Being the huge John Mayer fan that I am, I quickly related Shakespeare's Sonnet 138 to one of his songs off of his album, Continuum. The song "Slow Dancing in a Burning Room" is about a relationship that is going no where, but for whatever reason (may it be love for the other person, comfort in knowing another so well, comfort in consistency, afraid of change/moving on etc.) can't seem to let go of it.
Mayer writes
" Can't seem to hold you like I want to
So I can feel you in my arms.
Nobody's gonna come and save you,
We pulled too many false alarms.
We're going down,
And you can see it too.
We're going down,
And you know that we're doomed.
My dear,
We're slow dancing in a burning room."
I related the entire sonnet to this song but I feel like these lyrics relate well to the first 2 lines of 138 "When my love swears she is made of truth, I do believe her, though I know she lies" and the last 2 lines "Therefore I lie with her and she with me, And in our faults by lies we flatter be."
In both cases, it seems that the person in question is aware of the downfalls of their relationship. Mayer says they have "pulled too many false alarms" to suggest they have been through too much together and the relationship is unable to be fixed to the where it once was. He goes on to say they are doomed, meaning the relationship won't last, won't be fixed, isn't right, etc. but they are still "slow dancing in a burning room". I take this to mean that they are holding on regardless of the chaos that surrounds them. This couple chooses to ignore it in hopes that their love, obsession, comfort...whatever it may be... will somehow be fixed or rekindled to where it once was. In Sonnet 138, I get this same vibe. The writer knows that his lover is lying to him but chooses to ignore this fact. The reason for this is unclear but it may be because it is easier to stay in a comfortable situation or not discuss problems or bring up uncomfortable topics. The writer may also not want to admit fully that there is a problem or the relationship isn't right. Therefore, in the sonnet the writer lies with his lover and gives the impression that they will both keep lying to each other by saying nothing and continuing on with this unhealthy relationship. In this way, I interpreted one of my favorite John Mayer songs and Shakespeare's sonnet to have similar underlying meanings, which made me enjoy his work way more!!
It is interesting to see you compare a Shakespeare sonnet to a modern day piece of music. I would have never thought of this connection myself, but since you shared this idea I see where you're coming from and understand how you came to this conclusion. While I continue reading Shakespeare's other sonnets, I will think of John Mayer and wonder if there are any more connections.
ReplyDeleteIt was wonderful to read a rumination with a creative twist. It really got me thinking of connections from Shakespeare's sonnets to other songs. While I was reading I never would have saw this comparison, but I think you did an excellent job relating the two.
ReplyDeleteJennie reading your rumination got me thinking about how a songwriter and poet come up with their lyrics. Go back a few hundred years and you find that young lovers would compose a poem to express their love for one another, now go forward a few hundred years and poetry is now replaced with song lyrics. So is it safe to say that musicians like John Mayer would be considered a great poem writer a few hundreds years ago? I believe that poetry contains feelings that a song can never replace. The reason for this is the melody in a song can change the emphasis on words where as in a poem the poet has to stick with rhythm scheme and must choose his words creatively in order to show emotion. So when we are listening to a song we are feeling not only the words but the melody of the music as well.
ReplyDeleteThis rumination caught my attention because it reminded me of the Wild Card activity we all completed for last week. Shakespeare was such an influential poet in his time and even today that I would not be surprised if poets and songwriters today pulled some of there ideas from the very sonnets we read this week. The theme of both Mayer's song and Shakespeare's sonnet is definitely one in the same. Whether Mayer read this sonnet and felt inspired by it or not, it seems that the struggles of a relationship are still a problem today showing that not only is Shakespeare's work still powerful in modern times, but what he wrote about is still debated as well.
ReplyDeleteI really like your comparison of John Mayer to Shakespeare! I am a huge John Mayer fan, and also see the parallels you point out. I completely agree -- both the speaker of Sonnet 138 and of "Slow Dancing in a Burning Room" seem to have a meloncholy attitude towards their recognition that their love is flawed. However, while you said that maybe they don't want to accept that their is a problem, I think we could even see it from the opposite stance -- maybe the speakers are attempting to accept the fact that they know their love is doomed, and just enjoy whatever passion it is giving them for the moment.
ReplyDeleteThis is an interesting comparison, and also reminds me of our wild card assignment. But especially the song I chose because I really didn't realize that the modern day songs are like poems if you take away the music. I think that our modern day versions of Shakespear and such are our songwriters.
ReplyDeleteI think this is an excellent comparison. I do not think they are a perfect match, and I could sit here and overanalyze how one is different than the other, but I think it was a great rumination. It lead me to analyze the sonnet, once again, and try to better understand what I believed it to be saying, and why I wasn't feeling that connection with the song. My contention is that in the song the girl is on the same page as Mayer. "We're going down/ And you can see it too/ We're going down/ And you know that we're doomed." This reflects a dysfunctional relationship where both parties are aware and openly acknowledging it. Sonnet 138 does not include his female counterpart in any of his realizations of the cracks in the foundation of their relationship.
ReplyDelete