saw this, it's so obvious to me.
There may be allusions to circumcision, but that's not what the song is literally about. The song is about preparing yourself for some future you feel in your bones, overcoming your flaws to be who you need to be, and examining your personal meaning. Circumcision was a physical sign of being one of God's chosen people, and for Christians a "circumcision" of the heart means a cutting out of fleshly desires (which the literal circumcision symbolized). He's grappling with the idea that he may not be special or significant or worthy or possessing goodness - "not just another drop in...
There may be allusions to circumcision, but that's not what the song is literally about. The song is about preparing yourself for some future you feel in your bones, overcoming your flaws to be who you need to be, and examining your personal meaning. Circumcision was a physical sign of being one of God's chosen people, and for Christians a "circumcision" of the heart means a cutting out of fleshly desires (which the literal circumcision symbolized). He's grappling with the idea that he may not be special or significant or worthy or possessing goodness - "not just another drop in the ocean".
Perhaps he resents outward signs requires - ie. spare us the cutter could both being spared a sign like circumcision or - as someone else mentioned - a reference to money a la the film Clockwork Orange. Money of course is a symbol for outward value, worth, influence, etc.