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Celebrating small kindnesses and basking in the little things.

Monday, September 19, 2011

Darkness





We have been looking at the different Archetypes that exist in literature. These archetypes are one way that we may read and analyze a text. As individuals living in a world where we are bombarded by visual icons, and by visual interpretations of our words by way of texting emoticons, "sign language,"[the signs we see everyday either billboards, spam across the screen, advertisements, etc...] We are reading and interpreting all of the time. Sometimes, we do not even realize how much or how quickly we do this.

I am asking you to please watch this video and listen to the song. It is entitled, "Head full of doubt and road full of promises" by the Avett brothers. (click on the title. It is a link.) This brings in the idea of our archetypes, while asking us to think about what we know and who we are. Listen twice. Listen once to hear the lyrics and then listen while viewing to understand the video.

Listening without viewing: What is the artist trying to say in the song? What lyrics get to the heart of the meaning? What lines really jump out at you and make you think?

Listening while viewing: What is the video about? Do the video and the song match up? How does the video change your thoughts on the song? In the end, what is the artist trying to say?

Use your archetype notes to help you answer the above questions. As we go through the notes this week, you may add to your response through an additional response or you may wait until Wednesday to post once the notes are complete.

112 comments:

Ben W. said...

(listening to lyrics) I think that the singer is trying to say that there is a "darkness" that we need to escape from and it is taken as if it will never go away. He also is saying that is obvious because it comes and black and white. He also says that it tells him what is wrong and what is right like how the world impacts our choices. Then he talks about one day he saw a new world and he sees that it can be different and then at the end of the song he says how he is frightened by those who don't see it because he is saying that we are unaware of the darkness around us.
(listening and watching video) I think that the video is trying to say that at first nothing is there and there is a darkness but when one person has a dream it transforms everything and as the dream gets bigger everything gets better.
-Ben W.

Andrew Diamond said...

(listening) The song "Head Full Of Doubt/Road Full Of Promise" is about the struggle of this mans life. He is singing about the "darkness" that only he notices. In his song he is comparing himself to a bird locked in a cage, figuratively expressing the way he feels about the world and how he feels he is locked away, locked in a cage that he breaks free from. the cage is figurative for the many problems the man or others have, and he is saying that, by breaking free from the cage, he is gaining freedom from the oppressive darkness that prevents him from being free and allowing him from living in the world that he thought the real world was supposed to be like

(listening and watching video) The video was expressing the way that the songwriter felt the world was. the video gives an accurate representation of how the artist feels he should go through life and how he interprets the government (0:45-0:50) and love (0:52-0:56)

-- Andrew Diamond 3.--

demo said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
demo said...

listening to lyrics)I think that the song is about us people who always have dreams. there also media which is telling us whats right and whats wrong. So there are people who give up on dreams and follow others. By darkness author means difficult times in life. Specialty then people loses their dreams.
(listening and watching) some one was driving in the open field and had a dream to build a town there. A town turned into a city. There was life. one day by someones will city was deserted. some ones dream was destroyed. Watching this video give us singers understanding of the song. I could of pictured it differently.
-dmytro s-

GabeW2 said...

Listening to lyrics: When I was listening to the lyrics of "Head Full Of Doubt/Road Full Of Promise", it made me think about what the real meaning is. I feel the author is trying to express the fact that you have dream inside and once you unlock them, they can become reality. This is expressed when the artist says its like a bird in a cage I broke in and demanded that somebody free it. This means that everyone has dreams, but the real dreams are the ones unlocked from the inside. Another way the artist expressed his feelings is by saying that I’ll scream til I die and the last of those bad thoughts are finally out. He is now talking about all the bad thoughts and feelings telling you not to follow your dreams. Once you fight these, then you dreams will come true.

Listening and watching video: After looking at the two pieces of media, I can see that they relate to each other. The video is about a billboard undergoing major changes happening around it. This stands for the dreams in life and how there are some that stay true and others that fade away. The video doesn't change my view on the song that much but it does help describe it to a further extent. At the end of the video, the surrounding of the billboard fall which stand for the dreams that do not last and grow. Even though some dreams do not turn out, you shouldn't give up but try new way to see your dreams grow.

annaj said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
annaj said...

(listening) When listening to this song, I get the feeling that the singer feels alone in being more aware then the rest of the world. When he sings the lines "and I'm frightened by those who don't see it," he is expressing his sadness and fear that he seemed to be the only one in the light when the darkness surrounded all who he loved and who loved him. The singer felt oppressed when the fine print told him what was wrong and right, and he felt that the dream that was once had was being caged up by the ignorance of the world and their lack of care for the neglected area of life. From listening to this song, I get the feeling that the singer is cursing society for keeping the world from being its beautiful self.
(watching and listening) While watching the music video to this song, I can understand that the singer is telling a horror story of how discovery built up a thriving civilization, but the dream of an advanced future changed somewhere along the lines to become a corrupt and filthy nightmare. The song turns to a vision of the inevitable outcome of a naive society: destruction and a shameful past for our children to look back on.
-Anna J., 7-8

im not crazy i swear said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
AmandaC. said...

(listening to the lyrics)I thought that the song was about the "darkness" in life. There are people in life that do not see what really goes on in the world. When he says "demanded that somebody free it," he is saying that he wants to be let out of the cage he is trapped in (the cage in which metaphorically he is locked in)and to be relinguished of the darkness that takes over him during his daily life. When he says that he is frightened for those who don't see it, he means that there could be a new light for everyone who lives in the dark. He is ashamed that some people don't try to make this change.
(watching the video) The video in a way represents normal life. I really noticed when the background/sky changed color. The change would happen when the singer would talk about the darkness upon him. The changing characteristics represent life and the darkness that goes with it. From watching the video, the artist changed my mind about life in general. The darkness is not always noticable and some people really just don't see what really goes on in life. That is why he says it frightened him. He doesn't know if things could change for the better or if things will ever change. Its scary how blind people can be. The crowd of people represent what he describes as his dream; people trying to fix the darkness that is in our lives. The for sale signs and deal signs represent when people tell the author what right and wrong is. All these people try to influence you in your life, but are they really write? Overall I think the author is trying to get the point across that the darkness in our lifes can be changed, only if the people can see it.
AmandaC. 7-8 period

Jacqueline Knirnschild said...

The artist is trying to say that with light and happiness comes darkness and sadness too. There's always an equal balance between lightness and darkness. With happiness comes sadness. The lyrics that show the meaning the best are "There's a darkness upon me that's flooded in light" and "It comes in black and it comes in white". A line that stood out to me the most was "And it flies by day and it flies by night". To me that means represents night and day and the balance between them and how life isn't fair and comes with bad and good. The video is about an area of land that was originally for sale and deserted, then it turns into a development and then a city and then it gets run down and turns back into exactly what it started as. The video and the song match up because the video shows lightness and darkness and how things change throughout the day and night in the land. The video makes me think that the song is kind of sad because the video ends on a sad note.

Jacqueline Knirnschild said...

Sorry, forgot to leave my name! The last comment from aussie.gurl is Jacqueline K. 7/8th period

spencer29 said...

(listening)i think that the person singing was trying to say how evil the darkness is and that it is empty and that we cant escape from it.
(listening and watching) while i was watching the video it helped me get a better understanding of what the singer was actually saying about the darkness.
-Jacob S. 3

Cheyenne said...

Listening without viewing: I think the artist is trying to say that there is still hope out there, he using the line "there was a kid" to represent how he feels, not being able to see the light but then it comes and "there was a dream one day I could see it" I think this lyric is saying that one day he saw the light, or what he was looking for. Lyrics that jump out at me are "and I'm frighted by those who don't see it", this lyric because I think the artist is trying to say that he wants everyone to see "it" without directly tell the listener what "it" is. Another lyric is "So I’ll scream til I die and the last of those bad thoughts are finally out." This lyric makes me think because it almost sounds like he is talking about being lost in life, or confused. It makes me think what he refers to "it" as and what he really wants to see.
Listening while viewing: My first thought of the viedo was that he wanted people to see him, but as the video goes on, it starts building a community into a city, possibly alluding to him wanting to be a difference. Towards the end of the video everything is being crumbled and torn down which makes me wonder, did he go for his dream and have it crushed? I think the artist is trying to say that even though your afraid, and everything SHOULD be layed out for you in black and white, that it's not, and that even though things seem impossible to still give it a chance. If you really look deep into the lyrics, the song and the viedo could silghtly match, how he wants people to see "it" and during the video "it" became reality but was soon crushed. He states "Black and White" white is alluding to purity while black is destruction, sin despair a sad color.
I think overall this song is trying to teel you that when everything seems black (sad or impossible) that there is still white in your life (hope, a will to move on) and there is always light (hope, a way out or a solution) at the end of the tunnel.
- Cheyenne_1

Rohan Srivastava said...

(listening to the lyrics, without viewing)- The first few sentences of the song immediately gives the image of an eminent conflict: "There's a darkness upon me that's flooded in light/In the fine print they tell me what's wrong and what's right/And it comes in black and it comes in white" (line 1,2,3). With a conflict comes oppositions. The artist shows the importance of the song through the reference of a bird in a cage. The bird is the solution of the conflict that is prisoned by fear. These lyrics of the bird stand out as they foreshadow that when the bird is released out of its cage, it is able to face the world.


(listening and viewing the video)- Watching the video, the realization that the video intends to show that a 'head full of doubt and a road full of promise' are part of a chain. It points out the different darker shades of color as moments of hopelessness and sorrow. When the shades become lighter, with more vivid colors, a feeling of happiness and elation. The song lyrics do give a vague meaning that is ambiguous. While the video still does possess the ambiguous feeling, it shows that there is a cycle: death and rebirth. This is the continuous cycle that video shows with the beginning image a grassy plain. This image is transforms from a suburb into a city, and finally back into a grassy plain. It won't remain an area of grass, as the cycle never ends. The artists are trying to say that the world is constantly changing through aspects of evolution, human feelings, opportunities, etc. There are the experiences where the peak of the summit is reached, while there are times that an individual hits rock bottom.
-Rohan Srivastava

kayla said...

(Lyrics only) I think the artist is trying to say that he has a dream, but everyone else believes he cannot achieve it. The chorus gets to the heart of the meaning- “There was a dream and one day I could see it. Like a bird in a cage I broke in and demanded that somebody free it. And there was a kid with a head full of doubt. So I’ll scream ‘til I die and the last of those bad thoughts are finally out.” The lines that really jump out at me are “There’s a darkness upon me that’s flooded in light. In the fine print they tell me what’s wrong and what’s right. And it comes in black and it comes in white. And I’m frightened by those that don’t see it.” These jump out at me because the artist is saying that he is afraid of those who don’t see every fine detail of reality. It's right in front of them, in black and white, but they still can't see it. The video is about someone building up their dream from a blank slate. They see an empty field and they use it to build a town, which turns into a busy, successful city, but in the end the city crumbles and turns into an empty field again.
(Video) The video and the song do match up, because they are both about following your dreams.
When I first heard the song, I thought it was about following your goals no matter what anyone tells you. Watching the video, it made me realize that even though you may follow your goals and succeed, reality is always going to hit and one day everything is going to end. After listening through the song, I think the artist is trying to tell the listener to break free of the cage of reality and be themselves.
*Kayla B*

Julianne said...

The author is trying to say that he has dreams, as does everyone but there is not a lot he can do to change what is going on around him. When he says that "there is a darkness and I'm frightened by those who don't see it" I think that he realizes that bad things can and will come. Times are changing for the worse but everyone else is just living in that moment without thinking ahead. The video and the song absolutly match up. I belive that the small bright town shows what ha wishes then reality stikes putting up a big gray city then laving it abandoned to crash down into dirt and rubble. In the end the other is just trying to show that this is what could or what did happen and we need to be stronger and try to help turn our world into what we want. This is like the situationl archetype The Task, in which the author is thriving for something bigger than he is. In this video we also see Crossroads, that symbolize change at that time in those peoples lives who are in the video.

Anonymous said...

The artist is saying that the world is dark and hopeless. He sees the hope, but it is locked up and no else sees it. The lyrics that get to the meaning are, “There was a dream” and then he uses the simile that it was like a bird in a cage and someone has to free it. The bird was the dream and he sings “And I'm frightened by those who don't see it”. The line that really sticks out to me is, “There's a darkness upon me that's flooded in light” because he believes that there is like a light at the end of the tunnel and no one else can see it, not even the president. He goes on to say, “And your life doesn't change by the man that's elected”.
The video is about a car that goes by and has a dream. No one else went by and so they didn’t see it. Then houses started being built and then cities. In the end, the city is overcome with poverty and collapses. The land goes back to what it started from. The song matched up with the video because it said, “There was a dream” and in the video people started rushing into the city and that was the dream. Then the dream was met and everyone saw it until people stopped believing in it. Soon no one was going to the city and it crumbled to the ground. All the grass grew back in and everything looked almost the same as it had before. Only the billboard knows all that happened and then it falls too and now it is hopeless again. The song repeats the introductory lines after the billboard falls, “There's a darkness upon me that's flooded in light”. In the beginning, with just the words I thought there was just one man who had a dream and no saw it, I didn’t know from the lyrics that the dream was almost met and that the dream was a city. In the end the artist brought back the feeling of darkness and hopelessness and most of the traces of the city disappear.
-Lydia Sch

kevin..m. said...

without looking: Listening to the song "Head Full of Doubt/Road Full of Promise" they are talking about dreams and how he wants to acoplish them. Like the quote "Bird locked in a cage" it is saying that dreams are like a bird in a cage just wanting to be set free.
Looking: I think the music video is saying that anything can come from nothing. It can always get better and more exciting. But at the same time it can crumble and turn back into nothing.
-Kevin M. 1st Period

AnnaB1 said...

Listning without viewing: I think the singer is saying that there is a darkness inside of us all and that it will always be there. Also he repeats how he is the only person who see's it so I take that as it is his own personal darkness and his own wrong doings. When he says "in the fine print it will tell you what's wrong and what's right" it shows that sometimes you have to look deeper, and try to understand someone a little better. It also say's "And it comes in black and it comes in white and i am frightened by those who dont see it. And im frightened by those who don't see it." This shows the same thing. You have to look deep, and you have to think about it more then what you first see.
Listning while viewing: The video is about how the song writer felt what the world was like. Also it represented many changes and that's how life is, it changes alot. The video did not really change my thought's. I thought the song had good expression and so did the video. In the end the artist is trying to say that the world is always changing. Dreams are always changing, your thoughts are always changing, and you are always changing. The artist is expressing change and representing life.

Sara1220 said...

(Listening to lyrics)I think in the lyrics the "darkness" is a day to day thing that people go through. He says he is frightened by the people how dont see it because they are blind to the fact that something is wrong. The bird in the cage reference was symbolizing the white bird archetype, an innocent bird traped and trying to get.
(Watching the video)
In the video i believe it was a sign of progress and opportunity, someone takes up that opportunity and it grows and grows till everything becomes covered in this "darkenss" and everythig falls apart. Leaving the place as it started and someone else driving by and not looking up the opportunity.
Sarah P. first period

Rachel Javorsky said...

(Lyrics) I think that the artist is trying to say that there is a struggle between wrong and right in his mind. He believes that society is not the way it should be. It affects our choices. The lyrics that get to the meaning of the song is the lyrics about a bird in a cage and him demanding to free it. That means everyone should be as free as bird and do what they like. The bird lyrics jumped out at me and was the line that made me think.

*Listening and watching*

The video is about development of a city. The song and video do match up in a way. My thought of the song isn't changed after viewing the video. In the end, it shows that even good things must end. Maybe that was the way things were meant to be.

CLuzier said...

Listening without viewing: I think that the writer is trying to say that everyone goes through the times where everything seems to be impossible. He says, "So I'll scream til I die and the last of those bad thoughts are finally out." I think he is trying to say that even though thongs are hard, we just have to push through and "decide what to be and go be it". He also talks about freeing a caged bird. I think this means that sometimes you feel trapped in darkness, but you will conquer it with a dream. He also says that "It comes in black and it comes in white". This means that sometimes the "fine print" that is telling you what is wrong and right is for your help (white) because white tends to signify purity, and sometimes what people tell you is to harm your dreams (black) because black tends to signify evil or corruption.
Listening while viewing: The video is about a billboard that is changing as the environment around it changes. Watching the video kind of makes the song more depressing to me. You see a city being built, then it all falls down in the end. I think this symbolizes the times that we ourselves are feeling down in life. In the end, however, you see green grass regrowing which, i think, represents a new beginning. After all, that is how the land starts out in the beginning of the video.
-Corrine Luzier, 2nd period-

JazlynRae(: said...

(listening) He explains things in an interesting way, saying that it's there in black and white to tell him what's wrong from what's right. I think he means that he doesn't want the media or the government or stereotypical beliefs to affect the way people look at the world. He expresses his words in such a way it makes me feel like he doesn't know if anybody else looks at things this way. I would be scared or more or less worried that nobody sees it this way as well. He feels as if he should be heavily impacted by his government and struggle to find love like everybody else because that's how the world makes it out to seem.
(watching)I feel like this video still relates to how it sounds. In the beginning and end cars and people would go right past this area of land and nothing about it could spark their interest until the lights, media, people, and buildings appeared. Eventually it started to go down most likely because people found something better. It makes it seem that we all affect eachothers opinions on what we should and shouldn't have. If you don't have all of the exciting fun things outside of necessity it's as if you want to but you can't. However, not everybody wants that, their just too scared to admit it. That's what I believe the artist was trying to explain.
~Jazlyn R. 7th.

BrittanyG said...

I think the artist is trying to say that there is a darkness around people that represent the leaders and the people who watch over you and tell you what to do. In the song he says "There's a darkness upon me that's flooded in light." This means that even though you have these people bearing down on you there is still light that is hopeful for you and your dreams. He also says that "Like a bird in a cage I broke in and demanded that somebody free it." The freeing that he is talking about is the freeing of his dreams. Essentially, he is saying that he stands up to people so he can have the life he wants to live.

Watching the video, it made me understand that the car was the darkness and the billboard was the light. The car represented your typical thing that society wants, that's why it is black. The billboard represents the person's dreams and what they want to make happen for themselves. So, in order to stand up, the dreamer builds a suburb which is eventually taken over with a bustling city which represents once again, what is popular in society now. So the dream is torn apart by society.

NatalieK_1 said...

(Listening) I think that the singer is trying to say that there is a darkness around all of us but when you have dreams, there's a light that shines through and your life begins to flourish. In the line, "There's a darkness upon me that's flooded in light." the light is an archetype because light represents the beginning of knowledge and intellectual knowledge the man is opening his eyes and sees the darkness that is upon him. Another archetype in the song is the line, "And it comes in black and it comes in white." The color white symbolizes supernatural and blinding truth while black stands for darkness, mystery and primal wisdom. Those two come together and create a very vivid picture of the darkness that the singer is trying to create. The line that get to the heart of the meaning is, "There was a dream and one day I could see it. Like a bird in a cage I broke in and demanded that somebody free it" because when you have a dream, you shouldn't cage it inside of yourself because it could do so much good in the world. One line that really jumped out at me and made me think was, "In the fine print they tell me whats wrong and whats right." I really had to think about that one and now I think he means that people try to hold us back from being who we are and making our own choices and what we need to do is follow our heart. The other one was "Decide what to be and go be it." because I thought that it was just so straight and true, and it means that you shouldn't let what other people think stand in the way of being who you want to be. We over complicate these things when it's really quite simple- decide what to be and go be it.

(While Viewing) The video is about a billboard that says 'for sale' in the middle of nowhere. One person drives buy and decides to buy the land. All of a sudden, things around the billboard start growing and flourishing -like the neighborhood and the city- and the whole time, the billboard is still in the heart of it all. At first, it didn't seem like the song and video matched up but now that I think about it, they actually do because the singer is getting across the message of dreams and how one person can make a big difference and help make the world a bigger place instead of caging it inside of themselves- and that is sort of like the billboard and how one person made it possible for everything to grow. The video changed my thoughts about the song because after watching it, I realize that it is sort of like a cycle. An idea starts out small and stranded, but when a person puts it out in the open things start building around it and growing until it has finally served its purpose. In the end, the artist is trying to say that there is a darkness around us all and that he's afraid of those who don't see it- because those people are being ignorant and refuse to see what's really there. We all need to embrace new ideas to become a better world.

NatalieK_1

camerinm1 said...

Listening without looking: i think that the band is trying to say that there is light at the end of the tunnel, there will always be hope. if something is not good, then it is not the end, you keep hope until the day you die.
Listening with looking: i think that the band is showing us that even something that unknown can become something really big. something can come from nothing.

Ang5339 said...

(Listening, not watching)
While I was listening to the song "Head Full of Doubt/Road Full of Promises", I think what the author was trying to say was that we all have doubts, which was the "darkness". On the other hand, he was saying that we have dreams and should let them out, which was the "bird in a cage". The song is also about how we are oppressed by the media, and how our dreams get shot down and nobody seems to notice, and that scares him. He is simply saying that there is balance, and for every good thing there is a bad, "it comes in black and it comes in white".

(Listening and watching)
While watching the video, i think that the car that the bill-board represents opportunity and development, and the car that drove by represents mankind's ignorance towards that opportunity. In agreement with what I earlier said, the dreams in the cage were the prosperous suburb and the bustling city, and to counter that, there was the darkness that caused destruction and hopelessness. I think the video also used a color archetype in a way, because it went from dull dreary colors to lighter hopeful colors and then back again depending on the part of the song. Overall, I think the lyrics and the video worked nicely together to punctuate the point that the artist was trying to make.
-Angie G. 1*

Rachael said...

Listening: The artist is trying to say that there is a battle of light versus darkness going on in everyday life and that a lot of people don't see that, and it scares him.The lyrics that say that are how he is frightened by those whodon't see it, and about the bird in the cage, demanding to be let out. Like there is something that we have to try and escape from, mabey doubt, that impacts all are lives and that some people raley see the truth. The lyrics that really stick out are the ones about the bird and the cadge, the girl with the head full of doubt and the constant mention of light and darkness that really jump out and connect togather and make you think about the deep meaning of the song.

While listening and watching:
The video is about there being darkness and despair, nothing exsisting in the middle of nowhere. Then someone comes up with a dream, an idea, after seeing a for sale sign that sparks a civilization. A new town grows but like every good thing, once it reaches its full potential, it falls, like everything else in the world. This makes the song and the video match up because the video takls about the despair and darkness that people uncounciously know is present but are to ingnorant to see. The video shows this as the city builds up, that there will always be that darkness hidden there, in the skyline. It changes my thoughts on the song, because before i thought that it was just about people and their fate, the mysterious things that hide in the dark. But ince i saw that video it shows not just the way people are affected but the whole world, through the civilzation falling and beeing reborn again, once the grass grows over, just like how every person has a dream that is created from an idea, near the end of the video. In the end of the video, the artist is trying to say, thatthere is a war of doubt and darknewss constantly going on. Then people with dreams come along, and that darkness fades into the background where people who see it forget about the dark and the despair., but like life and fate it comes back later to get you, which is portrayed when the city falls, just like the human condition and the way that death is inevitable.

Rachael S. 5-6

ellen_f said...

Listening to lyrics:
I think that it is about how there is always hope in life, and with the good parts of life, there will always be low points. Like when it says "there's a darkness upon me that's flooded with light" i think they are referring to how even though there is bad times ,(the darkness) there will always be good times along with them (the light). and when they say "i'm frightened by those who don't see it." i think they are trying to say that people who don't see that for every happy moment you have there will be eventually sad one, and that the people who don't understand that, life will hurt them.

listening and watching:
i think that the video went really well with the music because the music was kind of sad, and the video has a sad ending. It starts off in just a field and then the fild starts to grow into house and then a city, but the city is abandoned and it crumbles. I think thats sad, and when they start to build even the houses it makes me sad because i think that the field maybe should have been just left alone, and left like it was, but instead they changed it, but then left it again. It's like the happy times were there, when the city was full of life, but the happy times were gone and turned to sadness when the city was left and it crumbled.

Bex said...

(listening)I think the singer is trying to explain all of the "darkness" that there is in life, but no matter how dark it gets there is always a little light, a little hope. A line that really jumped out at me was "in the fine print they tell me what's wrong and what's right" because I believe that it is very true. When you were little, someone always told you the difference between wrong and right. As you get older, you have to figure it out for yourself and sort of read "the fine print".
(listening and watching) I think the video represents ones dreams, and how some dreams can be so extraordinary and become real, and how others never quite reach reality. I think that in the end the artist is trying to say that life is always going to have its "dark" times, but it is during those times that you need to find the light. Always have hope and never give up on your dreams
-Bekah H. 7-8

Samantha said...

( listen to the lyrics)i think that the words mean a to me becuase this is whats goiong on in the world. When he says the the one da yhe saw a new world and can see it changing. it means that darkness is all around us.

( listing va watching it) When i watched this video was ispirational becuasethis is wants goingon in the world. when i first time i watched this i almost cried, and if you dream things could happen.

Anonymous said...

I think that the singer is saying that we need to change the world and make it better. That is why it starts out all alone and keeps bulding. Then I think that when it gets more and more colorful that his dreamis complete. He says throughout the song that he is frightened by those who don't see it and I think that means he has a dream and others should too.

The movies theme is very dark and lonely and in the middle of the song there are lots of people symbolizing his dream coming true and then they all disappear and it's lonely again. I think this is the journey the writer takes to reach his dream.

-Addie Gall

Dechameleon said...

When I listened to the lyrics, it sounded like the artist was talking about a corrupted, controlling government or a monarchy, and also about revolting from that government. He put me in the place of a person negatively affected by this government, and told me that I should, "Decide what to be, and go be it." That line makes me think the artist is talking about America, because America revolted from a controlling government and monarchy, and anyone who lives in America can, "Decide what to be, and go be it." For me, that line ties the whole song together and jumps out at me. When I watched the video, I got the same opinion except for the revolting from a monarchy part, because the person in the car saw the "FOR SALE" sign and decided to buy it and start a new community. From there, the community built itself up until it became a city. The person who bought the land wanted to start a community, and the people who became members of that community made it blossom into a full fledged city that attracted people from other communities. In the end though, everyone went out of business, suggesting that the city they had made was just a fad that had passed over, or that they moved on to a different city to run their businesses. In the end, I think the artist was trying to say go live your life and do what you want to do because it may not last as long as you think.
-James Burns

Dechameleon said...

When I listened to the song thought that the artist was talking about a monarchy that had too much power. He then put me in the shoes of someone who didn't like the monarch and wanted to revolt against him. An important line was when the artist said, "Decide what to be and go be it." Just listening to the song made me think the artist was talking about America and how, we revolted from Great Britain and gave ourselves the ability to, "Decide what to be and go be it." When I watched the video, I thought pretty much the same thing minus revolting from a monarch. I thought that the story the video told went like this: A person see a "FOR SALE" sign as they're driving and gets the idea to start a community. So, he buys the land that was for sale and does just that with the land. The people who become members of that community then raise the community so it grows into a city where people come to shop, eat, and have fun. In the end, though, the city ends up being a fad, all the people who started businesses there either go out of business or move their business elsewhere, and everyone deserts the city, which then crumbles back into what the land originally was like. In the end, I think the artist is trying to say that you should pursue your dreams while you can, because life is short and you don't know how much time you'll have to do what you want to do in life.
-James Burns

lenhoff#2 said...

Listening without viewing- I feel that the author is trying to tell you about following your dreams, even if people tell you that it is useless too. He seems to be talking about his own dream in my opinion. “There was a dream” this was hinting towards the fact that he had a big dream. “In the fine print they tell me what's wrong and what's right.” It’s as if everyone is telling him not to dream big and just obey the rules. “And there was a kid, with a head full of doubt.” this part is showing him as the kid and how he’s starting to doubt his dream. So when the chorus says “Like a bird in a cage I broke in and demanded that somebody free it”, to me it seems that “IT” is his dream and he’s telling people to stop messing with it. “So I scream til I die or the last of those bad thoughts are finally out.” This is where I feel that he decided to follow his dream and those “bad thoughts” are the doubts he had. “And I'm frightened by those who don't see it.” I feel in this part of the song the author is saying that is scares him that people are so ignorant that they can’t see that they should pursue their dreams instead of following what everyone else says.
Listening while viewing- The video is about a billboard that stood at the beginning and while everything changed around it, it stayed the same. I a way this could be connected to what I thought the lyrics meant. If you think about the billboard as the “big dream” it actually makes sense. At the beginning the billboard was the only thing there- his one big dream-and the car that drives past, slows down by the billboard, then speeds up again could be thought of as him, because he had the big dream, so he slowed down and tried to achieve it, then people ridiculed him and he started to doubt the dream and left it. After that, the things around the billboard started to change from a town to a city. These could be seen as his other dreams, but as those dreams changed his big dream- the billboard- stayed constant. Then the other dreams collapsed as the buildings collapsed, but like before the big dream remained. Since the big dream was the only dream to withstand time it is the one you should follow no matter what. The other dreams come and go, but your biggest dream always stays; waiting to be turned into a reality.
- C. Lenhoff 1st.

Iceman said...

(lyrics) This song is trying to get away from the darkness. With the boy with a head full of doubt he is trying to get rid of it. The singer also talks about the a bird stuck in a cage. He said that it "demanded someone would free it." The line that i liked is when he was talking about the darkness being in fine print and some people not seeing it. He is almost warning you to watch out and to be alert.
(Video) The video is about a sign that was up forever even though the changes that went on in that part of the road. A new developement was built and destroyed. Then a whole city was built and destroyed and the sign survived most of it. It does show how the singer feels really good. it shows something smaller and getting bigger and bigger and then back to nothing.

-Thomas M. 7°/8°

brunswick52 said...

I think that it is trying to say their is a darkness in our lives. It also means that we should have a dream to get out of it. You should always have a dream. When watching the video it makes people want to get more active or have a dream. It says that you should wright your own story. I think also it is trying to say their is alot of bad times but you need to have more good times
Isaac P

Nate T. 2 said...

Before watching the video I think the singer is trying to say everything is in black and white the way you should do things and live your lives daily. Rules on how to act and keep us safe. It is in fine print for everyone but those who ignore these are the ones who change our society by something positive or negative. A darkness that is hypothetically blocking our minds. That cloud that is blocking our fremas and happy thoughts from getting through to us. The line that jumps out the most to me is,"in the fine print they tell me whats wrong and whats right."

The video is about someone dreaming. Letting go and thinking maybe I can make sonething out of this place. Ending where we started. The video makes me think of the lighter backgrounds happy thoughts and starting something with one thought. The darker colors make the mood go down and you get that sense of downfall. The background changes with colors and when the colors go down and darker cool ones show through, the background is the houses falling down or the bulidings falling the darkness of our society trying to take everything over and make money. The end message is we end where we began and a single thought, a dream, can change everything.
Nate T. 2

OliviaW said...

Listening without viewing: I think the in the song “Head Full Of Doubt/Road Full Of Promise” the artist is talking about struggles of dreams. It takes potential to achieve and pursue dreams as said in the song he is trying to “Decide what to be and go be it." We all have to set dreams and ignore what every one else thinks, because they can’t control our minds. Also, in the song he contrasts white and black and light and darkness, meaning it can become a choice that you should take and face it(Goodness-white/light or mystery-black/darkness). One lyric that stood out was, “There was a dream and one day I could see it/Like a bird in the cage I broke in and demanded that somebody free it”. Meaning once you unlock your dreams you can come into reality and figure out what the world is about. I could really picture the colors, similes and lyrics in my head.

Listening while viewing: After listening and viewing the song I think it represents how life is, sometimes it can be built up or come tumbling down. It started off with plain field, it was sold, was built into a community, then a city, it collapsed, and the plain field was back again. I especially noticed the changing color of the sky changing from light and dark, which how life and dreams are, always changing. I don’t think his dreams are crushed though. If they were then the land could have stayed barren, but the grass re-grew (Green representing-growth) as a new beginning.

~Olivia W. 2nd Period

Jake "The Stud" Simonelli said...

The artist is trying to say the world is changing. It is different each day. The line that caught me was "im frightened by those who don't see it" meaning he is scared for those who don't see that the world is changing.

The video is about the changing of evolutions.Yes i think the video and song match up.The video changes my thoughts because it shows that the world is changing everyday and when the buildings were being demolished it showed that there was a new evolution taking place.At the end of the movie what the author was showing was that it was happening all over again.
Jake S. 5th 6th

Calp said...

(listening)
I think the lyrics are trying to say that when everything in the world is easy, and everything is understood, the artist doubts. He doesn't belive it could be this easy. "In the fine print they tell me what’s wrong and what’s right" - this phrase is repeated a lot throughout the song. I think the artist means that everything is simple and black an white. "So I’ll scream til I die and the last of those bad thoughts are finally out"
- this jumped out at me because i think the artist is trying to get the doubt out of his head and the bad thoughts out of his head but he will 'scream til he dies' because it is so hard. (after watching the video and listening 3 more times ) ok i change my mind, somewhat. I think the artist is trying to portray that he has a dream, that he needs to let out. but everything is black and white that he doubts that society will accept it, he doesn't want to be different.
(listening & watching)
The video is about change, and the harsh reality of change sometimes. the song and the video match up, only somewhat thought. The video is almost sad because the whole time you watch the 'life' of the billboard and when everything is built around it and ever changing and destroyed. The video made me think of the song in a much more child-ish way. The painting theme made me think of children, and made me think the song was about a little boy with a dream. The artist, in the end that change is inevitable, and it will happen. The artist makes the song almost dark, the lyrics are but the song itself sounds melancholy. Just sad.

Calp said...

oops! sorry that was me ^ -Cali P 7/8*-

Estefany G. said...

(just listening)I think what the singer is trying to say is that there is a little bit of good in all that is dark.In the song,the darkness is flooded by light. light is hope.I also think he's trying to say that you should be who ever you want to be, or do what ever you want to do, and don't let people tell you what is wrong and what is right.The lyrics that really get to the heart of the meaning, in my opinion, are: "there's a darkness inside you that's flooded with light. In the fine print they tell you what's wrong and what's right" I think those really hit the meaning of the song. The line that really makes me think is"like a bird in a cage i broke in and demanded that somebody free it."

(listening and watching)
I think the video is about about a dream that starts out small and eventuallly builds up. the video and the song do match up because the lyrics say that there was a dream that couldnt be free, so he broke in and demanded to let it be free. in my opinion the video doesnt change my thoughts much but it gives a good visual and helps you understand it better. In the end I think the artist is saying to never give up on your dreams, or they'll collapse just like the billboard.
-estefany

rykordahi14 said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
rykordahi14 said...

I believe that the song was telling the listeners that there is a "darkness" around us all. The darkness is frightening because it prevents us from seeing the moral things. The darkness can be translated to temptation because it blinds our thinking dramatically. But then the singer sings how there was a dream that he was able to see through the darkness, this dream can be translated to God. It can be translated to God because God helps us see through the darkness, or temptation. The line "there's a darkness upon me that flooded in light" jumps out at me because it's a contradiction. There is a darkness that is flooded in light; it doesn't make sense. It jumps out at me mainly because it makes me think deeper than the lyrics go to what it truly means. I can translate it as that there's temptation all around him, but God has made it visible and easier to resist. The video and the song match up perfectly because it shows what the world would be with just darkness, deserted and dead. Then it transforms that to what it is because of the light. In my opinion, the artist is trying to say that there is darkness all around him, but there is light to help make the dark fade.
-Kordahi

Rosevine A said...

Listening to Lyrics: In the song, the singer says, "There's a darkness around me that's flooded in light." Here, he is saying that even though all around him there may be darkness and dismay, there will always be light and hope to encourage him. The singer also says, "There was a dream and one day I could see it. Like a bird in a cage I broke in and demanded that somebody free it." Here he uses a simile to explain how everyone has the right to a dream and these dream should be expressed to everyone and not held captive. The two lines above from song really made me think. They made me think about life and about an individual's dreams. The first line made me think about how people always let the negative aspects of life hurt them and forget that there is always the positive aspects of life. I thought about dreams in the second quote because the line made me think of how a lot of people usually cover up their dreams instead of expressing and pursuing them.

Listening and Watching: The video is about the progression of an individual's dream to the point that it is almost successful but then, the individual's dream are broken and never fully accomplished. The video and the song definetly match up because they both express feelings about a person's dream and what people stand for. The video does not change my thoughts about the song, but the video further enhanced my views of the song. The video provided a visual representation of the song that provoked more advanced thoughts.In the end, the author is trying to say that even though the dreams were broken, the individual will never forget the dream they once had and they may even try to pursue that dream once again. This was depicted when the city was broken down and the black car(metaphorically the individual)drove down the path past the billboard (metaphorically an aspect of the dream).

JackiK said...

Listening to the lyrics- Listening to this song, the artist is trying to say that everyone has dreams. If you follow them, the sky is the limit. If not, you never know what your dreams could have become. The line "And I'm frightened by those who don't see it," shows that not everyone goes out to follow these dreams. The artist thinks that having a head full of doubt is wrong

Listening and viewing- This video shows land that was empty and was developed into a city. The city was torn down and the lot of land turned into a plain. This shows the cycle of death and rebirth. An idea of a dream was inside someone's head to build a city. They did and it lasted, but eventually crumbled down. This showed that dreams can come true, but may only be true for a while. The land returns to a grassy plain and waits to be built on again. The video shows an example of the lyrics. The lyrics explain to follow dreams, and the video shows someone trying to follow them. The artist is overall trying to say go for your dreams, you never know what will happen.

JackiK said...

-Jacki K 1*

Ryan said...

(Listening) I believe that in the song, the writer is trying to hint at the potential of some individuals. When the writer states that ‘your life doesn’t change by the man that’s elected,” I see it as a cry for individuals to reach their goals no matter the circumstances. I believe that when he speaks of ‘ a bird in a cage,’ he is referring to the potential that many have, but fail to use. Also, he states that ‘in the fine print they tell me what’s wrong and what’s right. ‘ I believe that he is trying to show how much the world influences the decisions of individuals. Everybody wants to fit in and be normal, rather then being different and standing up for what they believe in. For me, the most powerful line of the entire song is the one that says ‘Decide what to be and go be it.’ I think that this is an important lesson to teach all people- that no matter what the social norm is, and no matter what they are told, that they should always follow through with their dreams.

(Listening while viewing) I interpret the video as a representation of our ever-changing world. In the beginning of the video, there is just one thing, a billboard, in the middle of emptiness. However, the next day a development is created. And less then a day later the development changes into a busy street with shops. And then everything is deserted and the town returns to emptiness. However, through all of these times the billboard still stands. This may be a symbol of some of the things that should never completely change in our world (Family). I feel like this is a good representation for how quickly things can change in our lives. In some aspects, I believe that the video closely reflects the lyrics of the song. It can be interpreted as many people chasing their dreams and accomplishing dreams (Owning a house or a business). I think that the video helps me to see a different side of the lyrics of the song and creates a deeper understanding. Overall, I think the artist is trying to say to still chase your dreams through our ever-changing lives and communities.
-Ryan M. 2-

Anonymous said...

(just the lyrics)I think the artist is trying to sy that people are bling to the problems that technology brings. The artist is saying that were all sitting in the "darkeness" and were letting the world make our decisions "telling us whats wrong and whats right." The lyrics that stand out to me the most is "theres a darkness flooded in light." Also "it flutters by day and flys by night." These two pieces of the lyrics stand out to me because the darkness is blinding us by disguising itself as the light.
(video and lyrics)The video is about a small piece of land that happens to go on sale. When the land gets purchased people all rush in immidiatley and start construction. It starts off as a small development, but soon grows into a city that is standing tall. While the people become blinded by the downfall of the city because of all the luxuries. This causes the city to fall and destroy itself, thus turning back into that small little piece of land. The song and the video do match up because at first the day day seem bright and shining, but the darkness is right behind it, like in the video the city seemed perfect and great, but behind the scenes it was destroying itselfs with the technology. i think the video is trying to say don't be blinded but the good things because the bad things are what you need to look for before it shows itself.

Deja w. 3

Kelli Shumate said...

I think that the message that the artist is trying to convey is that we all need to look beyond the present and see things more for what they are and not what they appear to be.

After watching the video, the same thing is conveyed. The only addittion is that I have visuals to be able to see and hear what they mean.

Laura A. said...

I think the artist was saying that people try to escape the "darkness." Some people can see it better than others because it's do black and white. When people can't see it that's when it scares him. It infuinces our choises whether it's good or bad. I also believe that he's saying people shouldn't be afraid to dream and make it into something real.

The video shows the idea of an idea creating, the emptyness. The dream or image, the person in the car has the dream. The dream being build in a reality, the small town. And others building off teat original dream making it bigger and bigger and changing it, the city. Then the dream being destroyed or forgoten, the city falling apart. When you get to the top the only other way to go is down What goes up must come down.
-Laura A. 7-8*

bethany w said...

(Listening) The artist is trying to say that darkness comes from the human mind, where we cannot accept the stage that we are in so we just keep on changing ourselves to try and demolish the darkness, when in reality you're really just getting pushed further in further into it. The artists says that there are dreams but they hard to get to because of the darkness holding us back. Lyrics that really jump out at me are "Like a bird in a cage I broke in and demanded that somebody free it." They jump out at me because it's relatiable to me, because it's saying that somebody's stuck in what they are partaking in and they need help getting out of the sitaution and the artist in the lyrics, does that. They make me think about people i unknowingly help everyday by even just offering advice and being there for them.

(Listening while viewing)The video is about how we as people, have a hard time getting the mentatlity of accepting the place and position that we are in. We try to help the problem by changing but in the end, like the video we end up destroying ourselves instead of the problem. The video changes my thoughts on the song by leaning more towards that darkness means evil, and we as human beings, are that evil that in reality destroys ourselves. In the end the artist is trying to saying that people who don't see the darkness, or the problem that really is themselves scares the artist. The artist is saying that people need to realize that they are the problems before they actually destroy themselves like evenutally in the story how the buildings were all abandoned from people.


by: Bethany W. 2nd period.

Khoa said...

(listening) I thought that this song had to do with being alone. I could tell that the atmosphere this song created was dark and evil in a way. When listening to the lyrics, you can tell he was alone knowing whats changing, and everyone else being completely oblivious to evil. He is trying to make a point that people need to be aware of whats going on.
(listening/watching) When watching this video, it just reinforces my thinking, and does not change my view. It's a sad story representing society and how it is corrupted and evil.

Khoa said...

My last comment^^^ -khoa 2nd.

zmiller3rd said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
zmiller3rd said...

(listening to lyrics):the singer is trying to tell us about the darkness in our lives that only he notices. he is saying it is so obvious that it comes in black and white. it also tells him how to live his life because in the song he says "it tells me whats wrong and whats right". toward the end of the song he is trying to tell us that even as evrything gets bigger there is still darkness in our everyday life,that we need to look out for because at any given moment it can jump out at you with out you being ready for it.

(listening and watching the video):when I watched the video I thought that when someone has a dream they go for it and if you have a dream never give up. in the long run you will be glad you finished the dream because you will feel you accomplished something.
-Zack M-

Nikki S. said...

I think that the singer is trying to say that there will always be darkness in our lives, it just matters if you see it more clearly than others. When he says, "In th fine print they tell me what's wrong and what's right," he means that you are being told what to do or not to do instead of you living your own life and not finding it out by yourself. He also says, "Decide what to be and go be it." This means if you want to do something in your life don't let someone hold you back.
When you watch the video it shows how fast an idea can grow, and just how fast it can fall apart. when you have dreams it changes what is going on around you, for the better of for the worse

SamH_1 said...

(Listening to lyrics alone) I believe that the artist is trying to express how lost he feels in today's ever changing world. He seems to be saying that things are no longer as simple as they once were, now there is a fine print to everything that dictates what we can do with our lives. He is also saying that he fears for the people that are not opening their eyes enough to see what lurks in the shadows of this new 'glamorous' world. They are blind to the darker parts of this world and one day their ignorance may come back to harm them. The part of the song that this becomes apparent to me is, “There’s a darkness upon me that’s flooded in light. In the fine print they tell me what’s wrong and what’s right. And it comes in black and it comes in white. And I’m frightened by those that don’t see it.”
(Lyrics and viewing the music video) The video seems to reinforce my earlier observations. The video seems to take it a step further, though. The video shows how much one area changed over several years and eventually, all the "fine print" lies and blatant ignorance caught up with it and the city collapsed. I think the real message to the story is that a dream needs a strong foundation, it cannot just be built on lies.
-sam H. 1

MikeC. said...

(Listening to the Lyrics) Well right off the bat, the "darkness flooded in light" is very well some sort of issue inside of the the writer of this song. When flooded by light, the darkness goes away and is replaced by something else. "fine print that tells me what's wrong and what's right" is in my opinion a reference to how sometimes our culture decides for us what is wrong and what is right. I mean, are you offended by something because you made the decision to be offended by it, or did or culture/society make the decision for you, and you are only offended because you think you supposed to be. The writer of this song then talks about a new world, and i think said new world is the light, or a change.
(Watching/listening) My suspicions are somewhat confirmed by the video. The light is a change, and at first the change is slow, and then things rapidly start happening. I think the argument could be made that this video is about the archetypical "circle of life", because things end basically where they started.
-Mike C. 7/8-

Jeffa said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Katie Eileen said...

(Listening without viewing) I believe that the song "Head Full of Doubt/Road Full of Promise" is trying to say that we are all encompassed in a darkness that is so obvious it's practically light. Our unconscious minds know what is wrong and what is right, and it is blatantly obvious, but sometimes we don't even see the evil and darkness that we are being pulled into, which is extremely frightening. The artist is saying that our whole world can change, but only if we are able to notice the darkness and get rid of it. Our world is changing from light and pure to dark and evil, but if we don't want to see the evils in this world that we know are there, we will never be able to make it good again. Children will grow up with a strong doubt of our world and they will not understand right from wrong as we do today. The only difference would be that they would not know right from wrong, whereas today, we do know, but we choose to ignore it.

(Listening while viewing) I think that the video made my views of just the lyrics stronger. The video was about how the world is always changing around us, and the darkness is always growing, changing what was simple into something extravagant and difficult. The innocence that once flooded our world was banished by the complications that we now face. But if we realize that the complexity and corruption is not too desirable, we will be able to change the world back to innocence and purity.

~Katie D. 7/8º

Jeffa said...

(listening to lyrics) The singer in this i describing how he has dreams he wants to go out and live but the darkness around him is stopping him from doing so. he uses the idea of "a bird being trapped in a cage" to help describe his emotions. The darkness represents everything that is holding im back from obtaining his goal or dream.
(watching video) In the beggining of the video its an open feild with only a billboard. Then a truck drives past all this and suddenly a small town forms, which then turns into a big city. in my opinion i feel that this is a representation of a persons dream. Everything is so detailed in thier head they no exactly what they want to happen. However at the end of the video everything begins to collapse. This is a representation of how darkness in lifee can stop someone from obtaining their goal or dream when they grow up.
Jeff A 1st period

macey j. 3rd said...

(song)listening to the song i think the singer is trying to say there is always darkness inside us and around us,and we have to make the best of everything that comes our way.making choices is how we learn what is good and bad.people make mistakes and have to climb their way back up to were they want to be.


(video)i felt through the video new things were being built and society was changing really fast and almost hard to realize how fast your life can change. either good or bad. the goals you set in life will really determine what you become in the future.

JakeB said...

I think that the writer of this song is saying that we can make bad and good choices in life. Watching the video made me think about darkness because whenever the people made the buildings the sky would turn dark. What I dont understand is that tje people looked like they were having a great time in the big city but the city after a while crumbled. I font understand that.

JakeB said...

I think that the writer of this song is saying that we can make bad and good choices in life. Watching the video made me think about darkness because whenever the people made the buildings the sky would turn dark. What I dont understand is that tje people looked like they were having a great time in the big city but the city after a while crumbled. I font understand that

Gabby T . [3rd L.A.] said...

Listening Without Viewing :
The artist is trying to say that people are trying to write the rules of life , that others want to control everybody elses dreams/beliefs . He talks about how one who is elected promises so much change , but then lets down on what was promised . . and he's worried about the people that can't see what's happening in the world around them . I think the lyrics that get to the heart of the meaning are
" There was a dream and one day I could see it
Like a bird in a cage I broke in and demanded that somebody free it
And there was a kid with a head full of doubt
So I'll scream til I die and the last of those bad thoughts are finally out " . And the lines that really jump out and make me think are
" When nothing is owed or deserved or expected
And your life doesn't change by the man that's elected
If you're loved by someone, you're never rejected
Decide what to be and go be it " .

Listening While Watching Video :
The video was about a little town starting , then it became a big city over time . . eventually the city shut down and everything started to fall apart and decompose , after awhile the land from the beginning grew back . The whole scenario was basically showing how life changes so much overtime . I think the song and video match up perfectly . the video doesn't really change my thoughts much . In the end , I think the artist was trying to say that people are changing everything around them , and destroying whats good . Overtime nobody is realizing what is happening around them , and the video is showing how land turned into a town , then into a city then crumbled then turned back into the land it started with . It's a cycle that nobody pays attention to until they realize what they lose .

Dbosko56 said...

Listening without viewing:What the artist is trying to say in the song is the "darkness" that is holding you back is just the nieve inside of you. He's trying to say that you need to be more confident in yourself, or else you won' get far in what you believe in. The enviornment we live in ectremely effects our decesions, both wrong and right. The lines that really jump out at me are the kids with their head full of doubt. He wasnts to convince them they they can become something great if they keep optimistic, and not covered in darkness. He wants us to be unafraid of the world and to try new things withought having the worry of looking back.

Listening while viewing: The video is about dreams becoming a reality.You have to stick with your dreams if you want to make them come true.The video and the song do match up because they both show the importance of havin a dream and staying positive no matter what. The video does not ultimatley change my thoughts about the song, because both express the meaning of persevereance and persistance. In the end, the artist was trying to say that the dream must at some point come to an end, for another dream must come in and take place of the old dream.

-Dominic B. 1

HannahKG said...

Listening only:
The song Head Full Of Doubt/Road Full Of Promise makes me think about decisions and modern day America. Lyrics like "And your life doesn't change by the man that's elected" shows that the artist thinks that the media and politics shouldn't effect one's life and choices. It seems that he also is scared by the people who do no see past "black and white", plain living- "I'm frightened by those who don't see it "
Watching video:
After watching the video I saw the song more as talking about materialism and temporary aspects of life. The billboard represents a person, or even a country, growing, becoming industrialized and falling apart. The music video helped me come to the conclusion that the artist is trying to say that nothing material lasts forever, so you should focus on emotions, dreams, etc.
-Hannah G. 2nd-

natalieshnatalie said...

1. The lyrics are saying that we all have darkness inside of us, and some realize it, and some don't, and it's the ones that don't that are really hopeless, and he is scared of them. The singer says 'And your life doesn’t change by the man that’s elected.' Every day, people blame things on the government, and judge them and say 'it's the president's fault! What's he doing?' when really, nothing really changes in your personal life because of a new president. Go change your life yourself. It's that darkness that takes over our life that makes us blame people, and say things we don't mean, and do things we don't want to do. If we could just 'shine light' on that darkness, then maybe we could be better people. The song opens with the lyric: 'There’s a darkness upon me that’s flooded in light
In the fine print they tell me what’s wrong and what’s right
And it comes in black and it comes in white
And I’m frightened by those that don’t see it.' What the singer is trying to say here, is that he knows he has darkness inside of him, and now that he can see it, he knows that he can give into it, or follow the light-there is a path now, and he is stuck at a fork in the road. He could go with what's right, and follow the road less traveled, or follow many others into darkness. There is a saying 'It's black and white, there's no gray area.' The singer uses that saying, literally, in his lyrics. The black and white show the darkness, which is black, obviously, and the white, which represents his knowledge of his bad side, and the part of him that decides to go without it. Throughout the song, we see that the singer does choose the light by saying 'There was a dream and one day I could see it
Like a bird in a cage I broke in and demanded that somebody free it
And there was a kid with a head full of doubt
So I’ll scream til I die and the last of those bad thoughts are finally out.' The kid with a head full of doubt was him, but now he has grown into an enlightened man, who is free of ignorance because he saw the darkness and chose to live without it. The singer uses the metaphor 'Like a bird in a cage I broke in and demanded that somebody free it.' Which shows him growing out of his darkness.

2. I admit, I was confused by the video, It took me a while to get the connection between the open field, to the town, to the city, and back to the field, and put the lyrics inside of that. What I feel the singer is trying to say with the lyrics and the video is that throughout each stage of our life, we will always have to make choices between darkness and light. At the beginning of the video we see an empty field with a for sale sign on a billboard, and a car drives by the sign, then later, the field is turned into a town, with homes and people living in them. The sign has balloons on it. Then, the town is turned into a large city, and we see people rejoicing. The sign says 'Discover.' All of a sudden, the town starts to collapse. The town is gone. The sign falls off of the billboard. Then, grass and plants grow over the dirt, dust, streets, and everything left over from the destroyed city. A car drives by. The life process of this town, and the sign, symbolize making choices. Throughout the life of that field, somebody made a choice to build a town. The balloons on the billboard symbolize that as a 'light choice'. People are happy and living in new homes. The town is then turned into a city, with many possibilities. It was a good decision, shown by the sign that says 'discover'. Everyone is rejoicing; they are happy. Then, the city falls. Nothing is left-the sign falls over. Somebody, somewhere, made a bad choice. They chose to go down the black path. But somebody drives by the open field with nothing left, and we see that there is still hope. There is somebody still making choices, and we can hope that they make light ones, which is what the song is all about, making the right choices.
-Natalie S-1*

oliviaY said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
oliviaY said...

Listening without viewing: The artist is trying to say that the “darkness” is the sadness in life. The lyrics say there's a darkness upon me that's flooded in light, in the fine print they tell me what's wrong and what's right. Its saying once something bad happens the darkness covers the light or happiness that you had making it sad. The lines that really jump out and make me think are If you're loved by someone you're never rejected, Decide what to be and go be it. Also, so I scream till I die or the last of those bad thoughts are finally out.

Listen while viewing: The video is about a stranded place being built up from a town to a city and then it falls down to the way it started in the beginning. The video and the song do match up because just like in the video someone can go from being sad to slowly building into happiness and then it can come crashing down into sadness again. The video changes my thoughts on the song because it gives me a picture on how things can go from being good and changing in a matter of seconds. In the end the artist is trying to say that you can go back to where you came from no matter what and if you can’t see that, then it’s unfortunate for you.

olivia y. 2 period

Paige_S said...

listening to lyrics: I think the song writer is trying to tell anyone who listens to this song that darkness is what everyone wants you to do, its what someone who does not want to stand out does. When the singer says "In the fine print that tells me whats wrong and whats right," I think he means hes scared, but wants to be his own person. This line is what the whole song is about. The writer is afraid to stand out from the "fine print." The songwriter belives the people that don't notice the way others want them to be like are scary. They are ignorant to the fact that they're not their own person. Those people are the "black and white" and he wants to be the "color" of the world. Hes also telling the listeners to be who they want to be, dont be what others tell you, you should be. Another thing that the songwriter is saying is say what you need to say, say what you believe is right, dont keep your thoughts in your head.

listening and watching video: The video is about a billboard going through the many changes in life. The video and the song match up because the song is saying they want him to follow the "fine print" which the billboard does, until the end, when the town is destroyed and deserted. When the town is small, but full of life, there is no word on the billboard, its balloons, Ithink the illustrator is saying go out and be free. When the small town turns into a big city, the billboard's word changes to "discover" Ithink this means look for other things in life, strive to do something different than others. The video changes my thoughts on the song becasue I did not realize changes in life occur that fast. In the end, the artist is trying to say all good things must come to an end, live life to the fullest, but don't be disappointed when things end.

Paige S.1st

Paige_S said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Paige_S said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
zirkle said...

the artiest is trying to say that there is good and bad in people and it is their chose to be a bad person or a bad person. "there is a darkness that is flooded in light and their is a fine print that tells me what to do. it comes in black and white." the lines that jump out at me are "decide what to be and go be it." and "it comes to me in black and white."


the video is about a dream that people had and how some people view the dream in black and white. the video and the song mach up by a billboard being but up saying the land is for sail and someone driving by to read it. after that a city ends up being made and falls apart when the people have moved on. the video doesn't change my view on the song. in the end the artiest is trying to say that people will make dreams. the dreams will start out small ,but will end up big.

em said...

Listening:
I think the artist is trying to say that everyone has a dream. That the world around us isn't going to just let that dream happen, you have to “Decide what to be and go be it”, and that society tells us “what's wrong, and what's right”. You should live your life the way you want to, not by what others think, and that you should always have a positive outlook on life. When he says “There’s a darkness around me that's flooded in light”, good things can come out of bad situations, you just have to be positive, and he's “frightened by those who don't see it”, he's sad for the people who are living their lives by society's rules and don't look to the hope of a new day. The lyrics “There was a dream and one day I could see it,
Like a bird in a cage I broke in and demanded that somebody free it, And there was a kid with a head full of doubt, So I’ll scream til I die and the last of those bad thoughts are finally out” really jump out and make me think.


Listening and watching:
I think the video is about how society is always changing. At first there is nothing, then a small community, then a big city, and then it all gets destroyed back into nothingness. I think the song and video match up, because someone had a dream of creating that community, and a dream to turn that community into a big city, and they reached their dreams, whether the world around them thought they could or not. The video does not change my view of the what the artist is trying to say.

em said...

oops ^ Emily L 7/8*

Lauren H. 7/8 said...

(listening to lyrics) - I think that the artist is trying to say that everyone has dreams, and that there are always going to be lows and highs while trying to find those dreams. The "darkness" would be the low points, and the "light" would be the high points. When he says "There's a darkness upon you that's flooded in light", he means that although you are having a hard time, the light will break through, and overshadow the darkness and bad. When the artist says "Like a bird in a cage I broke in and demanded that somebody free it", it made me think that you always have the option to turn the bad things into something better.

(listening and watching the video) - The video shows a deserted field that transforms into a residential area, and then a city, and then it turns back into the deserted field. The video and the song match up because someone had a dream to build something, but when that didn't work out, a light shown upon it, and someone else's dream came true. The video changed my thoughts on the song because it made me realized, that even though you have your dreams, sometimes, they don't come true, and that sometimes the light doesn't shine on your dreams. In the end, the artist is trying to say that even though you have darkness in your life, have hope that a light will shine through it.

Lauren H. 7/8

MandaC3 said...

I think that what the singer is trying to say is that there is this world that they live in and its darkness thats destroying it. The black and white is day and night and the white is the good choices and the black is the bad choices that we make in life. He then says that he sees this world that is being created right before his eyes and it grows from nothing and then becomes a small community. Then it becomes a city with everything that you can imagine for example New York and then it all goes back to nothingness like it was in the beginning.
Some things that I reconized in the song was "there was a dream one day and I could see it." All of those things came true and all right before his eyes he could see it.
"And there was a kid with a head full of doubt." What he means is that he had a dream and it came true but all of a sudden it all became something that he didn't want to happen, and that was that everything came falling down.
The video and song definately match up and the video is everything that I thought of when I was listening to the song.

Paul S. said...

When I listened to the lyrics, I heard "the fine print tells us what's right and what's wrong." The singer says he's frightened by those who don't see it. He means he is afraid of those who can't tell the difference between right and wrong even though it's right there in black and white. He dreamed that one day everybody would see the right and wrong. "Like a bird in a cage, I broke in and demanded that somebody free it."
When I watched the visuals of the video I saw the empty road. This could symbolize the darkness that consumes all. But as a dream takes form, the darkness subsides. And as more people got involved in the dream, the dream became bigger and better until there is no darkness at all. The dream is then expanded into what became the city, where it is even better. Although the city crumbles and darkness falls once more, when another dream starts, the land falls into an era of peace where the grass can grow and the light exists with the dark.

--
Paul S.

Anonymous said...

(listening) I think that this song is about overcoming the bad times in your life. The darkness is everything that's wrong with the world, what's wrong with society, and he's frightened by the people that think that everything's right with the world. That the society is trying to tell us what is right and wrong, and what you should do with your life. I think the singer is trying to tell us that we should over come that and live our life, and follow our dreams, and not just listen to what others think we should do.

(listening) I think that the video is trying to tell us that we have to overcome all the problems in our life, and we have to make something bigger and better. That we have to follow our dreams, and if we don't nothing good will come. Also, that we make the world that's around us.
(Listening and watching )

Woods said...

(listening to lyrics) I believe that the song "Head full of doubt and road full of promises" is trying to get across the idea that this world might be full of darkness but there is still hope. When the artist sings about "there was a dream, one day I could see, like a bird in a cage I broke in and demanded that somebody free it" I think he is saying that the dream is shut out and in darkness with barely any hope of escape until someone breaks in and lets it go free. When it says that "in the fine print they tell you what's wrong and what's right" it is trying to send the message that a person has the chance to see what's wrong and right, and if they choose the "right way" then they will save themselves from some of the darkness in the world.
(listening while viewing) I think the video is showing that the world around us will change but we can stay the same and our dreams will always be there. The song says that "your life doesn't change by the man that's elected." The video starts out with a field and a billboard and the world around it changes and developes but in the end the field and the foundation of the billboard still stand. The video and the song together connected in my mind the fact that your dreams will always be there (like the foundation of the billboard), but all you have to do is break in and free them (the bird in the cage). I also believe that this is the message artist of "Head full of doubt and road full of promises" is trying to say.

Woods said...

Leah W. 1*

Skipper C. K. said...

Listening and watching: This song says how people can have dreams but when you go to accomplish your goals and dreams that, people may get in your way and make you doubt yourself. The darkness and black mentioned is the evil mystery and doubt that lingers in the person's mind. in the song he says don't let anyone stand in your way, so he was saying never to quit no matter what happens becuase your dreams are what drive you and make you happy. He also says he is afraid of those that don't see his dreams and I think that is because he thinks that another person may put more doubt in his mind over whether or not he could fulfill his dream. Everyone has doubt in themselves, but the song says we need to get over the doubt to overcome our obstacles, live happily, and succeed in our dreams.
Listening and veiwing: The song shows how without dreams people don't feel happy and confused. But when they dreams to work towards they are happy and won't let anything get in their way. But then dreams can die, and people can destroy what a person always dreamed of. And when one goes back to see their dreams they know there is no time and now, their dream cannot be completed. Dreams grow as the town to turned to a city of lights, dreams weaken and die as the city became empty, businesses went out of business, and the city crumbled to dust, all that was left was a road, covered in dead hopes and dreams. But the song could also mean that when you have a dream, you think it to it's greatest potential, then set out to do it no matter what, as the car drove past the sign at the very end of the song. White and black showed the black mystery of what lies ahead, and white the joy of having a dream and working towards it.
Colton K. 1st Period

MattV said...

(listening to the lyrics) I think that the singer is trying to say that people need to break away from the darkness.People need to break free from the darkness to fulfill their dreams in life. In the video,the person wanted to build a town over the open field. That was their dream.The song also says that by breaking out of the darkness they are gaining freedom. The birds breaking free from the cage are exactly the main idea of what the author is trying to say. The cage is the darkness and the birds break free to live out their dreams in the rest of their lives.

~Matt Veg~

AlexH said...

(Listening) I think that the author is trying to tell the listener about how there is a wrong and right to everything and our choices will affect us as well as how people have dreams and they should "free it," they should make their dreams happen. When the singer sings, "There was a dream and one day I could see it.
Like a bird in a cage I broke in and demanded that somebody free it," it helped me realize that he was trying to communicate that someone's dream should be made a reality.
(Watching)The board in the back is constantly changing along with everything else around it (where houses are built, then a big city, then the town is deserted as it was in the beginning). To me this shows how someone's dream was carried out and it grew, but the dream eventually died out into nothing again at the end. The video does not really change any of my thoughts on the song because I believe they match up well.
~Alex H. 2nd period.

Megan L. said...

(Listening Without Viewing): I feel like the artist is trying to say that as people we are taught moral values in life that we are told to follow. We are taught that there is only one way to do something and that should be the guideline for our lives. This is shown in the lyrics, "In the fine print they tell me what's wrong and what's right, and it comes in black and it comes in white." This is the idea that as humans we follow directly everything that is taught to us and we don't space out and come up with ideas on our own. However, then it is sang that, "One day I could see it, like a bird in a cage I broke in and demanded that somebody free it." This shows that the artist came to realize the error of being conventional and just like everyone else. This line represents the idea of the song, that you should follow your own dreams and come up with your own ideas and interpretations about life. This final realization is shown at the end of this piece when the artist changes the lyrics to no longer referring to him but to another person. Overall this song really makes me question the ideas of being generic in life and following what I was taught as a child. For example, some lyrics that I found really thought provoking were, "There's a darkness upon me that's flooded in light." and "Decide what to be and go be it." I like these because they have a deep meaning of seeing past the world around me and making decisions and taking responsibility on my own.

(Listening While Viewing): The video shows the steps of progression and is used as a symbol of the realization the artist goes through. For instance, this is shown by using the archetype of transitioning from darkness to light. This archetype is used in the beginning of the video when the car(Lightness) comes into the field(Darkness). This shows the idea of darkness or innocence, being pushed aside by light or the beginning knowledge and understanding. Another example of an archetype that is used is the use of many colors and showing a city filled with people and buildings. This occurs in the middle of the video and is used to show fulfillment in life. Also, it is uses bright colors such as yellow and white to show the idea of understanding and gaining wisdom. Overall both the song and the video follow the idea of progression in life and growth in the way of knowledge. However, the video makes me think that the artist also wants to emphasize the idea that throughout life it is important to follow your dreams and continue to build on your goals. This is shown through the progression of the city and then eventually its downfall which is the symbol for death. In conclusion, the author is trying to say that it is important throughout life to progress further and further and to follow your dreams. Also, it is important to be your own person and to follow what you believe in.

caseycows3 said...

This song is about a man living in despair and looking for hope. When he says 'when the darkness comes upon the light' he means that bad things always find a way to tarnish the good. This line makes me think of karma and the phrase, 'what comes around goes around. This is because your life could be going great, and one insignificant thing could ruin it. The video is about a field, turning into a development, then a city, then a field again. The video and song match up because the video signifies a build up, and then destruction. The video changes my thoughts on the song because the singer is not just speaking of himself, he's applying his lyrics to the world. The main thing the artist is trying to say is darkness always finds a way to nestle itself between the good.
-Casey a 1st period

Jaimie Lynn said...

Listening without viewing:
I think that the artists is trying to say is that "darkness" can mean a lot of other things. You dont know what its going to say about your life. "Darkness" sometimes has a good ending because it come in black and white. He talks about "there's a darkness apond you that's flooded in light". Not all darkness is like real darkness. Sometimes "darkness" may just mean that it is dark outside and some "darkness" meanings may mean that its in ourselves or in other people or maybe just that it isn't good things. In the middle, they talk about there was a dream that one day we can see it. That makes me think about dreams and compare them to mine.
Listening while viewing:
The video is about first there is nothing but over time anything can happen. i guess so because over time nothing was there and that was a "dark" time for the city. Then over time it became to light up then turn into darkness again over time. It helps to explains the song some more. "Darkness" gets light again then can get dark again and then get better but still not be as great as before.
~Jaimie W 7/8 period.~

KC22 said...

(listening) I think the artist is trying to say that when you have a dream you should seize it and hold on to it. He also says "Like a bird in a cage I broke in and demanded that somebody free it" which could mean that you shouldn't keep yourself from achieving your goals and doing what you want to do. The lyrics that can help define the song could be "When nothing is owed or deserved or expected
And your life doesnt change by the man thats elected
If you're loved by someone, you're never rejected
Decide what to be and go be it" which states how you are in control of your life and you have the ability to do something about it. A line that makes me think is "The darkness upon me that's flooded in light" and how there is the unknown even when times are tough there is light at the end of the tunnel and that we should always push toward it.
(watching)The video is about how in the beginning there is nothing but throughout the video the land kept on changing from plain land to a city then to dust which symbolizes change. The song doesn't really match up with the video but the symbols of change are present in both. The video seems to portrays more of a change for the better and then in the end it is taken away and it makes me think of how it repeats its self like history. The saying the more things change the more they stay the same is a good example. He is trying to say that change is important but to much change can end up backfiring and that we should be careful about how we go into the future.
-Kyle C. 7/8 period.

JordynN1 said...

Message bodyListening without viewing:
When I listened to the song "Head Full Of Doubt/Road Full Of Promise" I was thinking that the singer thinks that there is a "darkness" that they can't escape and that they want to break free from. Lyrics that are the heart of the song and get to the point are "There’s a darkness upon me that’s flooded in light" and "So I’ll scream til I die and the last of those bad thoughts are finally out". They show that they think there is that "darkness".

Listening while viewing: I think that is video is trying to show that even in the darkest of days, life gets better as you move on. It also shows the crossroads. When you feel like you don't have any other options, the crossroads show you that extra option

Maddy G said...

(Listening without viewing) I think that the author is trying to say that he didn’t want to live life by the “fine print” or what was expected. He wanted to just go out and do what he wanted and be free of all the constraints people tell him. The lyrics that really jumped out and made me think were the lines such as,
“Like a bird in a cage I broke in and demanded that somebody free it
And there was a kid, with a head full of doubt
So I scream til I die or the last of those bad thoughts are finally out” I took this to meant that he felt so restricted and not aware that he could break free. Then he finally understood and wouldn’t give up his right to do what he wanted.

(Listening while viewing) I thought that the video was about how the way things are change over time. Also how people are changing the world and they don’t see it. They don’t see that what they are doing isn’t right. I don’t see exactly how the words and the video match up. In the video, when the landscape kept on changing and being destroyed made me think how people were changing it and how it wasn't going to be viewed the same each time. I now think the author is trying to say things are changing in general, mostly in the world, and that he feels like the only one who notices it. He wants to stand up and stop the changes as much as he can.
- Maddy G. 1st period

ljstephens2015 said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
ljstephens2015 said...

(Listening without viewing)In the song "Head full of doubt and road full if promises" the author is trying to say that he sees hope in his dreams but darkness in reality. The lyrics, "And there was a kid with a head full of doubt
So I’ll scream till I die and the last of those bad thoughts are finally out" shows the doubt and fight to get rid of it. The lyrics that really stand out to me are,
"There’s a darkness upon me that’s flooded in light
In the fine print they tell me what’s wrong and what’s right
And it comes in black and it comes in white". These lyrics stand out to me because it shows how influencial reality is and how it just kills our dreams by us following the life of doubt in reality.
(Listening while viewing)The video is about dreams made,followed through and then torn apart. The video and song do match up. The video follows along with the lyrics of dreams being made and then ruined, with the homes built. Then it showed how people had hope and then reality gave doubt with the city being built and then falling apart. The video changes my thought on the song because I didn't think of dreams happening and then crumbling down by just listening to the song. I thought of someone sitting around with no hope and not even trying to follow their dream.

-Lydia St. 2*

alexgrabowski. said...

(listening) What the singer is trying to say is the he had a dream, but it was hard to achieve. He felt trapped and need help to escape, but couldnt. While he was trying to reach his dream he came acroos ups and downs. The darkness were the downs. Darkness is always inside of us but we have to cope with what we were given and handle the consquences that we got ourselfs into. He says that he can see it, but but he doesnt know how to get there. Sometimes we may not realize the darkness around us, but when we do see it, it's too late casue the damage has already been done.

(watching the video) The video shows change and evalution. It starts out with emptiness then to a crowed city back to emptiness. This is showing how the world around us is changing faster than we realize. To get from the emptiness to the city was a long journey that some people may be frighten of. In order to be successful in life we have to set goals for ourselves and be willing to face challenges. I think that the song and the video are closely realted. They both are sending the message that things may get hard in life but we have to find the courage in ourselves to puch a little more and not give up. If we do give up we arent going to gain anything and arent going to move forward.
~Alexandra Grabowski 2~

Morgan said...

Without watching:
The first verse automatically shows you an internal conflict from the writer, using archetypes that are complete opposites of each other (Darkness and light, black and white) to represent the mixed feelings he has.
I believe with the lyrics constant use of negative and positive archetypes in one line (And it flies by day and it flies by night, There's a darkness upon you that's flooded in light) that he is talking about how in the world, most people only see the good in things or the bad (optimists and pessimists) but he himself sees both, and is "frightened by those who don't see it" as usually people lean towards one or the other.

After watching:
I think my interpretation of the lyrics still ring true for the video, although in a different way. At first, when it's nothing but an empty lot, people would look at it and see nothing but that. No room for improvement in their eyes - that part can represent pessimists. It takes until an optimist comes along, and can envision what can become of all that empty space. They turn it into a neighborhood, making it successful enough that people stay and build up from there - because now it doesn't matter if you're a pessimist or optimistic, the progress is right in front of you and undeniable. Shops, larger buildings, it's all built up into this grand city with bright lights and the smoke and mirrors that make is appear as memorable as cities such as NYC. But when things start to deteriorate, and once the city is up enough that people feel the need to tear it down, the pessimistic mind set comes back and the city is abandoned and ultimately destroyed, until it's back to it's old form of an abandoned piece of land. The video tries to say that all it takes is a bit of hope, but unfortunately most people these days don't have the ability to hold onto that anymore.

- Morgan D. Second period.

Matt Wolens said...

(listening to lyrics) The message that the singer is portraying is that there is a "darkness" inside of him. Also, the singer is saying that the "darkness" is not seen by anyone else but himself. In the song, he says that he is torn by the decisions that he either made earlier in his life, or mistakes that he might make in his future endavours. He also states that he is happy that no one else can see the " darkness" inside of him.

bballplayer3213 said...

(Listening to lyrics) I think the singer is trying to say that there is always a darkness in life that we need to get out of. That light, and happiness aren’t the only perspectives we have, sadness comes upon us with equal forces. The lyrics that best fit this was "There's a darkness upon me that's flooded in light" and "It comes in black and it comes in white meaning that you can’t really have one without the other. In this song he is comparing himself to a bird locked in a cage, and how he's locked in because of fear. That if you have a dream, it wont be able to fly and experience the world until you unlock it and let it out.
(Watching the video)While watching the video, i thought it was trying to say, at first everything can be dark and lonely, but once you make a dream happen and put yourself out there, it can turn into something greater. Such as the land, there was nothing there at first but then throughout the song it grew into a street with houses and then became greater and a city was built, but in the end there is darkness, to where the land becomes deserted again, just like it was in the beginning. I think the song and the video go well together because the video shows lightness and darkness and how things go through many changes, some happy, some sad.
-Sarah W 7-8

AmandaS said...

(Listening) I feel like the song represented the idea of dreams and the effect they have on the world. "There was a dream" was a line that particularly stood out in mind it was something that was a repeated a lot throughout the song. I also feel that the song has a negative side to it as well when the author is talking about the "darkness". I feel like the darkness is all the negative things that can be holding one back.
(watching the video) The video shows how you can take a blank canvas and build your dreams. I think that the song and the video song do match up to a certain degree. The video makes me the lyrics in a different way though. When I just heard the lyrics I did not see how it was about building up and then it all falling apart. The video made me see how the lyrics could be saying this. The artist is trying to say there are negative sides and positive sides to life and you have to move on and work for your dreams

Anonymous said...

(listening) I think that the singer is trying to explain the idea that you imagine many things in life while only some will come true. He says "there's a darkness upon me that's covered in light", this explains the idea that there is so much darkness and negative aspects of your life, but you can lighten them by thinking of your dreams. Some lines that particularly stuck out to me was "there was a dream" and "there was a kid with a head full of doubt". These lines stuck out because they really explained everyday life full of both dreams and doubts.
(viewing)The video is about something taking steps to accomplish someone's dreams. The video and the song do match up. They both give the idea of looking at the best in life and constantly thinking of your dreams, especially in hard times. The video makes me think more of the physical steps to take to accomplish goals while the lyrics make me think of the mental and emotional feelings dreams bring about. In the end, the artist is trying to show the presence of dreams in everyday life. The lyrics explain how they can fill you with hope but also tend to bring some doubts, and the video shows how each step you take in life can lead you closer to your dreams. Also that one trivial thing can lead to a much larger thing in the future.

chris said...

Listening without viewing-

The Avett Brothers are trying to explain that with all the problems he has, created by the ones that can't see the REAL problem, there is still hope, and he expresses that through ideas. "Decide what to be and go on and do it" and "Theres a darkness upon me flooded in light" really nail the heart of the song because it explains that if your going through a rough time, try to start or finish your dream.

Listening while viewing- The video shows an open space, being bought and building a small development, then expanding to a city, ultimately collapsing into nothing, and becoming how it started again. YEs they do, they show a dream being brought up, and being over run by darkness, being destroyed, but that just turns into a new opportunity.The artist is trying to say that after something bad happens, and your dream is destroyed, threes more room for another one.

Marissa Ratino said...

Listening to the song: I think that the writer is trying to express how he sees the world. That the "darkness" that is there is showing him what is wrong and what is right with the world and how he is the only that sees it so he thinks that everyone else is blind to what's happening and affecting our world without them even knowing.

Watching and listening: I think the video really helps put the song in perspective. Is shows how everything is changing so quickly and how one second something can be there and then the next, it's gone ,yet somehow no one notices. They just let the government take over without the peoples opinions.

hyellow12 said...
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hyellow12 said...

He is talking about how there is darkness and light."and I'm frightened by those who don't see it." He is talking about how some people are completely oblivious to the bad things that happen around them every day. He is talking about bringing people to the light.
The song is about the human condition and archetypes. The cycles that happen. The same mistakes over and over again. Blindness is a common theme in archetypes. The people in the video seem to just be going through the motions. This video could also reference the nature vs. mechanicalistic world. In the beginning and end of the video it was nature. Simple nature turned into the intricate city, then back to simple nature. After seeing the video I now see how it matches the song. I think the artist is trying to say that w're in a never-ending cycle, that in the end nature is better. A more simplistic lifestlye.
-Hannah 1

Maddie Kidd said...

Listening without viewing: The artist is trying to say in the song that there is a darkness around him and he is the only one that see's it. The bird in the cage wanting to be set free represents his and many others dreams being locked away. "Like a bird in a cage I broke in and demanded that somebody free it" this line represents the heart of the meaning because it shows how peoples dreams aren't coming true. The people aren't fulfilling their dreams because of everything going on around them. This is also the line that jumps out at me because it can help understand the song in more ways than one. Also the line "There's a darkness upon me that's flooded in light," because it shows that there is always bad times which is the "darkness" and the "light" means the good things in life.

Listening while viewing: The video shows how bad times happen and so do good but when these times do appear you have to continue your dreams. This song and video do match up because they both shows darkness happening and turning to light as a continuous cycle. The video help understand the song itself. The artist is trying to say to pursue dreams and make sure you know what is going on in your surroundings. The author also wants you to know that there is bad and good times and life and there is no way to control it other than just living your life.
-Maddie K

TaylorS said...

Listening: I think he is trying to say that people are always changing the world (for the worse) but some people can't see it, and he feels sorry for them. He says he can see a new world, but we are sill effected by darkness.

Watching: I think that the video shows that the world can be changed and will keep on changing, but it isn't always for the better. Like in the beginning houses were built and families could like in them, but then the turned into building and in the end they all fell down and everything went back to the way it was before.
-Taylor S 7th and 8th-

KassidyB_3rd said...

I think the artist is saying how with the happiness in our lifes there's always a darkness. And by the darkness he means with all the struggles going on and we try so hard to escape from it but just cant. With the dreams we have we try so hard to achieve them but something comes along to bring you down to the ground. With the dreams we have we keep our heads held high but unaware of the drakness around us as he says how he is frightented by those who don't see it. The line that stood out the most to me was "It comes in black and it comes in white" because i think he is trying to say that the darkness is dark in black and dark in white, no matter how we take it theres no way of color that can bring the darkness to an end. I see the video as there's a dream out there trying to overcome then finally happens and goes great then the darkness comes along and tears it down.

KassidyB_3rd said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Monyak65 said...

Lyrics: I think that the singer is saying that we need to get away from this darkness around us and if we don't that it is keeping us locked away. This is where he gets the comparison of the bird in the cage in the song. By breaking free from that cage he is able to chase his dreams and make them a reality

Lyrics and watching video: This video shows how the darkness is kind of like nothingness and that one person can change that and make it this big exciting place and that all it takes is time to do it. This is shown in the video by showing the progression from nothing to a small community to a big city.

Hunter G said...

listening to just lyrics: i think the singer is talking about how you need to make your own decisions and make the right ones instead of the wrong ones. And no matter how hard you try to get away from bad decisions they will always find you and you have to ignore them and walk away from them.

Lyrics and video: i think that the video is trying to say that change is just a part of life and how you have to deal with change for the bad or for the good.

-Hunter G

JaredS said...

listening to the lyrics...While listening to the lyrics of this song that this darkness that they wrote about is flooded by the light. So when i see this line"There’s a darkness upon me that’s flooded in light" i think of a truth that is covered in a lie. This lie is about how its written on paper "And it comes in black and it comes in white".
Watching this song... Watching this song i think as you view it it shows the story of life and how its starts off with nothing(childhood) then some houses(adolecence) then into a city(grown up life) and then the city falling apart(death.
Jared Svoboda 3rd period