Sleeping At Last Song Analysis

Song lyrics are used as a form of communication. Lyrics tell stories, express emotion, share ideas and create images to extract responses from the listeners. This is done by the use of many descriptive and literary techniques they set the tone and atmosphere of a song. Structure and rhythm is also a contributing factor to creating the mood, and having an impact on the listener’s emotions, I will be exploring these techniques in the lyrics of the song “East” by Sleeping At Last, discussing the impact it has on the listeners, how the different conventions create feelings of awe, power, and nostalgia and the purpose of their use.
The title “East” gives an impression of a journey of hope towards the future, as it is the direction of the sunrise, …show more content…
This is further emphasized with the phrase that follows “set out to rule the world” the use of past tense transforms the listener to a different time and place -the singers past- this is a way of connecting with the listener and drawing them in, things is the main purpose of poetry, it is the same case in song lyrics. The use of past tense is a way for the writer to take the listener on a journey through the poem, because when they do this they are usually addressing them directly and explaining to them the meaning of the poem, specifically for the song lyrics as they are talking about childhood, and take us through different points in the singers life. The mysterious start has listeners questioning about what is coming next, and has them anticipating the rest of the song. The word “rule” conforms to the convention of the use of powerful phrases in poetry, it creates an image of strength and control, it gives the listener an impression that the singer was once thought he was very powerful, since it is followed by the phrase “the world”, something that is grand vague and unknown could be an indication to the level of power the singer aspired to be. But the second line of the first stanza “With only a paper shield and a wooden sword” is the first clue we get that he is talking about childhood, the use of metaphors in “paper shield” and “wooden sword” could be a way of trying to tell the listener that writing was his weapon and defense, the metaphors put together create an image of writing utensils, it shows that it empowered him and made him feel like he could take over the world. metaphors are used in