I love this song, but John Lydon skewed some details about Anneliese's background. She wasn't fifteen years old when she died -- she was twenty-three. Her first epileptic seizure happened when she was sixteen, and the "demonic possession" allegations didn't happen until years later. There's also speculation that she was schizophrenic (she hallucinated often). Given the neurological link between schizophrenia and epilepsy, this isn't too surprising. This woman was mentally ill, and suffered at the hands of religious propaganda because of it, which unfortunately is commonplace throughout history.
My favorite line was: "Think I'm proud to be your enemy / Take your hands off of me / You're worse than the thing that possessed me."
That was Lydon's jab against the exorcists, who basically killed her with negligence. He was pointing out the irony of the people supposedly "helping" her being ultimately responsible for her death. They were oppressing her, treating her like a spiritual criminal, instead of giving her the medical help she needed. Furthermore, they were more delusional than Anneliese. Because of them, this woman died. "Think I'm proud to be your enemy" reveals that -- how can you align yourself with an organization capable of such cruelty? There's no benevolence in this level of malevolence.
"Somehow you used ignorance for sense / Melodrama in your eyes / All concern rests with the dead."
This was another shot against the people complicit in her death. Instead of considering a rational explanation behind Anneliese's behavior, they used the spiritual. Then of course, when she dies after suffering, they can proclaim, "Oh, isn't this a tragedy!" Apparently they didn't realize their ethical obligation until the woman died. I remember an interview with Lydon where he explained the absolute tragedy behind this story.
I love this song, but John Lydon skewed some details about Anneliese's background. She wasn't fifteen years old when she died -- she was twenty-three. Her first epileptic seizure happened when she was sixteen, and the "demonic possession" allegations didn't happen until years later. There's also speculation that she was schizophrenic (she hallucinated often). Given the neurological link between schizophrenia and epilepsy, this isn't too surprising. This woman was mentally ill, and suffered at the hands of religious propaganda because of it, which unfortunately is commonplace throughout history.
My favorite line was: "Think I'm proud to be your enemy / Take your hands off of me / You're worse than the thing that possessed me."
That was Lydon's jab against the exorcists, who basically killed her with negligence. He was pointing out the irony of the people supposedly "helping" her being ultimately responsible for her death. They were oppressing her, treating her like a spiritual criminal, instead of giving her the medical help she needed. Furthermore, they were more delusional than Anneliese. Because of them, this woman died. "Think I'm proud to be your enemy" reveals that -- how can you align yourself with an organization capable of such cruelty? There's no benevolence in this level of malevolence.
"Somehow you used ignorance for sense / Melodrama in your eyes / All concern rests with the dead."
This was another shot against the people complicit in her death. Instead of considering a rational explanation behind Anneliese's behavior, they used the spiritual. Then of course, when she dies after suffering, they can proclaim, "Oh, isn't this a tragedy!" Apparently they didn't realize their ethical obligation until the woman died. I remember an interview with Lydon where he explained the absolute tragedy behind this story.