The Poetry of R.E. Slater: Aug 6, 2011

"Autobiographies of great nations are written in three manuscripts – a book of deeds, a book of words, and a book of art. Of the three, I would choose the latter as truest testimony." - Sir Kenneth Smith, Great Civilisations

"I must write each day without fail, not so much for the success of the work, as in order not to get out of my routine." - Leo Tolstoy

I have never believed that one should wait until one is inspired because I think the pleasures of not writing are so great that if you ever start indulging them you will never write again. - John Updike

"The life of every man is a diary in which he means to write one story, and writes another; and his humblest hour is when he compares the volume as it is with what he vowed to make it." - J.M. Barrie, Peter Pan

Poetry is the shadow cast by our streetlight imaginations." - Lawrence Ferlinghetti

[Note - If any article requires updating or correction please notate this in the comment section. Thank you. - res]

Saturday, August 6, 2011

Lyrics & Review: Gary Jules - Mad World (Tears for Fears)

Animoto - Mad World

Uploaded by stuckincustoms on Jun 6, 2011

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sklns_rTm74&feature=player_embedded#!

To see more, see my Animoto Review at -

http://www.stuckincustoms.com/animoto-review/

and you can get Antonis' Mad World at -

http://www.stuckincustoms.com/links/itunes-mad-world

Mad World lyrics

http://www.elyrics.net/read/t/tears-for-fears-lyrics/mad-world-lyrics.html

Songwriters: Orzabal, Roland

All around me are familiar faces
Worn out places, worn out faces
Bright and early for their daily races
Goin' nowhere, goin' nowhere
Their tears are fillin' up their glasses
No expression, no expression
Hide my head I want to drown my sorrow
No tomorrow, no tomorrow

And I find it kind of funny
I find it kind of sad
The dreams in which I'm dyin'
Are the best I've ever had
I find it hard to tell you
'Cause I find it hard to take
When people run in circles
It's a very, very
Mad world, mad world
Mad world, mad world

Children waitin' for the day they feel good
Happy birthday, happy birthday
Made to feel the way that every child should
Sits and listen, sits and listen
Went to school and I was very nervous
No one knew me, no one knew me
Hello teacher tell me what's my lesson?
Look right through me, look right through me

And I find it kind of funny
I find it kind of sad
The dreams in which I'm dyin'
Are the best I've ever had
I find it hard to tell you
'Cause I find it hard to take
When people run in circles
It's a very, very
Mad world, mad world
Mad world, mad world

And I find it kind of funny
I find it kind of sad
The dreams in which I'm dyin'
Are the best I've ever had
I find it hard to tell you
'Cause I find it hard to take
When people run in circles
It's a very, very
Mad world, mad world
Mad world, mad world
A raunchy young world
Mad world

© ROLAND ORZABAL LIMITED

Send "Mad World" Ringtone to your Cell

Analysis of "Mad World"

http://leatelamon.deviantart.com/art/Analysis-of-quot-Mad-World-quot-83771143

by ~LeaTelamon

This is an analysis of the lyrics to the song Mad World originally peformed by Tears For Fears, later covered by Gary Jules which is not only a great cover but brings out the message in a way Tears For Fears didn't.

All around me are familiar faces

Worn out places, worn out faces

Bright and early for the daily races

Going nowhere, going nowhere

This stanza symbolizes the point of view in a grown-up perspective. We get to know the main character's daily life where nothing happens or ever changes. Same people, same places, everyone doing their best to assess society but still not feeling satisfied with their current living situation.

Their tears are filing up their glasses

No expression, no experssion

Hide my head I wanna drown my sorrow

No tomorrow, no tomorrow

In this stanza we get to know that the main character is telling us how everyone really longs for a change but are living in an equilibrium-sort of state and therefore can't. Because of that they must hide their feelings so they fit into society, making it a very bleak world without happiness or anything to long for, therefore there is no tomorrow. The tomorrow people want doesn't exist.

And I find it kind of funny, I find it kind of sad

The dreams in which I'm dying are the best I've ever had

I find it hard to tell you, I find it hard to take

When people run in circles it's a very, very

Mad world, mad world

In the chorus we get to know how ironical the main character feels this sort of society is in which he or she lives in. It is supposed to be a perfect society where optimal happiness is supposed to be expressed but no such happiness truly exists. In the second line we get to know that the main character strongly wants for an escape and where death seems to be the only option left. The main character finds it frustrating of how everyone are aware of this but still nothing changes as if this knowledge never existed.

Children waiting for the day they feel good

Happy birthday, happy birthday

And I feel the way that every child should

Sit and listen, sit and listen

This stanza tells about the childhood of the main character, hence the grown-up point of view in the beginning. Children are not allowed to be happy and they are longing for something which doesn't exist while being told at the same time of what they are waiting for will come true but only if they are patient enough. they are prepared to be conformed into a perfect society and should obey authority figures without hesitation and doubt.

Went to school I was very nervous

No one knew me, no one knew me

Hello teacher what's my lesson

Look right through me, look right through me

This stanza tells about how the main character is finally introduced to society and left out from the safeties of home. As a child he or she feels no one knows him or her because he or she is evidently different from everyone else, because of his or her retained individuality, still being able feel happiness but as time goes by, the main character feels more and more confused and oppressed and asks the only authority figure in school what he or she should do, begging for someone to take notice of him or her, but in avail, as the little indivdiuality the main character has left is slowly disappearing.

And I find it kind of funny, I find it kind of sad

The dreams in which I'm dying are the best I've ever had

I find it hard to tell you, I find it hard to take

When people run in circles it's a very, very

Mad world, mad world, enlarge your world

Mad world

This chorus does bring the same message as it did previously with the minor change that people should start to think outside the box they have been indoctrinated into doing with the addition of the phrase, "enlarge your world".

Evidently, the song in general is what happens to people living in a utalitarian society. While it is probably a song criticizing Communism as it was written in 1984 the lyrics fit to anything which tries to indoctrinate people into following a specific scheme or routine in order to become perfect citizens or if I may, believers.

Tears for Fears - Mad World, 1982

Rare Video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20qZtnODB0w&feature=fvst