I like all of your interpretations. I'd agree this song is about suicide, but I also think this is a romantically-driven suicide, more specifically the tragedy of Romeo and Juliet.
"So take me now or take me never
I won't wait
You're already late
So say goodbye or say forever
Choose your fate
How else can we survive?
Dead is the new alive"
Romeo was too late to come and save Juliet when he finds her "dead" corpse in the tomb.
Then she sings:
"A gothic play revival
The last act of the show"
Both suicides occurred at the very last act of the play of Romeo and Juliet..
Lastly comes the quote that many of you found particular interest in:
"A quick taste of the poison, a quick twist of the knife
When the obsession with death
The obsession with death becomes a way of life"
Romeo drank poison when he found Juliet "dead" and ends up dying. Juliet wakes up from her fake death only to find her love dead before her. She kisses his lips, which still have a bit of poison left on them and stabs herself with his dagger.
Because of the romanticism that many of today's society place upon the play, it would seem that Emilie Autumn is drawing parallels to what society perceives as "romantic" and what it SHOULD consider "romantic". I'm actually surprised nobody else imagined the Romeo and Juliet reference.
@nemoman I'd argue it's more about Hamlet than about Romeo and Juliet. (After all, the title of the album is taken from Ophelia!)
"A gothic play revival
The last act of the show"
The majority of the deaths in Hamlet took place in the last act of the play.
@nemoman I'd argue it's more about Hamlet than about Romeo and Juliet. (After all, the title of the album is taken from Ophelia!)
"A gothic play revival
The last act of the show"
The majority of the deaths in Hamlet took place in the last act of the play.
As for the quote:
"A quick taste of the poison, a quick twist of the knife
When the obsession with death
The obsession with death becomes a way of life"
Most characters in Hamlet die as a result of poison (Gertrude drinks it, Hamlet and Laertes receive it intravenously, Claudius gets /both/...). The...
As for the quote:
"A quick taste of the poison, a quick twist of the knife
When the obsession with death
The obsession with death becomes a way of life"
Most characters in Hamlet die as a result of poison (Gertrude drinks it, Hamlet and Laertes receive it intravenously, Claudius gets /both/...). The 'twist of the knife'- well, Polonius, Hamlet, Laertes, and Claudius all die from knives/swords as well.
The 'obsession with death' could be Hamlet's own obsession with death: 'to be or not to be', 'fix'd his canon 'gainst self-slaughter', and of course, his obsession with dead things (skulls!)
And the title itself, 'Dead is the New Alive' makes me think of Hamlet more than Romeo and Juliet. R&J has its fair share of death, that's true. But Hamlet ends with many, many more characters alive than dead: the enduring image of the end of the play is that of Horatio, the only survivor, in a room full of corpses.
So I totally see where you're coming from, and I love the Shakespearean tragedy thing you see...but based on the theme of the album, I'd argue for Hamlet over R&J.
I like all of your interpretations. I'd agree this song is about suicide, but I also think this is a romantically-driven suicide, more specifically the tragedy of Romeo and Juliet.
"So take me now or take me never I won't wait You're already late So say goodbye or say forever Choose your fate How else can we survive? Dead is the new alive"
Romeo was too late to come and save Juliet when he finds her "dead" corpse in the tomb. Then she sings: "A gothic play revival The last act of the show"
Both suicides occurred at the very last act of the play of Romeo and Juliet..
Lastly comes the quote that many of you found particular interest in: "A quick taste of the poison, a quick twist of the knife When the obsession with death The obsession with death becomes a way of life"
Romeo drank poison when he found Juliet "dead" and ends up dying. Juliet wakes up from her fake death only to find her love dead before her. She kisses his lips, which still have a bit of poison left on them and stabs herself with his dagger.
Because of the romanticism that many of today's society place upon the play, it would seem that Emilie Autumn is drawing parallels to what society perceives as "romantic" and what it SHOULD consider "romantic". I'm actually surprised nobody else imagined the Romeo and Juliet reference.
@nemoman I'd argue it's more about Hamlet than about Romeo and Juliet. (After all, the title of the album is taken from Ophelia!) "A gothic play revival The last act of the show" The majority of the deaths in Hamlet took place in the last act of the play.
@nemoman I'd argue it's more about Hamlet than about Romeo and Juliet. (After all, the title of the album is taken from Ophelia!) "A gothic play revival The last act of the show" The majority of the deaths in Hamlet took place in the last act of the play.
As for the quote: "A quick taste of the poison, a quick twist of the knife When the obsession with death The obsession with death becomes a way of life" Most characters in Hamlet die as a result of poison (Gertrude drinks it, Hamlet and Laertes receive it intravenously, Claudius gets /both/...). The...
As for the quote: "A quick taste of the poison, a quick twist of the knife When the obsession with death The obsession with death becomes a way of life" Most characters in Hamlet die as a result of poison (Gertrude drinks it, Hamlet and Laertes receive it intravenously, Claudius gets /both/...). The 'twist of the knife'- well, Polonius, Hamlet, Laertes, and Claudius all die from knives/swords as well. The 'obsession with death' could be Hamlet's own obsession with death: 'to be or not to be', 'fix'd his canon 'gainst self-slaughter', and of course, his obsession with dead things (skulls!)
And the title itself, 'Dead is the New Alive' makes me think of Hamlet more than Romeo and Juliet. R&J has its fair share of death, that's true. But Hamlet ends with many, many more characters alive than dead: the enduring image of the end of the play is that of Horatio, the only survivor, in a room full of corpses.
So I totally see where you're coming from, and I love the Shakespearean tragedy thing you see...but based on the theme of the album, I'd argue for Hamlet over R&J.