I never know when someone’s on drugs or had plastic surgery, or when a poem is supposed to “really” be about sex even though it’s clearly about plants. I never get metaphors. Everything always has to be explained to me, like Ax in the Animorphs series.
I can be counted on not to understand what a song is "really" about unless that meaning is spelled out explicitly; if a song does not contain the word "abortion" in it, I can generally be counted on to never realize it's about abortion at all. Conversely, you could tell me that almost any song with slightly opaque lyrics is about an abortion, and I would believe you with a perfect and a childlike faith, because I no longer trust my own judgment. Is "The Fool on the Hill" about an abortion? If you told me so, I would believe you.
Song: "Brick," Ben Folds
What it's about: Abortion
What I thought it was about: I guess just generally being sad at Christmas? Maybe, if I thought very hard about it, I would have guessed it was about someone being sick, but I never thought very hard about it. It just struck me as melancholic. In retrospect, this song is not nearly as vague as I thought it was; I should have known.
Read more Songs I Never Realized Were About Abortion Until Someone Explained Them To Me at The Toast.
