For me, this song is about a soldier and his growing disillusionment with war. The rabbit is the symbol of the thing he's hunting or seeking to destroy. Could be a concrete enemy, or it could be something as general as freedom. There's a derogatory tone towards the rabbit for running instead of accepting a duty.
As the song progresses, we see how the narrators frame of mind changes each time he compares himself to a different animal. At first he's a colt who has to be separated from his mother to work on the field. He's scared, but that's the way things go. Then he's a brave, bold lion with nothing to fear. He believes strongly in what he's doing.
In the middle of the song, the narrator starts to feel less engaged with his cause. It's less him running to fight and more just going where he's commanded to go, the way a bird's path is dictated by the wind.
The next time he visits his mother, she is surprised when she sees him. There is a realization when the captain comes to get him that even though they are good men, the war is changing them, making them cruel and wild, like dogs on a hunt.
The last time the narrator talks about being caught after visiting his mother, he says they take him away in hand cuffs, "Because the rabbit will run, and the pig has to lay in its piss." Perhaps he is being arrested for war crimes? He is sentenced to dwell on his mistakes for the rest of his life? Suddenly the rabbit is praised for running compared to the pig who has to live in its own excrement.
For me, this song is about a soldier and his growing disillusionment with war. The rabbit is the symbol of the thing he's hunting or seeking to destroy. Could be a concrete enemy, or it could be something as general as freedom. There's a derogatory tone towards the rabbit for running instead of accepting a duty.
As the song progresses, we see how the narrators frame of mind changes each time he compares himself to a different animal. At first he's a colt who has to be separated from his mother to work on the field. He's scared, but that's the way things go. Then he's a brave, bold lion with nothing to fear. He believes strongly in what he's doing.
In the middle of the song, the narrator starts to feel less engaged with his cause. It's less him running to fight and more just going where he's commanded to go, the way a bird's path is dictated by the wind.
The next time he visits his mother, she is surprised when she sees him. There is a realization when the captain comes to get him that even though they are good men, the war is changing them, making them cruel and wild, like dogs on a hunt.
The last time the narrator talks about being caught after visiting his mother, he says they take him away in hand cuffs, "Because the rabbit will run, and the pig has to lay in its piss." Perhaps he is being arrested for war crimes? He is sentenced to dwell on his mistakes for the rest of his life? Suddenly the rabbit is praised for running compared to the pig who has to live in its own excrement.