☝️ Key Points
- The song discusses the effects of speaking the truth and the disadvantages of choosing to always be honest.
- The protagonist is dissatisfied with the consequences of his honesty and questions if it would have been better to lie.
- Despite past promises of not telling the truth anymore, he breaks his vow and continues to tell it.
- The song warns that constantly revealing the truth can lead to more complicated problems.
- The underlying conflict of the song is whether it is better to conceal the truth or lie to protect oneself or others.
Interpretation
The lyrics of "Policy of Truth" by
Depeche Mode address the themes of honesty and the consequences that can come with speaking the truth.
In the first section, the singer mentions that the protagonist had something to hide and should have hidden it. Now he is dissatisfied with the consequences that arose from revealing the truth. He has to pay the price because in his youth he decided to always stick to the truth ("On the policy of truth").
In the second section, it becomes clear that the protagonist wonders how things could have been if he had just lied. It's too late to change the events and he has to face the consequences ("It's time to face the consequence").
The lines "Never again is what you swore the time before" indicate that the protagonist had already sworn in the past to never tell the truth again, but he has broken that oath.
In the last part of the song, the protagonist is admonished to learn his lesson: he should hide what he needs to hide and only tell what he needs to tell. Otherwise, his problems could multiply if he continues to choose to pursue the truth ("To faithfully pursue the policy of truth").
In summary, the song is about the difficulties and consequences that can come with constantly revealing the truth. It raises the question of whether it is sometimes better to hide the truth or lie in order to protect oneself or others.