Progressing Backwards


The theme of reliving the past is present in Gatsby, Maus, and Song of Solomon. It reminded me of the song by Tame Impala called "It Feels Like We Only Go Backwards." 
Here are the lyrics to the chorus:

"It feels like I only go backwards, baby
Every part of me says "go ahead".
I got my hopes up again, oh no... not again. 
Feels like we only go backwards, darling."

This song talks about being in love with a girl who doesn't seem to reciprocate, so the guy is always making less progress when he tries to make any when it comes to starting something real with her. Other Tame Impala songs are more complex with chords and the style of their songs in general, but this one in comparison is simple. It repeats the same four chords over and over again, reflecting the idea of being in this endless cycle of going backwards. The chorus repeats itself 5 times over the course of the song, leaving room for only two short verses with different lyrics. Before and after these verses he sings the chorus. He takes one step forward, two steps back...  At the end he sings the chorus three times in a row. He's trapped in an endless cycle, forever going backwards. The singer's voice sounds subtly warped and weird-ish, kind of like it's a backtracked record (the forward version of the song sounds like it's played backwards).
Good song. I recommend. 

Anyways, what's up with everyone being obsessed with their past? The only reason they think it's greater than the present is because they keep attempting to relive it, hindering them from experiencing new things.They weren't going backwards when they were legitimately living the past for the first time, so of course they find it more enjoyable than actually going backwards now, trying to reach the time of not going backwards. 

Maybe Tame Impala was talking about going backwards with progress and the novels we read in class were talking about going backwards to a different time in their lives, but it's all the same. There's no progression if they're trying to go backwards in either way. 

How about don't go backwards or forwards? Just stay in one place for once. When you stop stretching your neck to look so far back or forward, you'll see the subtleties of the present that make it quite pleasant.

Comments

  1. UnknownNovember 12, 2017 at 11:08 AM

    This is so creative and out-of-the-box. I never imagined that one song could relate to all three books we read in class. Also, you do a very good job describing the song and offer some of your own thoughts on the topic.

    ReplyDelete
  2. UnknownNovember 12, 2017 at 5:00 PM

    Your view on the past is so true! I love how you analyzed a song rather than another piece of literature. It was a very interesting read!

    ReplyDelete

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