Seventeen by Marina Lyrics Meaning – The Bittersweet Anthem of Coming of Age
Lyrics
But the melody went stale
Musical cacophony let
Eensy Weensy spider free
You’re a rich little boy
Who’s had to work for his toys
You’ve got all the sensibilities
Of an upper class guy
No I’m not your little slave
No I don’t twist and turn that way
Only got bad things to say
You’re always asking what is up with me
Could never tell you what happened
The day I turned seventeen
The rise of a king and the fall of a queen
Seventeen, seventeen
Oh, you are embarrassed of me
‘Cos I use my tongue freely
Bet you wish I couldn’t speak
‘Cos when I do, you know
I tell you why you’re being weak
You want a hassle free life
Go get your upper class wife
Oh, she’s got all the personality
Of a lemon that has been
Truly sucked dry
You teach me how to behave
I felt you question the way
I was brought up as a baby
Well you don’t know fuck about my family
Could never tell you what happened
The day I turned seventeen
The rise of a king and the fall of a queen
Seventeen, seventeen
Never fell down like a princess
I used to kid myself in this stress
That it was just how things
Were meant to be
Oh, seventeen, seventeen.
The transition from youth to adulthood carries weight that often goes described but seldom understood. Within the threads of Marina’s ‘Seventeen,’ listeners find a tapestry rich with the colors of rebellion, the stains of indignity, and the calm of self-acceptance. This is a ballad that captures more than a single story—it’s a mirror held up to the sulking face of coming of age.
Through a blend of sardonic wit and raw narrative, Marina delivers a potent message that captures the dizzying rush of adolescence and the jolting halt of hard-won experience. Let’s dissect the lyrics of ‘Seventeen,’ an ostensibly simple number that veils a complex, nuanced heart under its pulsing rhythms.
Between the Lines: The Dark Fairytale of Adolescence
By invoking the eeriness of a ‘Musical cacophony’ and the freedom of ‘Eensy Weensy spider,’ Marina beckons us into a twisted nursery rhyme. Her words connect the innocence of childhood tunes to the discord that arises in the teenage years, signaling the descent from carefree days into the chaos of maturity.
‘The rise of a king and the fall of a queen’ not only implies a pivotal event in the singer’s life but also illustrates the crowning of responsibility over the dethroning of naiveté. Seventeen is often the age where societal expectations begin to tighten their grip, shaping us into roles we are expected to play well beyond our adolescent years.
An Upper-Class Dissection and the Sting of Satire
Marina’s lashings at the ‘upper class guy’ and his counterpart with ‘the personality of a lemon that has been Truly sucked dry’ speak to a sarcastic derision of wealth and privilege. Her lyrics expose a yearning for authenticity in a world where status often dictates human worth.
The biting commentary, eloquently pointing out the hollowness of those who value status over substance, resonates as an anthem for those who find themselves out of step with the superficial values imposed by hierarchical structures.
Standout Stanzas: The Lyrics That Echo
‘You want a hassle free life / Go get your upper class wife’ is not just a standout phrase for its comedic bite—it also holds the mirror to a lack of depth that Marina refuses to abide by. Her blunt dissection of character, challenging the notions of an easy life, rounds out the portrait of a young woman defiantly carving out her authenticity.
When Marina sings, ‘You teach me how to behave / I felt you question the way / I was brought up as a baby,’ there emerges a clear criticism of societal norms and the policing of female behavior and upbringing, urging listeners to consider the deeper implications of such moralistic judgments.
The Secret Symphony of Seventeen’s Hidden Meanings
Beneath the surface of a seemingly straightforward rock tune lies a deeper melody—a metaphor for the hidden, turbulent undercurrent that accompanies the transition into adulthood. Marina poetically encapsulates the personal revolution one undergoes at seventeen, where childhood ends, and adult expectations loom dangerously close.
This song is a sanctuary for the misunderstood, the judged, and the rebelling spirits being molded by external pressures. It is a subtle call to arms to reclaim individual narrative from the expectations of those who ‘don’t know [expletive] about my family’ or anyone else’s, for that matter.
Marina’s Unapologetic Climax: The Legacy of Seventeen
As the chords of ‘Seventeen’ fade away, what lingers is the enduring spirit of the fight against conformity. Marina’s homage to the pains and power of growing up captures the transformative turmoil that defines an epoch that can only be understood in retrospect.
The sharp-tongued yet heartfelt testament wrapped up in ‘Seventeen’ speaks to both personal evolution and the societal tremors felt when one refuses to play by the unwritten rules. Marina does not just sing a song; she breathes life into a rite of passage that will continue to resonate with anyone who remembers the sting and the thrill of those tumultuous years.
