Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Jillian's Playslist Cyrano de Bergerac

Insnesitive: Jann Arden

Oh, you probably won’t remember me

It’s probably ancient history

I’m one of the chosen few

Who went ahead and fell for you

I’m out of hope, I’m out of touch

I fell too fast, I feel too much

I thought that you might have

Some advice to give on how to be Insensitive

I really should have known

By the time you drove me home

By the vagueness in your eyes

Your casual good-byes

By the chill in your embrace

The expression on your face

That told me

Maybe You might have some advice to give

On how to be Insensitive



This song is bittersweet like a piece of dark chocolate. I like that analogy because I find that's the best way to describe Cyrano's feelings towards Roxanne. He loves her in the same way you love a painting. You can stare at it all day, admiring it's beauty and delicateness. However, by the end of the day, when the museum closes, the painting will not love you back. It will continue to shine it's glossy colors just the same to the next visitor as it did you. This is how Roxanne returns Cyrano's feelings. She sits and listens to him speak. She lets him decorate her with compliments and smiles back at him with shallow eyes. But whereas Cyrano leaves her with butterflies and sweaty palms, Roxanne continues about her day much unchanged.

The verse highlighted in red shows what I am imagining Cyrano feels. The lyrics speak in a way as though to bring themselves down. To make their relationship less important. "Oh you probably don't remember me, I'm probably ancient history." This is an attempt to hide the vulnerabilty the artist feels, much like Cyrano does as he denies his love for Roxanne. " I fell too fast I feel to much." The artisits attempt yet agin at reversing the situation to put themselves at fault. Again, this is much like Cyrano's conscience reassuring him that it is his own fault that Roxanne is using him for Christian, that he is just too susceptible to her allure.

The verse highlighted in green is the artist scolding herself for not seeing through the masquerade that had been endlessly stringing her along. " I really should have known by the time you drove me home, by the vagueness in your eyes..." She feels naive and pathetic. I think this relates well to Cyrano's letters to Roxanne. He knows how pathetic it is of him to entertain his unrequited love to her in letters, only to be signed by Christian. However, no matter how pathetic his ploy is, he is unable to escape the high that he gets from delivering them. And thus, like Jann Arden he wishes for the same insensitivity to heal his broken heart.

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