video analysis

For this post I am going to analyze a music video of the song "like a rolling stone." The song is being played by the rolling stones, but the lyrics are exactly the same and the song changes very little from Bob Dylan's original version of the song. I choose to use this video with the rolling stones playing because it was the only video that I found that did not change the song and offered an interpretation of the lyrics.

http://www.veoh.com/videos/e103756XM2AGkPm

The Rolling Stones interpret the song as I did at first. As a story about a girl character falling from having high social status and popularity to being washed up and on the streets. They view the song as a tragic story of a girl falling to rock bottom. The video implies that the girls fall was the result of drug use, even though there no scenes of the character doing drugs. I am able to infer drug use because of two things the first being how the view on the video becomes distorted when they show the girl after her fall. As if trying to show the distorted view of the world drugs cause. The second reason I infer drugs is that when they show the girl after her fall she does not look healthy. Not only does she look like she has not been taking care of herself, in terms of hygene but she is often struggles to stay standing as if intoxicated. The video implies that the character ends at rock bottom.

I thought that this interpretation of the song was much to simple, and that the video was only analyzing part of the lyrics. The video is broken up portraying three different types of scenes or times in the characters life. The girl washed up, the girl when she had social status and money, with the Rolling Stones playing in between the scenes in front of a crowd. The scenes about the girl having high social statues and money relate well with the lyrics, and so do the scenes about the girl falling to rock bottom. But when they showed the band playing the song they left many lines uninterpreted, ignoring them in the story line. I think this made it easy for the Rolling Stones to make there interpretation make sense but leaves to many lyrics uninterpreted and gives a bias meaning to the song.

 

Response to Comments on my last post

For this post I plan to respond to two comments about my last post, I am going to agree with the ian.k's comment and argue against alanna's comment. Alanna argues that the lines "When you got nothing, you got nothing to lose You're invisible now, you got no secrets to conceal" is meant to show the characters  uselessness and having nothing to offer anymore. While ian.k and I think that these lines are meant to show that only once a person escapes a life based on material objects and social status will they be able to find real happiness, and live life to its fullest. When you are able to live life not care what other people think. You will have total freedom, which I think is what all people are really looking for in life. Just as we look for friends who allow us to be ourselves or a job that gives us the freedom to do what we love. 

The lines "how does  it feel to be on your own with no direction home Like a complete unknown" conjure up thoughts of sadness to most imagining someone broke with no friends and family to help them. I am able to see these lines as being happy because they are followed by the line "like a rolling stone". This line changes how I interpret the lines before it because of how I think people should live life. I think that you should live life much like a rolling stone what I mean by this is you should never stop and be content with the way things are you should always keep moving on. Just as a "rolling stone gathers no moss" a person who keeps moving never gets tied down by material objects or stops to worry what others think. Most people see the line with "No direction home" home to be sad imaging the homeless or unwanted. I think this line is to show freedom and I think that my interpretation is different than most people because of how I view an ideal life. For me an ideal life would mean total freedom to roam and to never be tied down by material objects or a single home. A life where you are free to travel the world experience different cultures and not worry about your social status or if you fit in. While I think most people view an ideal life as settling into a home with family and gathering material objects along with social status. So to really be able to gather meaning to this song I think you need to think about what  in life will bring you happiness. 

analysis of final 2 lines of the last verse

When you got nothing, you got nothing to lose

Youre invisible now, you got no secrets to conceal

These two lines come down to one simple idea that is the best things in life don't cost any money. The first line shows how complicated life is when you have money and power. Also how quickly you can loose it all as the character in the song does. When you don't have money and power life becomes simpler because you don't have all those material things that you feel bring you happiness. The second line goes into how when people have money and power they often have to fit certain stereotypes, or portray themselves differently than they would if they lived there lives not caring what other thought. But when you feel that you have no one to impress you can be yourself. I see it as the character in the song becomes "invisible now" because she is no longer trying to impress anyone. She can finally be herself and when you act how you truly feel and don't try to impress anyone you will have "no secrets to conceal".  

analysis of 3rd verse

You never turned around to see the frowns on the jugglers and the clowns

When they all come down and did tricks for you

You never understood that it aint no good

You shouldnt let other people get your kicks for you

You used to ride on the chrome horse with your diplomat

Who carried on his shoulder a siamese cat

Aint it hard when you discover that

He really wasnt where its at

After he took from you everything he could steal.

I think that the first 4 lines of this verse are creating a metaphor for the characters drug use. Specifically how she did not see what was wrong with her drug use. I compare the "frowns on the jugglers and the clowns" faces to represent the false happiness that drugs provide. I get this comparison from the idea that drugs cause a person to look and feel happy from the outside, but on the inside offer no significant happiness. Just as a clown could appear to be happy on his mask but under it on the inside he could be frowning and unhappy. Showing how the character in the song never bothered to look inside herself to see if she was truly happy from her drugs use. 

The next three lines follow this same idea of drugs providing false happiness. The line "you never understood that it aint no good" shows how the character did not see what was wrong with her situation at the time. While the line "You shouldnt let other people get your kicks for you" once again represents this idea that you should not let drugs provide your happiness, or "kicks".  

The meaning I come up with for the next two lines is that they are describing her distorted view of happiness. How drugs made her feel as though she where on a "chrome horse" or with a "Diplomat", above everyone else.

Then the last two lines go back to her fall. The line "He really was'nt where its at" describes how the drugs where not the right decision. But she can only see this after the fact when it is already to late and drugs have taken from her everything that she has. As the line "After he took from you everything he could steal" describes.

response to d.malone

d. malone said...

Do you think she deserved what has happened to her? Do you see it 'bound to happen' to everyone? Why was this bound to happen to her?

I do think that she deserved what happened to her. The first reason being that it was obvious that she was warned about being "bound to fall". The first paragraph offers several instances where she shows that she choose not to listen to those who warned her. While she "laughed about" those who where "Hanging out" she never cared to think of the warnings that where given to her.

I do not see the line "bound to happen" as intended to cover all people. Just this instance where she was warned and seemed to have such a large ego. Also I think that the lyrics make it clear that the narrator was talking about just the one person by choosing to put the word "you're" before "bound to fall" when the writer could have chosen a word like everyone if they intended to mean more than just her. 

The  reason that it was bound to happen to her was that she had such a large ego before her fall. It seems that she could never imagine sinking so low because, even when it did happen only then does she not "talk so loud" or "seem so proud".  Also in the third verse "Aint it hard when you discover that He really wasn't where its at." showing her realization that her previous life was not right for her. Something she could only realize after taking her fall. It is one of those situations where hind sight is 20/20. Where only after you have moved on from a point in your life can you look back and see what was wrong with it.  

analysis of 2 lines in second verse

For this blog post I intend to delve into the meaning of two specific lines found at the end of the second verse. 

"As you stare into the vacuum of his eyes
And ask him do you wan to make a deal"

As a whole I think that these two lines are reffering to purchasing drugs. 

The first line shows that the narrator is unsure about purchasing possibly fighting with her conscious, I infer this because of the choice of words "As you stare". I see staring as a moment of contemplation wondering if this is what she really wants with her life. 

I assume that the narrator is referring to drugs because of the line "vacuum of his eyes". This is a reference to drugs in two ways the first being that when a person uses drugs their pupils and eyes become distorted. Making the person not look like there normal selves. Also the narrator refers to his eyes as a "vacuum" I see this as a drug reference because of the addicting properties associated with drugs.  The same way drugs are able to suck their users up into addiction with no escape, as a vacuum sucks up what ever is in its path.

I interpret the second line to have two very similar meanings. The first being the most obvious that the narrator has decided to purchase the drugs, I infer this from the line "you want to make a deal". The other deeper meaning that I see with this line is that the narrator is selling her soul to the devil with the purchase of drugs. As she has nothing left to give up now that she has fallen to her all time low.

blogs purpose

This blog is a student run project to delve into "like a rolling stone" written by Bob Dylan and sung by Bob Dylan The posts that follow will contain a textual and contextual analysis of the lyrics, the writer’s word choice, how the music emphasizes certain lyrics, and how those lyrics function in the world. 

I am particularly interested in seeing what responses, memories and feelings these lyrics evoke in myself as I continue to peel back the layers of meaning. And less interested in interviews given by the artist on the lyrics, although I may include some of those later on in my project.

Later, this blog will also feature an analysis of the official music video associated with the song.

analysis of first verse

I interpret the first paragraph of the song as talking about a rich and popular girl. I assume she is a girl because in the third line the narrator refers to the character as "doll". Who was perfect and in her prime, and thinks it will last forever. The type of person who thinks that there better than everyone. I see her as a person who also was warned with things like it will not always be this good. I got this from lines like "you're bound to fall" Or people warning her to help out others and her never doing it because she always saw being poor as a persons own problem the same with just being on hard times. I got this sense from the second line where the narrator says "you threw a bums a dime in your prime, didn't you" I think he says "didn't you" as a way of showing that she didn't and now she can see how hard  it is. I do not think it is revealed why the narrator falls until the second verse but I believe it is because of drug use which I will go into more later.  It eventually catches up to her and she looses all confidence and sees what she really was. She realizes that those people warned her where right and now feels bad for looking down on those below her. Now she wishes she had been different, and realizes what was wrong with who she was. I ge this from the narrator saying "now you don't seem so proud".

lyrics

Once upon a time you dressed so fine

You threw the bums a dime in your prime, didnt you? 

Peopled call, say, beware doll, youre bound to fall

You thought they were all kiddin you

You used to laugh about

Everybody that was hangin out

Now you dont talk so loud

Now you dont seem so proud

About having to be scrounging for your next meal.

How does it feel

How does it feel

To be without a home

Like a complete unknown

Like a rolling stone? 

Youve gone to the finest school all right, miss lonely

But you know you only used to get juiced in it

And nobody has ever taught you how to live on the street

And now you find out youre gonna have to get used to it

You said youd never compromise

With the mystery tramp, but now you realize

Hes not selling any alibis

As you stare into the vacuum of his eyes

And ask him do you want to make a deal? 

How does it feel

How does it feel

To be on your own

With no direction home

Like a complete unknown

Like a rolling stone? 

You never turned around to see the frowns on the jugglers and the clowns

When they all come down and did tricks for you

You never understood that it aint no good

You shouldnt let other people get your kicks for you

You used to ride on the chrome horse with your diplomat

Who carried on his shoulder a siamese cat

Aint it hard when you discover that

He really wasnt where its at

After he took from you everything he could steal.

How does it feel

How does it feel

To be on your own

With no direction home

Like a complete unknown

Like a rolling stone? 

Princess on the steeple and all the pretty people

Theyre drinkin, thinkin that they got it made

Exchanging all kinds of precious gifts and things

But youd better lift your diamond ring, youd better pawn it babe

You used to be so amused

At napoleon in rags and the language that he used

Go to him now, he calls you, you cant refuse

When you got nothing, you got nothing to lose

Youre invisible now, you got no secrets to conceal.

How does it feel

How does it feel

To be on your own

With no direction home

Like a complete unknown

Like a rolling stone?

lyrics from

http://www.lyricsfreak.com/b/bob+dylan/like+a+rolling+stone_20021169.html