I think most people are right- the song is about an affair, or at least walking in on their dad with a woman besides their mom. I just want to take the metaphors a little further.
The car represents innocence/ignorance. The kids "figure out the keys" after their father locks them in the car. After walking into the bedroom, they run back out to the car and scratch at the door. They cannot go back to "innocence" now that they know the truth. "A mind that knows itself is a mind that knows much more." The narrator names two different paths for a mind that knows itself: it can serve or kill others. And it seems like their father "killed" them in a way: "he left us now for dead."
Honestly, I can see the older brother having the fit. An older sibling may take it harder than the younger ones because he understands more what it means. Children might just be confused.
I like the metaphorical interpretation of the traffic stopping representing his sorrow.
I think most people are right- the song is about an affair, or at least walking in on their dad with a woman besides their mom. I just want to take the metaphors a little further.
The car represents innocence/ignorance. The kids "figure out the keys" after their father locks them in the car. After walking into the bedroom, they run back out to the car and scratch at the door. They cannot go back to "innocence" now that they know the truth. "A mind that knows itself is a mind that knows much more." The narrator names two different paths for a mind that knows itself: it can serve or kill others. And it seems like their father "killed" them in a way: "he left us now for dead."
Honestly, I can see the older brother having the fit. An older sibling may take it harder than the younger ones because he understands more what it means. Children might just be confused.
I like the metaphorical interpretation of the traffic stopping representing his sorrow.
Peace!