Thematic Elements
The lyrics of the album's Dylanesque opening track, "To the Dogs or Whoever," contains a number of historical references, many of them to traditional American cultural and mythological figures:
- Florence Nightingale
- Calamity Jane
- Joan of Arc
- Casey Jones
- Casey at the Bat
- General George Armstrong Custer
The second verse of the song "Empty Hearts":
I'm inside with my friendsWe build fires and pretend
That the night could just bend on forever
While outside in the frost
Are the wolves and the lost
And we sing to the dogs or whoeverreferences the title of the first track on the CD, which could be read as the friends' singing that first song or singing for a canine audience. The title of the first track on the CD is never mentioned in that song's lyrics, but Ritter self-referentially uses it in the lyrics of "Empty Hearts," suggesting that the songs on the CD may have an interrelated design.
Read more about this topic: The Historical Conquests Of Josh Ritter
Famous quotes containing the word elements:
“A party of order or stability, and a party of progress or reform, are both necessary elements of a healthy state of political life.”
—John Stuart Mill (18061873)