"There's nothing that can't be turned around" (line 4)
One of Plato's characters, Aristophanes, in "The Symposium" explains how androgyny relates to love which is what this song is about.
In the beginning everyone had two sets of all body parts, Zeus chopped humans in half because he was angry with us, then he came back and moved our genitals around so we could have sex while we embraced (he pitied us because we were dying of hunger and inactivity from not wanting to release our embrace on our other half).
"Nobody wants to feel alone
And everybody wants to love someone" (lines 5-6)
After we were cut in half we went looking for our other half because we originally had that someone to make us whole.
"You free your mind in your androgyny" (line 11)
Aristophanes applauds male-male relationships between men and boys since such couples value boldness, braveness, and masculinity both in themselves and in others.
"They're getting harder" (line 13)
The reason for Pederasty (a usually erotic relationship between an older man and an adolescent boy) was to educate, protect, and provide a role model for the younger boy, so "they're getting harder" is like the young boys learning to grow a thicker skin and not be as easily hurt by the world.
"Don't let a soulmate pass you by" (line 26)
This one is easy, it refers to the androgynous person always searching for their other half (their soulmate).
Plato. (c. 427-347 BC). The Symposium. Athens, Greece: Penguin Classics.
"There's nothing that can't be turned around" (line 4) One of Plato's characters, Aristophanes, in "The Symposium" explains how androgyny relates to love which is what this song is about. In the beginning everyone had two sets of all body parts, Zeus chopped humans in half because he was angry with us, then he came back and moved our genitals around so we could have sex while we embraced (he pitied us because we were dying of hunger and inactivity from not wanting to release our embrace on our other half).
"Nobody wants to feel alone And everybody wants to love someone" (lines 5-6) After we were cut in half we went looking for our other half because we originally had that someone to make us whole.
"You free your mind in your androgyny" (line 11) Aristophanes applauds male-male relationships between men and boys since such couples value boldness, braveness, and masculinity both in themselves and in others.
"They're getting harder" (line 13) The reason for Pederasty (a usually erotic relationship between an older man and an adolescent boy) was to educate, protect, and provide a role model for the younger boy, so "they're getting harder" is like the young boys learning to grow a thicker skin and not be as easily hurt by the world.
"Don't let a soulmate pass you by" (line 26) This one is easy, it refers to the androgynous person always searching for their other half (their soulmate).
Plato. (c. 427-347 BC). The Symposium. Athens, Greece: Penguin Classics.