Figurative Language The Data Analysis of the Song Lyric
Jesus, but of the suburbia when the real Jesus is the Jesus for all Christians.
The speaker pretends himself as Jesus of suburbia because he thinks that he has slightly similarities with the real Jesus, and in this
stanza the speaker actually wants to describe his similarities with the real Jesus. The first evidence appears in lines 1-3:
Im the son of rage and love The Jesus of Suburbia
The bible of none of the above
On a steady diet of Soda Pop and Ritalin
He sacrifices himself in his own way, such as he swallow the truth for not being accepted by the place, the people and the
government won’t hear him when he actually cares about the problem that happened there. He seems really care about his place and the
people there, he wants to help them and protest the government but he cannot and the people he wants to help are also do not care about that.
Finally, he thinks that there is nothing wrong with him and think that this is how he supposed to be. The evidence appears when the speaker
says In a land of make believe, that don’t believe in me, the line also proves that the government does not believe him. Similar to the real
Jesus, the speaker was once disbelieved by the people in the land. He sacrifices himself as the one who cares about the problems and
criticizes it, proven in the bolded lyric below. City of the dead
At the end of another lost highway
Signs misleading to nowhere City of the damned
Lost children with dirty faces today
No one really seems to care Through the lyric, he swallows the truth when he says and there’s
nothing wrong with me that gives a clue that he just pretends that he does not care with every problems around him. He has complained
about the governor which has no action about the problems that happen there when the lyric says “lost children with dirty faces today”. Then
“no one really seems to care” is the evidence that no one wants to hear about his complains.
The bible of none of the above, on a steady diet of soda
pop and Ritalin In the next line, supporting the line before, this metaphor
strengthen the lyric that the speaker was not the real Jesus but only seems like he is the Jesus of suburbia. Bible is the sacred writings of the
Christian Church, consisting of the New Testament.
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In this context, the speaker said the bible of none of the above which means the bible of
the Jesus of Suburbia is not really exist in real life believes and just an imaginary bible that the speaker created to compare himself to the real
Jesus because he said none of the above. In line 15, I found another metaphor that also contributes in order
to find out the true meaning. Get my television fixed
Sitting on my crucifix
34
Ibid, p. 104
The living room or my private womb
While the Moms and Brads are away To fall in love and fall in debt
To alcohol and cigarettes And Mary Jane
To keep me insane Doing someone elses cocaine
In line 15, there is a word crucifix. Crucifix is a model of the cross with the figure of Jesus on it. In this context, crucifix is a metaphor that used
by the speaker to give something similar to the real Jesus. The similarity is the crucifix that the Jesus of Suburbia uses, it is like the
sacred place for the speaker. The meaning of the crucifix here is a place where the speaker laids or naps, watching about the problems of the
Americans and that are his sacrifices just like the real Jesus that hanging on the crucifix alone and sacrifices himself. Crucifix in Christian belief
is a sacred place of the Jesus and in this lyric the Jesus of Suburbia sitting in his own sacred place like a seat. The next metaphor is found in
line 16:
The living room or my private womb.
The next metaphor is living room, that the speaker mentions the meaning directly. The speaker said the living room as if it is his private
womb. Living room is a room in a private house for general use during the day.
35
Womb is the organ in which a baby is carried while it develops before birth.
36
Therefore in this context the living room is compared to private womb which means that the living room is the
35
Ibid, p. 689
36
Ibid, p. 1373
speaker’s private womb in other words it is the place where the speaker could be lonely, comfort, secure, and anything he needs are available
there. For addition, the similarity is that both things are the place where the speaker feels comfortable and private. The last two metaphors are
found in lines 63 and line 65.
Hearts recycled but never saved
The lyric above is the next metaphor. Hearts or heart is the center of a person’s thoughts and emotions.
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Recycled or recycled is to treat things that have already been used so that they can be used again.
Hearts in this context is a metaphor of stuffs and things that have already been used and can be recycled. It is like the speaker is
complaining that people’s heart are like rubbish, have already been hurt, betrayed, and only recycled but never be saved and the speaker is sick
of it that in other words the people’s heart is betrayed over and over again but never be saved. Heart and rubbish here are two things that
recycled and that is the similarity. And I leave behind, This Hurricane of fucking lies
The speaker once again expressed the sickness using metaphor in line 68. Hurricane is a violent storm with very strong winds.
38
In this context the author compares the hurricane with the lies. The speaker
feels that the lies that given are like a hurricane, it is all destructive and violent that the speaker cannot stand it anymore. The speaker is sick of
37
Ibid, p. 552
38
Ibid, p. 584
it and want to get out and run away from the lies like he wants to run from a hurricane.
c Synecdoche Synecdoche used as a way of saying part of the whole. In this
song lyric, actually, there are two sentences using synecdoche, but both are saying the same thing, therefore, the writer decided to analyze it as
one. In line 12: In a land of make believe that don’t believe in me and in line 25: Land of make believe.
And theres nothing wrong with me This is how Im supposed to be
In a land of make believe That dont believe in me
In those line, both say land of make believe, and land there, means country. The author used the word land as a synecdoche to
mention the part of the whole, land used as the part for a country, and when connected to the context of Billie Joe as the writer of this lyric,
the country refers to America. As the speaker had sick of the condition in his place, he pretends that the condition of the country was just the
same. d Symbol
Symbol is one of the figurative languages. A symbol usually appears in a word and related with the whole things of a poem. In this
lyric, I found several symbols, and they also contribute in understanding the meanings of the lyric. The first symbol is found in
lines 18-20.
To fall in love and fall in debt To alcohol and cigarettes
And Mary Jane
To keep me insane The words love and debt in line 18 are the symbols of what the
speaker had been through in his life. Love literally means a strong feeling of deep affection for somebody or something.
39
Debt, literally means a sum of money owed to somebody.
40
In this context, love is a symbol of happiness, a good life, it symbolizes that the speaker ever
had happiness and good things in life such as have a girlfriend or best friend but debt is another symbol of bad things. Debt is a symbol of a
bad life, the difficult part in life and it gives the opposite to what love symbolizes. Debt is like something that ruins the speaker’s life and it
may happen from many reasons such as lack of money to buy foods or drinks and drugs.
The next symbols are in line 19: alcohol and cigarettes are closely related symbols but the literal meanings of both two words are
different. Alcohol is a colorless liquid, contained in drinks such as beer, wine, spirits, etc, that can make people drink.
41
Cigarette literally means a roll of tobacco enclosed in thin paper for smoking.
42
As the symbols, in this context, both words symbolize a bad life, bad habits,
inappropriate life style such as night life. Alcohol and cigarettes are usually related to badness, in this sentence, alcohol is related to get
39
Ibid, p. 699.
40
Ibid, p. 300.
41
Ibid, p. 28.
42
Ibid, p. 199.
drunk, cigarette is known as common bad thing that people consume and both symbols mean that the speaker had fall in a bad life. The next
symbol, Mary Jane, is a symbol of a woman which also means that the speaker live a life with a woman and they do anything good and bad in
life together. Therefore, Mary Jane is also a symbol of Marijuana because people are likely to use that to say Marijuana in slang,
43
then it could be one of the meanings of the Mary Jane too. When it connected
to the context of the author of the lyric, it make sense that Mary Jane is the other words of marijuana. However, in his context, Mary Jane as a
woman or marijuana has been made the speaker keep insane. The next symbols are found in lines 27-29. These symbols are
also important in giving more information and understanding of the lyric.
At the center of the earth
In the parking lot
Of the 7-11 were I was taught
In line 29, the symbol is center of the earth. Center in this sentence means a place from which administration concentrated a place
such as a town or group of buildings where certain activities or facilities are concentrated.
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This is a symbol of a country, a big country, a place of the political governments, in this context, it is America. America is
known as the center of everything, technologies, lifestyle, politics, and entertainments. It makes more sense as the title of the lyric mention
43
Mary Jane. n.d.. Retrieved February 29, 2016, from http:www.merriamwebster.comdictionaryMaryJane
44
A S Hornby, Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, Op.cit, p. 179.
suburbia. Suburbs were made for the large population of people in the city in order to get a better place of living. The symbol in lines 29, 7-11
has close meaning with the symbol in line 27. 7- Eleven is the world’s largest convenience store chain operating, franchising and licensing
more than 56,400 stores in 18 countries, of which nearly 10,500 are in North America.
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It is a symbol of a big and wide business of America, which also means that it symbolizes the superiority of America.
Therefore, both symbols have not too far meaning. Born and raised by hypocrites
Then, another symbol in line 62; it said born and raised by hypocrites. Hypocrite is a symbol of the negative people around the
author in that time. Literally, hypocrite is a person who pretends to have standards or opinions which he or she does not have, or to be he or she
is not.
46
In this context, hypocrite resembles the attitude and morals of the people. The speaker thinks that the people nowadays are heartless,
lack of morals. The speaker feels so sick of the people, and think that this is began from the older generation that growing up their children
with hypocrisy and pathetically, the new generation is like swallow it utterly without knowing any truth. It also means like the people of the
government had brainwashed the civilians with hypocrisy and people like them wearing a mask to hide their real bad morality and fooling
each others.
45
http:corp.7-eleven.comcorp7-eleven-profile accessed November, Tuesday 24 2015, 12:59.
46
A S Hornby, Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, Op.cit, p. 586.
The next symbol is masochists. Masochist came from the word masochism, the literal meaning is the enjoyment of what appears to
cause one trouble, anxiety, etc.
47
The practice of getting sexual pleasure from somebody physically hurting one.
48
Then, as a noun and as the word in the lyric, masochist, is somebody that does masochism.
Therefore, masochists in this lyric, is a symbol of the people nowadays who already living a life with suffer, the minor one, the victim, then like
they were accepted it, like it or not they live it. The speaker feels so frustrated and he just feels like better if he joins the other victims like
him and it symbolizes the disappointments and the lies he swallows. e Simile
Simile, is a figurative language that usually appears when two or more things compared. The comparisons between things appear directly
using words or phrases. In this lyric, a simile appears in lines 42-44. I read the graffiti
In the bathroom stall
Like the holy scriptures of a shopping mall.
It looks like someday, the speaker was in the bathroom of somewhere and he saw the graffiti in the bathroom stall then realized
that the graffiti looks like the holy scriptures of a shopping mall. Scripture is the bible, the holy writings of a religion other than
Christianity.
49
47
Ibid, p. 720.
48
Ibid.
49
Ibid, p. 1055.
In this context, the speaker compares the graffiti that he saw in the bathroom stall with the holy scriptures that he saw in the bathroom stall.
Even the speaker does not mentioned what was the graffiti said, but in the next lyric it seems like something like the words from the frustrated
vandals in town who wants to say what they want to say, and criticize even it did not say much. It is like when the speaker saw the graffiti, he
just suddenly realized and thought that the graffiti looks like the holy scriptures of a shopping mall that confessed that the center of the earth
is the end of the world. f Paradox
Paradox is a figurative language that contains two opposite things that are contradictive but ironically true. Paradox is a contradiction
between two opposite things. In this lyric, the writer found two paradoxes. The first paradox appears in line 68.
I’m the son of rage and love That line above is the first paradox, the word rage have
contradiction with the word love. Rage is an anger, and love is a feeling of deep tender affection., and both things giving birth. It seems
impossible because rage and love are two opposite things but those things giving birth and it is true. From this analysis the speaker born
from: the rage and also from love of his parents. To fall in love and fall in debt
The next paradox is between love and debt. The speaker says he is fall in love and debt, but both things are opposite. What makes it
paradox is when love is likely a good thing happens to everyone, and debt is a bad thing that people are forced to do because they need to.
Then like any other people, the truth is the speaker fall in love and also fall in debt that makes him fall in.
We are the kings of war and peace. In the lyric above the speaker said that they are as the kids of war
and peace. Kids there refers to the generation in that days. War is a state of fighting between nations or groups within a nation using military
force.
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Peace is freedom from war or violence and a state of calm or quiet and also a state of harmony and friendship.
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Kids in this context is also refer to us that also means all of the human beings, and all of
them are the kids of war but also the kings of peace. Why? Because we as human being play it like kids that have no consistency to make a
better world. We are the leader of the world have had wars as we also busy campaigning to make peace. We do war everywhere but we also
do peace everywhere which is ironically true. It sounds weird but true somehow and that is a paradox in this context. The next paradox found
in line 79. Am I retarded or am I just overjoyed.
In this line, the paradox is between the words retarded and overjoyed. The word retarded means mentally less developed than is
50
Ibid, p. 1339
51
Ibid, p. 852
normal people for one’s age.
52
The word overjoyed means extremely happy.
53
The paradox appears in the line because at the first the speaker said am I retarded which means that the speaker felt that he had slower
mental development than other people of the same age because the speaker thinks that his life was totally messed up. After the speaker said
that he was retarded, then he said if he just overjoyed. Seems like the speaker was talking to himself because he was totally did not have any
idea about what is happened to him at that time. The paradox works when the speaker said and questioning himself if he is just retarded or
he is just overjoyed which is ironically true because he felt both feelings. The first word retarded is contradictive with the word overjoyed.
The speaker felt retarded because he thought that he was messed up, deceived, fooled and crazy about all of the problems around him. He
was overjoyed with all of the good and bad things in his life, even if the bad things made him so frustrated, but in the end he was just overjoyed
being The Jesus of Suburbia and swallow all the things in his life did drugs enjoy his life and pretend that nothing is happen and that is what
also made him questioning himself if he is retarded because he cannot think clearly.