Thoughts on how to approach the page:
1) Read the lyrics the way they were originally laid out in the song
2) Read top to bottom, column by column.
The second way enables you to read it like it's a narrative, a more proper way to envision this assignment.
How to Save a Life by The Fray
| Step one you say we need to talk He walks you say sit down it's just a talk He smiles politely back at you You stare politely right on through Some sort of window to your right As he goes left and you stay right Between the lines of fear and blame You begin to wonder why you came | Where did I go wrong, I lost a friend Somewhere along in the bitterness And I would have stayed up with you all night Had I known how to save a life |
| Let him know that you know best Cause after all you do know best Try to slip past his defense Without granting innocence Lay down a list of what is wrong The things you've told him all along And pray to God he hears you And pray to God he hears you | Where did I go wrong, I lost a friend Somewhere along in the bitterness And I would have stayed up with you all night Had I known how to save a life |
| As he begins to raise his voice You lower yours and grant him one last choice Drive until you lose the road Or break with the ones you've followed He will do one of two things He will admit to everything Or he'll say he's just not the same And you'll begin to wonder why you came | |
| Where did I go wrong, I lost a friend Somewhere along in the bitterness And I would have stayed up with you all night Had I known how to save a life | Where did I go wrong, I lost a friend Somewhere along in the bitterness And I would have stayed up with you all night Had I known how to save a life How to save a life How to save a life |
| Where did I go wrong, I lost a friend Somewhere along in the bitterness And I would have stayed up with you all night Had I known how to save a life | Where did I go wrong, I lost a friend Somewhere along in the bitterness And I would have stayed up with you all night Had I known how to save a life How to save a life |
| The first time I heard this song it just stuck with me. I never really paid much attention to the lyrics besides the obvious 'How to Save a Life' line. Of course, it made itself permanent in my memory with my grandmother's passing shortly thereafter, in which I unconciously chose different sentences of the song and pasted them together to put my own mental twist on it. Of course, now that you actually look at the words and try to make sense, it obviously has a different connotation. I first believed that maybe the song was first about a couple breaking up (ending their relationship), however with help of their video, it's easy to see how the song describes the general environment whenever there's a clash between two people arguing over something that's potentially life-altering. That's a mouth-ful, but basically what I mean is that this song can be applied to a father trying to talk to his daughter, or a girlfriend discussing a bad habit with her boyfriend, or a married couple trying to discuss their issues without one walking out. |
| The song has an obvious mellow tone, yet upbeat at times. You can see how the song not only can refer to an unsuccessful attempt at a conversation mentioned above, but also can signify a successful version with its upbeat melody on the chorus. It's just really hard to describe a song's atmosphere when it can be used in television shows for both happy moments, moments of epiphany, and sad moments. |