Serj Tankian - Empty Walls Song Meanings
Lyrics:
Your empty walls,
Your empty walls,
Pretentious attention,
Dismissive apprehension,
Don't waste your time,
On coffins today,
W...
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 Top Rated Interpretation
Slained
October 1st, 2007 06:44PM
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This one is pretty easy if you think about it...
First, basics. What does Empty Walls mean? It means Iraq. The "walls" representing Iraq, and they are empty because there is nothing left for us to do there. "Empty Walls".
"Pretentious adventures, dismissive apprehension" Pretentious adventures meaning "over-exaggerated adventures" meaning, it's made to seem like a "big" deal, and we truly need to be over there, but we don't. Dismissive apprehension, meaning fear, and dislike of something, (perhaps terrorists)
"Don't waste your time, on coffins today.." means that we shouldn't be over there again, and being somewhat of a 'protest' statement, saying that we don't have to be getting coffins, if we weren't over there.
"Don't you see their bodies burning..." refers to the heat in Iraq, and perhaps dying as well... "...desolate and full of yearning..." The land there is desolate (once again, empty, meaningless, nothing there)The yearning, is perhaps to go back home. "...dying of anticipation, choking from intoxication" Dying of anticipation, meaning they want to go home, badly, while choking from intoxication could be toxic material over there in iraq? (not sure on this one) or it could simply mean impurity, and injust.
Again, "I want you to see, what's behind those empty walls" refer to above, there is nothing left for us to do in Iraq.
"I left you yesterday, before you killed my family" Maybe that the soldier left his family yesterday, and was killed? I'm not entirely sure on this one..
The video, also has some meaning in it. As if not obvious, the children represent soldiers. But why children? Because parents always see their kids, grown up, or young, as small children. This was an ingenious way for Serj to put it. Last, (small meaning) When the children pulled the teddy bear down, it represented the Iraqis pulling down the statue of saddam hussein.
If you have any other interpretations of this be my guest =)
anonymous
February 12th, 2008 12:56AM
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I believe the song is more about what we see at home on the news. That the "empty walls" are simply the things we see on T.V. This is shown by how the children are preforming the war, because as we all know children are repatisious of what they see on T.V. and in their everyday life. Serj wanting us to be left behind the empty walls might mean that the government might be keeping us from seeing what is really happening over in Iraq, now I'm not completely sure on that one. Now with don't you see the bodies burning, desolate and full of yearning might mean that soldiers in Iraq are being killed and the government has "left them there"(desolate) and the soldiers just wanting to come back home (and full of yearning).
anonymous
March 1st, 2009 07:28PM
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I really think the "from behind those empty walls" refers to the media, that we should try to see what is going on over there and try to find out for our own from something other than a maybe biased TV station. Each put their own spin on what we see going on.
I believe he is for the war but wants to show people what is really going on over there. The part in the video where they break down the door and go inside and drag the kid out and spray him with silly string (kill him) is a very powerful point.
I would say he used kids just so that it would hit home more on people, seeing kids fighting and dying is a little more powerful. Or maybe that this whole war is childish? but once again some of the statements he had the kids acting out weren't childish, the car bombing, tearing down the statue.
The Marines putting the body into the coffin shows that Americans are dying, sacrificing over there. He moves it from children to the actual fact of the matter, real Americans are dying.
So in closing I would say he is trying to open peoples eyes to see it in many different points of view, if you have a wall up you can't see in that direction so you don't know what is going on over there. And the rest is just to get peoples attention of the violence and war that was going on for and our own people were dying to stop.
Maybe he just wanted to make this video so people would stop being so close minded and maybe even support our own who die for a cause instead of holding them accountable, even if you don't agree, you should still support the people who protect your life in my opinion.
anonymous
June 14th, 2009 11:06AM
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I think this song is against America/the government.
and against war.
the soldiers die for their country.
but for nothing. and the civilists have to suffer, too.
bush abused his power and the people were too stupid to admit that he was a cruel bastard.
anonymous
October 4th, 2009 09:06PM
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I believe he uses kids so we can see that this war is suppose to help are kids in the future but ironically its destroying their future and they might be young but there not stupid and can read the signs.
anonymous
October 11th, 2009 12:01PM
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The empty walls refer to the walls of a coffin. watch the video and really think about the lyrics
anonymous
October 21st, 2009 01:26AM
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When serj states "don't you see their bodies burning desolate and full of yearning" notice how he says YOU like he's talking to someone (the American citizens)like its amazing how America can't see "their bodies burning" "and full of yearning"
Also, right after he says that stanza, he states "I want YOU to see from behind those empty walls , I taught you to see from behind those empty walls" this is saying how serj is longing for you to realize the truth through the walls the gov. has put up to mask you from it (i'm guessing serj in this statement represents all the americans who realized the truth and saw through it) When "i tought you to see from behind those empty walls, serj is saying you've been literally told how to uncover the truth, but you choose to do nothing about it. Remember, this is all opinion and theres always a never right answer to lyric interpretation.
anonymous
January 22nd, 2010 02:10PM
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I beleive this song is more of a protest of the fight after a certain poit... because it highlights major events in the war such as the World trade centers and the falling of the statue of saddam... but at the same time it protests because there is no longer a reason to be there... We're fighting an "Empty' war based on what are now False pretenses "walls"
anonymous
February 19th, 2010 12:44AM
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It has to do with Iraq, but I also think it has to do with his family because he says "I used to love you yesterday until you killed my family" so from that I can think that he is talking about someone killing his family and burning them all of the dying of anticipation to die and chocking of intoxication of the smoke from the fire, and that he wants the killer put in jail
anonymous
April 13th, 2010 10:24PM
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I got an entirely different perspection. First of all, the children represent what we are passing down to our decendance. You know like they see violance and they think that thats the best solution to things.
Anywho, the two towers at the starting were representing, I'm guessing, the twin towers. I could be wrong on that.
I also think that 'I want you to be behind those emty walls' is all about how to isolate our children from violance. Again, not entirely sure.
sugar36
April 18th, 2010 10:10AM
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A bit of the lyrics is wrong it's
'I loved you
yesterday
before you
killed my family'
I think it points to all wars,but that part in particular points to the Armenian Genocide...it all points to the war events (9/11=the toy plane crashing into blocks) the Iraq war (kids breaking down door and 'killing' the child inside)
I might be wrong....but that's my opinion.
badfish32
May 18th, 2010 08:30PM
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The children represent the fact that the children that are playing war can be so innocent but grow up to do evil things like fight in the army and kill.
bcinque
June 23rd, 2010 08:45PM
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I felt that the walls were the literal walls around the Palestinian territories and that this was more about the Palestinian Israeli conflict.
anonymous
July 9th, 2010 04:13PM
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The song shows that our children think war is a game. we make toy guns and swords when in reality the idea of a gun or knife/sword is horrifying, they are designed to destroy lives and countries... By empty walls he means our lives and our ignorance to the horrors of war, and body burning is just what he says, bodies burning people killed and we fail to see that war on any scale is evil and horrible but we make games about it and songs and toys.
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