Assignment #4: Pop Culture

1. What is the song basically saying about how to live a good life? Paraphrase the main idea.

I chose “All you need is Love” by the Beatles, for its lyrics are very simple and repetitive, yet they are very deep and have a strong message within them. Whether it is a good or bad message I have yet to discover, but hopefully within my analysis I will figure out the message. The song’s message may be how to live a good life or how to live an “okay” life.
The song “All You Need is Love” is basically saying in order to live a good life all one needs is love. One can do anything in life without any trouble at all if they have love. Love is the only thing in life that a person needs to do anything. One can make, say, do, sing, learn, know, see, etc. One can do anything in life with ease, if they have love.


2. What lyrics particularly speak to that perspective? Use quotes as evidence.

The lyrics plainly say to the audience, “there’s nothing you can do that can’t be done…all you need is love,” meaning one can accomplish anything in life and live a good life if they have love. “All you need is love.” It is also said you can do anything, “its easy.” Life can be easy if you have love in your life or if one believes in love. The Beatles write in the lyrics: “you can learn how to play the game,” do they mean the game of love? Why is love titled as a game? So if love is a game, you have to learn how to play the game of love so you can “learn how to be you in time.” But I still do not understand why learning the game of love will help one learn to be oneself in time?
Although I do understand that loving yourself will help you understand yourself and that is how to live a good life. The part of this song that confuses me to the point of annoyance is that the Beatles say, “love is a game” that one must learn to play, why must love be a game? I feel love should be a feeling one has within them, about themselves and towards others and not something to toy with, or “throw around,” it can be hurtful to oneself and towards others. Which could possibly turn a good life into a bad way to live.

3. How do the video images support, re-orient, or challenge the dominant theme of the lyrics? Analyze.

The video images support the song’s lyrics in many ways. Firstly the Beatles were all wearing lightly colored clothing, some with a floral print. Giving this peaceful image, a hippie-vibe. Everyone in the video looks happy and they look like they are having fun, listening to music, singing along, and
But I believe they are missing a very important part of the message, “all you need is love,” you have to be able to love yourself before you can love others. You have to know and understand yourself, before you know how to express that emotion to somebody else. This is something they do not mention in the song and I believe it is very important to live a “good life.”

4. What else do you notice that's interesting? Look for internal contradictions, aspects of the message that resonate with other messages from the pop culture, points that connect to your own perspective, etc. Analyze squared.

In the lyrics: the word “love” is written 32 times. The couple of last lines of the song are interesting: “She loves you.” During the entire song it talks about how all one needs in life is love, but at that end they sing about how “she” loves a person. This leaves me with a few questions: 1. Who is “she?” 2. Why does “she love you?” 3. Why is this line said at the end of the song? 4. Who is this intended for? Who is meant to here this? 5. Why is it significant to the song in general? 6. Does it have another meaning or significance? Does it have a deeper meaning?
In the video: the people did not seem to be too into the song, except one guy who was singing alone. There was a group of people. A peace sign was hanging from the ceiling, along with a large structure of the Earth. It looks like this was filmed in a studio, since the camera keeps zooming in and out so the one can get a full view from all angles. Balloons, flowers, people playing stringed instruments, and people playing the trombone and trumpets; wearing light colors: purple, light blue, white, turquoise, balloons w/ the word “LOVE” written on them. Crowd bops their heads, claps their heads. Wears a flower behind his ear, smiles, and dancing. Near the end of the song people start walking around with huge signs saying, “L AMOUR V LIEBE,” “COME BACK MILLY’S,” “LOVE JIOBOV AMOR AMORE” (or something like that), “NEED LOVE?” Confetti falls and people dance as the music fades away. At the end of the video there is a picture of the world, which I guess could mean, peace on Earth, or something like that.