☝️ Key Points
- The song addresses themes such as life, death, and transience, and analyzes society's subjective perception of the end of life.
- It portrays a romantic relationship that also conveys transience. The singer's pain and sorrow are symbolized by the image of his girlfriend's shadow.
- The repeated lines 'Everything has its time / Gathering stones, scattering stones / Planting trees, cutting down trees / Living and dying and fighting' underline the main theme of transience and the constant change of life.
- The text reflects the natural cycles of birth, death, and rebirth.
- The entire song can be seen as a reflection on life and transience, the inevitability of death, and the acceptance of it.
Interpretation
The song 'Wenn ein Mensch lebt' by the band
Puhdys is a melancholic song that deals with the themes of life, death, and transience.
The lines 'When a person lives a short time / The world says they are leaving too soon. / When a person lives a long time / The world says it is time.' illustrate that a person's life is always determined by the subjective perception of the outside world. If someone dies young, it is often said that they are leaving too soon. If someone, on the other hand, has had a long life, it is often said that it was time for them to go.
With the lines 'My girlfriend is beautiful / When I got up, she was gone / Do not wake her until she moves / I have laid in her shadow.' a romantic relationship is described, but one that is also marked by transience. The singer lays in the shadow of his girlfriend, which could symbolize the pain and sadness he feels as she has left him.
The repeating lines 'Everything has its time / Collecting stones, scattering stones / Planting trees, cutting down trees / Living and dying and fighting' underline the main theme of the song - the transience of life. Everything in life has its time and everything is subject to constant change. This reflects the natural cycles of birth, death, and rebirth.
Overall, the song is a reflection on life and its transience, the inevitability of death, and the acceptance of it.