This song is definitely a beautiful piece of art, and I think it's easy to get lead astray with some of the lyrics. If I use somebody's words, I apologize, but I didn't go through and read all of the posts so I am going from my perception of what I believe the song means.
Thom Yorke is a poet at heart, and he is able to totally immerse himself in the identity of the individual he is writing about. Thom has historically been at odds with the people of authority in England, especially Tony Blair. He actually wrote "You and Whose Army" for Tony and his "Cronies", as they were affectionately named.
To me this song is chock full of symbolism. I believe Thom is in the man's mind, speaking from his thoughts and his conscience. He is trying to reassure himself that he is not all bad, that nobody will find out, that he hasn't done anything wrong and that nobody will get hurt further if he takes himself out. Politicians/people of authority often make decisions that make sense to them at the time but are morally reprehensible to the rest of the world when they are exposed.
Sleight of hand (He did something wrong and covered it up.)
Jump off the end (He is contemplating suicide to make it go away.)
Into a clear lake (Symbolizes the way he will end his life, but also symbolizes a cleansing of his spirit in death.)
No one around (He is alone in the world with his secret, and he see himself alone in death.)
Just dragonflies
Flying to the side (This shows the level of the man's mental illness, and how long he's been fighting this problem in his mind. He is imagining his own death and his arms flying to the side while he is traveling to the water....like a Dragonfly.)
No one gets hurt (He is rationalizing his decision. In his mind nobody else will get hurt, including him, because he will be gone and nobody will find out about his dirty little secret.)
You've done nothing wrong (He is trying to console himself and give himself the resolve to complete the task at hand. Most people think that they will go to hell if they are bad or if they kill themselves. He is offering himself encouragement to get himself passed that point.)
Slide your hand (His conscience is pushing him forward in his fantasy of death, and is trying give him the courage to follow through.)
Jump off the end (He's gone from thinking about it to reassuring himself of his decision.)
The water's clear
And innocent x 2 (The water is what he wants to be again, clean and innocent. Perhaps he even thinks the suicide will be construed as an accidental drowning and he will pull of the biggest lie of all and keep his honor completely intact.)
I think the name "Codex" is a desire for wishful thinking from Thom. He wishes all of us would be "open books", and we would take an introspective look at ourselves and try our best at honesty. I think this song was written from a place of hope for people who make mistakes on high and have to deal with them. Just my thoughts. Thanks for reading.
This song is definitely a beautiful piece of art, and I think it's easy to get lead astray with some of the lyrics. If I use somebody's words, I apologize, but I didn't go through and read all of the posts so I am going from my perception of what I believe the song means.
Thom Yorke is a poet at heart, and he is able to totally immerse himself in the identity of the individual he is writing about. Thom has historically been at odds with the people of authority in England, especially Tony Blair. He actually wrote "You and Whose Army" for Tony and his "Cronies", as they were affectionately named.
To me this song is chock full of symbolism. I believe Thom is in the man's mind, speaking from his thoughts and his conscience. He is trying to reassure himself that he is not all bad, that nobody will find out, that he hasn't done anything wrong and that nobody will get hurt further if he takes himself out. Politicians/people of authority often make decisions that make sense to them at the time but are morally reprehensible to the rest of the world when they are exposed.
Sleight of hand (He did something wrong and covered it up.)
Jump off the end (He is contemplating suicide to make it go away.)
Into a clear lake (Symbolizes the way he will end his life, but also symbolizes a cleansing of his spirit in death.)
No one around (He is alone in the world with his secret, and he see himself alone in death.)
Just dragonflies Flying to the side (This shows the level of the man's mental illness, and how long he's been fighting this problem in his mind. He is imagining his own death and his arms flying to the side while he is traveling to the water....like a Dragonfly.)
No one gets hurt (He is rationalizing his decision. In his mind nobody else will get hurt, including him, because he will be gone and nobody will find out about his dirty little secret.)
You've done nothing wrong (He is trying to console himself and give himself the resolve to complete the task at hand. Most people think that they will go to hell if they are bad or if they kill themselves. He is offering himself encouragement to get himself passed that point.)
Slide your hand (His conscience is pushing him forward in his fantasy of death, and is trying give him the courage to follow through.)
Jump off the end (He's gone from thinking about it to reassuring himself of his decision.)
The water's clear And innocent x 2 (The water is what he wants to be again, clean and innocent. Perhaps he even thinks the suicide will be construed as an accidental drowning and he will pull of the biggest lie of all and keep his honor completely intact.)
I think the name "Codex" is a desire for wishful thinking from Thom. He wishes all of us would be "open books", and we would take an introspective look at ourselves and try our best at honesty. I think this song was written from a place of hope for people who make mistakes on high and have to deal with them. Just my thoughts. Thanks for reading.