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An Intangible Reflection of Society in Music via Beck
To the casual observer Beck seems to be dribbling out lyrics with no meaning at the speed of Wile E. Coyote. However, Beck’s writing is far from insignificant. Beck explores the world’s changing society and instead of being boringly blatant, he chooses an original way to explain his observations. He intentionally makes his lyrics difficult to understand, so the listener must think to understand the words. Therefore, the listener must also think more deeply about the issue or issues Beck brings into focus. An excellent example of this technique is in one of Beck’s most popular songs, “New Pollution”.
“New Pollution” relates to Women’s power in society since the feminist movement and the battle feminists have with conservative society. “She’s got a cigarette on each arm” (Line 1 Beck), speaks of a woman’s independence today. However, many women suffer while reaching for independence, “She’s alone in the New Pollution” (Line 5 Beck). Like many musicians, Beck is politically liberal and supports the feminist movement, which explains his message.
Most of the lyrics speak of the degree of women’s independence. Beck describes women as fearless and interesting, but they must still suffer consequences. For example, “She can talk to the mangling strangers” (Line 8 Beck) speaks of women’s courage, but a woman must also cope with “Riding low on the drunken rivers” (Line 18 Beck). Therefore, Beck chides conservative society for challenging women’s independence and enthusiastically supports the feminist movement.
Beck may seem ridiculously complex, but he actually just intends for us to think in a complex way. “New Pollution” speaks of women’s issues that are more complicated than the average person would think. Beck hopes for the listener to go beyond simplistic views and ponder how we feel about issues related to social justice. Beck argues that if we continue to encourage malicious ignorance and unreasonable conservatism American culture will lose its energy and excitement. Beck makes his listeners’ realize a mind should never be wasted.
To the casual observer Beck seems to be dribbling out lyrics with no meaning at the speed of Wile E. Coyote. However, Beck’s writing is far from insignificant. Beck explores the world’s changing society and instead of being boringly blatant, he chooses an original way to explain his observations. He intentionally makes his lyrics difficult to understand, so the listener must think to understand the words. Therefore, the listener must also think more deeply about the issue or issues Beck brings into focus. An excellent example of this technique is in one of Beck’s most popular songs, “New Pollution”.
“New Pollution” relates to Women’s power in society since the feminist movement and the battle feminists have with conservative society. “She’s got a cigarette on each arm” (Line 1 Beck), speaks of a woman’s independence today. However, many women suffer while reaching for independence, “She’s alone in the New Pollution” (Line 5 Beck). Like many musicians, Beck is politically liberal and supports the feminist movement, which explains his message.
Most of the lyrics speak of the degree of women’s independence. Beck describes women as fearless and interesting, but they must still suffer consequences. For example, “She can talk to the mangling strangers” (Line 8 Beck) speaks of women’s courage, but a woman must also cope with “Riding low on the drunken rivers” (Line 18 Beck). Therefore, Beck chides conservative society for challenging women’s independence and enthusiastically supports the feminist movement.
Beck may seem ridiculously complex, but he actually just intends for us to think in a complex way. “New Pollution” speaks of women’s issues that are more complicated than the average person would think. Beck hopes for the listener to go beyond simplistic views and ponder how we feel about issues related to social justice. Beck argues that if we continue to encourage malicious ignorance and unreasonable conservatism American culture will lose its energy and excitement. Beck makes his listeners’ realize a mind should never be wasted.