Style is the way an author conveys their work or message to
the audience through the use of different literary devices and techniques. Each
author uses or manipulates style differently based on how they want the
audience to interpret their work. In the song “Why You’d Want to Live Here,”
Death Cab for Cutie use diction, tone, mood, and imagery to create a very
cynical and dark song and express their perspective on the environment. The
lyrics of the Death Cab for Cutie song really impact the meaning and reception
of the song. The one lyric that is repeated throughout the song (“And I can’t
see why you’d want to live here”) reinforces the message of the song that the
pollution caused by man has made Los Angeles a place of squalor. The
instrumentals in “Why You’d Want to Live Here” are quite contradictory from the
lyrics of the song. The chords and vocals are very soothing and melodic in contrast
with the lyrics, creating a melancholy mood within the audience. Like the Beach
Boys, Death Cab for Cutie sing the song in a similar style of using soft,
comforting voices while discussing the current issues with the environment. Along
with the melancholy mood of the song, phrases such as “Garbage cans comprise
the medians of freeways” and “it smells like an airport runway” create the
image of a dirty, litter-filled city. The overall style used within “Why You’d
Want to Live Here” convey the disturbing message that places that were once
deemed beautiful, are now wastelands.
I enjoyed how you compared the two songs, even though it was briefly, it was interesting. You picked up on a lot of meanings of the lyrics and expanded on what they meant and how that impacted the song as a whole which I thought was really meaningful and made the whole blog post that much more important. I think you touched on a lot of the details from the songs lyrics and instrumentals, overall great job!
ReplyDeleteI liked the point about how the soothing music contrasted with the alarming lyrics, and I agree that it created a melancholy mood. You said that this was also seen in the Beach Boys song, but I think the mood of the Beach Boys song is a little different. I thought while the Death Cab for Cuties song was mellow and almost brooding for the environment, the Beach Boys song had a more upbeat. The Beach Boys song seemed less about brooding the condition of the environment, but more about saving the environment together as a community.
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