5. "Upside Down" by: Jack Johnson

5. "Upside Down" by: Jack Johnson

            This song by Jack Johnson expresses some ideas that are shared in Siddartha.  The following lyrics emphasize this:

“The world keeps spinning, and with each new day

I can feel a change in everything

And as the surfaces breaks the reflections fade

But in some ways they remain the same”

                  The lyrics are telling us that the world is ever changing, but there remains some continuous uniting factor keeps it monotonous.  When Siddartha observes the river and it speaks to him, he comes to a similar realization.  He notices that the river is always the river, but never the exact same river because it is ever flowing.  Both this song and the book express similar ideas dealing with an undercurrent of change.

4. "I'm Yours" by: Jason Mraz

4. "I'm Yours" by: John Mraz

This song shares ideas with the novel “Siddartha”.  These lyrics illustrate this idea:

“I guess what I be saying is there ain’t no better reason

To rid yourself of vanity and just go with the seasons

It’s what we aim to do, our name is our virtue”

                  The lyrics tell us to forget superficial things, and to just go along with the flow of life; we are supposed to take things as they come.  It claims that this is all humanity really wants to do, to just forget the world and move onto something better.  Siddartha learns a similar lesson after submitting to a material life.  He becomes a businessman, deals with money, becomes wealthy, indulges in worldly pleasures, but in the end gains no great knowledge.  Siddartha settles by a river, being very poor but happy.  By giving up worldly possessions he achieves his nirvana.  The song shares the Buddhist idea that true happiness can only be obtained once you detach from worldly pleasures.

                  The songs upbeat and catchy melody encourages us to just be carefree and enjoy the simple things in life.  The light guitar beat and drums sooth us into wanting to just blow things off, and live a simpler life.

 

3. "When You Were Young" by: The Killers

3. "When You Were Young" by: The Killers

The song “When You Were Young” by the Killers is a great example of the societal stereotypes we have created for girl that we discussed in English this year.  The following lyrics illustrate this:

“You sit there in your heart ache,

Waiting on some beautiful boy to

Save you from your old ways”

When we read the article from Dr. Learner, the idea was brought up that girls are raised to personify the damsel in distress archetype.  Society teaches our girls to wait around for boys.  For example, it isn’t socially accepted for a woman to ask out a guy, or ask him to a dance, or even propose.  This song tells about a girl who is doing just that, sitting around and waiting for “Mr. Right” to come along.  Instead of fixing anything or changing her lifestyle she waits for someone to come save her, and show her what she is doing wrong. 

The title itself, “When You Were Young” suggests that she has been fed these ideas ever since she was a little girl.  She has the perfect idea of a man she formed as a young girl, and waits for someone to fill that mold.

2. "Face Down" by: The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus

2. "Face Down" by: The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus

"Face Down" tells a story about an abusive relationship.  It perfectly illustrates the issue of the "tough guise" that we covered in English this year.

"Do you feel like a man?

When you push her around?

Do you feel better now as she falls to the ground?"

    The artist is criticizing the way this man abuses his girlfriend.  He is asking him why he does abuses her, and if it makes him feel masculine.  In the movie "Tough Guise" it talked about this issue.  It brought up that over ninety percent of abuse is initiated by men.  They offered an explanation that men do it because it empowers them.  Male domination has been apart of our culture for years, which has also fostered abuse because society teaches men that they should be powerful and respected.  In books like "Romeo and Juliet", "Antigone", and "The Epic of Gilgamesh", all of the women are subject to the rule of men.  Brothers, husbands, and or fathers dominate them; they are supposed to keep quiet, and those who don't are punished.  It also address the idea that abuse is a chain reaction that is carried through the generations in the following lyrics:

"A pebble in the water makes a ripple effect,

Every action in this world bears consequence"

    The lyrics suggest that one descion, like abuse, can start chain reactions.  One boy who was abused can abuse his kids, who can abuse theirs, and the vicious cycle continues.

1. "Gone by Switchfoot"

1. "Gone" by: Switchfoot

This song address the idea of mortality and how nothing lasts forever, and idea brought up in Gilgamesh and Ishmael.  We see this in the following lyrics:

"We are not infinite

We are not permanent

We are so confident

In our accomplishments"

    The lyrics are trying to make humanity realize that nothing is permanent; we all die at some point.  Even though it’s hard for us, we have to accept our mortality. Similarly, in the book "The Epic of Gilgamesh", Gilgamesh is forced to accept his own mortality when the gods kill his best friend.  Gilgamesh tries to defy the gods and gain immortality, but in the end he cannot obtain it and must accept that he too will die.

    In "Ishmael" when they give the example of societies being on hangliders.  People enjoy the view and the feeling of flying so much, that they forget the will have to fall at some point.  Once they finally realize the ground is fast approaching its too late to do anything to save themselves.  The song expresses the same idea that we are too confident to see the problems we have created.

Unwritten Rules

Testing English Final