This song is about a great tragedy, not great in the sense it is happening to someone who is important, but great in the completeness of loss expressed.
It starts with the seeming contradiction of being backed into a corner and then walking away from it all. And, yet, that is life - real and true and perfectly understandable in the metaphorical sense. He or she has weighed everything and realized that it has to end and the only question is how - with how much dignity and self-respect left.
Unfortunately, the answer is not much (because guilt is the answer to the question that lies within). Now, it turns out that the only thing worth saving is not salvageable. All he or she can do is leave with the full knowledge that the loss is completely realized (after carefully considering).
Willie's work had a certain immediateness to it that placed the listener close to the suffering of the human heart.
This song is about a great tragedy, not great in the sense it is happening to someone who is important, but great in the completeness of loss expressed. It starts with the seeming contradiction of being backed into a corner and then walking away from it all. And, yet, that is life - real and true and perfectly understandable in the metaphorical sense. He or she has weighed everything and realized that it has to end and the only question is how - with how much dignity and self-respect left. Unfortunately, the answer is not much (because guilt is the answer to the question that lies within). Now, it turns out that the only thing worth saving is not salvageable. All he or she can do is leave with the full knowledge that the loss is completely realized (after carefully considering). Willie's work had a certain immediateness to it that placed the listener close to the suffering of the human heart.