What does I Will Not Bow mean?

Breaking Benjamin: I Will Not Bow Meaning

Tagged:   No tags, suggest one.
Album cover for I Will Not Bow album cover

Song Released: 2009


I Will Not Bow Lyrics

FALL!!!
Now the dark begins to rise
Save your breath its far from over
Leave the lost and dead behind
Now's your chance to run for cover
I don't want to change the world
I just want to leave it colder
Light the fuse and burn it up
Take...

  1. 1TOP RATED

    #1 top rated interpretation:
    anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Nov 4th 2017 !⃝

    Well, after seeing their show last night, I have to say this song is about a soldier struggling with war and after war. PTSD. Reread the lyrics with that in mind and I think you will agree. Benjamin last night made sure to specifically dedicate this song to our soldiers

  2. 2TOP RATED

    #2 top rated interpretation:
    anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Feb 1st 2011 !⃝

    Well, this is just my own interpretation, but I personally don't think the song is a happy as the 'don't give up' messege that seems to be predominant here. I think the lyrics suggest a slightly darker version of that messege.
    "Now the dark is taking over."

    Like the lines "I don't want to change the world, I just want to leave it colder." So, no wish to change that world for the better, rather the opposite, it's like 'He' (non-exsistant person who's perspective the song is from [who shall henceforth be known as 'He'], not the singer or the band themselves neccesarily) doesn't care if he has a nagetive affect on things.

    "Light the fuse and burn it up." Destructive deeds, (pyromania ftw)
    "Take the road that leads to nowhere." Even if it's totally pointless.

    I do agree with one of the previous interpretations in that is sounds like 'He' has had troubles/a hard life and has realized that he has to keep going and not just give up with his life, but when I listen to the song, I think that 'He's on a downward spiral in his life (signified by the "Fall!" parts in the lyrics), involved with possibily drugs, crime, etc. but now doesn't care and in fact has come to enjoy it,as can be seen in the line "I have lost the will to change". And his "not bowing" is more about not bowing to society's standards of right and wrong,rather than keeping up 'His' perservirance in overcoming some obstacle.

    However, I also think that not succumbing too soon to 'His' lifestyl is evident in the song in the line "I will survive." Maybe living the life 'He' does is just how 'He's trying to survive?

    In the lines:
    "And I am not proud, cold blooded, fake.
    I will shut the world away."
    I think he is challenging other people, saying they're proud, cold blooded and fake, but 'He's not, 'cause ya know, 'He's legitmately badass (what with the downward life spiral and crime, etc.). And 'cause 'He's so badass, he doesn't want to deal with all the fake people pretending they are too (because you all know they totally do! Personally, I blame too much exposure to action movies).

    With the lines:
    "I will not fall, I will not fade."
    I think it means he's not just going to go away, 'He's not the kind of problem you can just ignore or sweep under the rug. 'He's there, and He's there to stay.

    He's also maybe a little insane; "...paranoid".

    So anyway, yeah, that's what I think it's about... but... maybe I'm just getting a little carried away with my creative license??...

  3. 3TOP RATED

    #3 top rated interpretation:
    x3musicjennx3
    click a star to vote
    Oct 5th 2009 !⃝

    This song is amazing!!
    This song is about no matter how bad times get don't give in. There's always another option other than just giving in. To start something and show people just how strong you are. (Light the fuse, and burn it up) That you will prove everyone wrong and make it thru and on top.
    "I will not bow, I will not break.
    I will shut the world away.
    I will not fall, I will not fade.
    I will take your breath away."

  4. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    May 12th 2023 !⃝

    You are all wrong, I am sorry to say. This song is about Ben’s struggle with his fear of flight, darkness, and struggles with alcoholism- as this was the first album he wrote without being under the influence.

  5. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Apr 24th 2023 !⃝

    I thought it had a spiritual meaning and he's gonna shut the world away but that's just what I thought

  6. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Aug 16th 2022 !⃝

    I think this song is about the government and defying them.

    Fall- i think this is about citizens falling for the worlds governments

    Now The dark begins to rise, save your breath it's far from over- the government's dark planes and rulings causing the darkness to take over. Then you cannot say anything about it so save you breath

    Leave the lost and dead behind, nows your chance to run for cover- this would be about the high amount of police killing citizens because it was at a all time high in 1980's to 2020 and beyond

    I don't want to change the world, I just want to leave it colder- that would be about the government ruling witch would cause people to lose there stuff and be throw into a bad place.
    Light the fuse and burn it up, take the path that leads to nowhere- it would be about people trying to escape the government but they are trapped so going nowhere
    All is lost again, but I'm not giving in

    I Will Not Bow, I Will Not Break
    I Will shut the world away
    I will not fall, I will not fade
    I will take your breath away- this would be about a man that want's to defy the government and not bow to them but in doing so needs to shut himself away from the current population

    Fall!- same as before

    Watch the end through dying eyes, now the dark is taking over
    Show me where forever dies- this is about the citizen's dyeing seeing the world before they pass away which is dark and corrupt.

    Take the fall and run to heaven
    All is lost again but I'm not giving in- this would be after all is done and wanting the government to make the place a oasis but he knows it's lost so he refuses to give into the government.

    I will not bow, I will not break
    I will shut the world away
    I will not fall, I will not fade
    I will take your breath away- this would be the same as before

    And I'll survive, paranoid I have lost the will to change- this is after the government is trying to get him to change so he refuses and gets a sense of paranoia since he doesn't know if they are tying to end his life

    And I am not proud, cold blooded, fake
    I will shut the world away- this is after he gives-in a idolizes the government but feels guilty about it and hides himself away


    I will not bow, I will not break
    I will shut the world away
    I will not fall, I will not fade
    I will take your breath away- same as before only this after he feels guilty and goes back to the way he was

    And I'll survive, paranoid
    I have lost the will to change and I am not proud, cold blooded, fake
    I will shut the world away- this is what he feels like after it all he went against the government then joined them the went against them again so now he feels like a fake to the rest of the world.


  7. Rockrooster
    click a star to vote
    Nov 26th 2021 !⃝

    This song is about love in spite of all of the song's negative connotations. Every Breaking Benjamin song is about love because it is the truth. A deep meaningful love. They are about as real as you can get.

  8. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Jun 9th 2021 !⃝

    I think its about perserverence and someone fighting a war against losing odds. Of choosing the harder path and to stand up every day to fight the good fight. Even when its easier or smarter option to probably just give up and admit defeat or chose a safer path. Even when he sees the darkness rising, or maybe because of it he is determined not to bow, break or give in to the enemy, even against overwhelming forces. The line,"I'll survive, paranoid" "cold blooded fake" part is he wary of the deception of people because he has already been betrayed by someone he thought he could trust. "I lost the will to change." Means he is already set in his ways and will not change.

  9. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Dec 30th 2019 !⃝

    Honestly to me it seemed like the beginning of the song was describing the uncertainty of the world. It was released in 2009 when US was in financial turmoil. It says now's your chance to run for cover like darkness is developing and going to take over.

  10. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Dec 11th 2016 !⃝

    I believe this song is about genghis khan the emperor of mongol in the 1200s. I say that because he murdered millions. This song is saying I will not bow to his rule.

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
  11. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Nov 9th 2015 !⃝

    I think this song is about depression. They turn depression into a sort of phantom like monster that will take over. Anyone who has or had depression can relate to feeling that way.

    "Fall" is the depression speaking.

    "Now the dark begins to rise" is referring to the depression coming.

    "I don't wanna change the world. I just want to leave it colder" the depression is a monster like figure that has taken over and is now speaking through them.

    "Light the fuse and burn it up" light the fuse and burn up the life in the person who was "attacked".

    "I will not bow. I will not break." Is the victim saying how they will not give in to it.

    "I will not fall. I will not fade." Is saying that they will not fall like the depression wants them to and that they won't fade from existence.

    "I'll survive, paranoid. I have lost the will to change." Is saying that they will survive, but they will be afraid that it's going to come and get them. Thus have lost the will to change back to the free person they were before.

    "Now the dark is taking over" means that the depression is taking over.

    "Show me where forever dies" people say that they feel like they will live forever, but sometimes forever turns to a few weeks.

    "Take the fall and run to heaven" is saying at they will take the fall that the depression is shouting towards them because they can't fight it. They will ask for heaven to get them out alive.

    "And I'm not proud. Cold blooded fake." Is saying that they aren't proud that they let themselves fall. They also aren't proud that they have to act fake toward people to seem ok.

    The last fall the ends will a few seconds of quirky and catchy guitar signifies that the monster is still out there and will go attack other people.

  12. Knightofbalance
    click a star to vote
    Jul 9th 2015 !⃝

    I thinks this song portrays a person who is fighting against the world for their cause, refusing to bow before the world. They've lost faith in their cause but refuses to submit because they're too stubborn to do so.
    For that, I say kudos.

  13. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Aug 2nd 2014 !⃝

    Yo. My people. This is definstley about the Illuminati. About first couple lyrics fucking blow my mind like how y'all so blind. I love this song yo listen to the lyrics. "Now the dark begins to rise" hence the Illuminati/satanism.. Evil spirits."leave the lost and dead behind" hence people who don't believe in god or the devil and push it as just a waste of time. "Now its your chance to run for cover" hence REPENT. Yo I don't even do that shit but I love god I'm not the best Christian. But for real this isn't just a fairytale. "I don't wanna change the world" hence joining the Illuminati.. NWO."I just wanna leave it colder" hence spread/generate negative energy in the world."light the fuse and burn it all" hence your life. it has started.. It will end. Your soul is real."take the path that leads to nowhere" hence you live your life the way Satan wants you to.. And for the chorus I think he's saying he will not submit to the Illuminati."I will shove the world away" notice when he says this he looks directly into the camera. Like yo that just blew my fucking mind because what I believe falls into place. Hence he will shove the NWO away. And for you uneducated niggas it means New World Order. And when he says "take your breath away" that may be some witchcraft satanism I don't fuck with that shit whiteniggalogicdom evil shit! Send demons after yo honky ass. Hah idk really cus like I said. I don't fucks with that shit. And in the music video it shows New York City as he's walking around hence symbolyzing all the people because NYC is very populated. Then he says "Now the dark is taking over" have you figured it out yet? If not I'll still be your guide. It means the evil in the world is taking over. Look how everybody lives their life. Alchahol tobacco marijuana hard drugs all this synthetic shit now. I don't think god allows all that in heaven. Maybe a Lil weed but ehh. Anyways.. The shit ain't good. Its evil doings. Like damn man. Worlds fucked up. I'm just a young man There's a lot to learn. Keep an open mind don't believe one side of the story without hearing the other. Best of luck to you fellow traveler. You can chsnge. We all can even i have to change i know i dont live a good christian life but I like to believe I do but I know I don't its horrible. The devils biggest decieve is making you not believe. I have given you a piece of my mind. God bless.

  14. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Dec 20th 2013 !⃝

    A lot of people are saying that this song is about a bad relationship. But I always think about the Illuminati when I hear this song. I think what Ben is trying to say is that he won't let the Illuminati tell him what music to write in his career.

    Let's go to the two verses in the song. Hence the lines "Now the dark begins to rise..." The New World Order is after the band and wants them to be puppets. "...Now the dark is taking over." The Illuminati is getting closer and closer to convince them to join.

    Now let's go to the chorus. "I will not bow, I will not break" Just as he's about to fall for it, he demands them to eff off from his band. "I have lost the will to change" He's not going to change himself and his image. "I am not proud, cold-blooded fake" He's saying he's not one of those ignorant stars who only care about money.

    He has this scream during the bridge right before the guitar solo, and people think he says "Fall!", but he actually says "Open your eyes!" He's demanding us, the listeners to wake up to the fact that we've been lied to. (It's hard to notice, but it's a lot clearer when you listen to the song with his voice only. Look it up on youtube)

    Heck yeah, Breaking Benjamin is an anti-illuminati band!!

  15. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    May 25th 2013 !⃝

    I feel like it has a darker meaning. Perhaps the person singing the song went down the wrong (maybe the right?) path in life. And when things took a turn for the worse he just went with it. I've definitely had the "I don't care what happens, but hopefully it's bad" train of thought before. Maybe the song is about "we Dont need to be happy and perfect" and is more "I'm doing what I want, this is bad bring it on"

  16. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Apr 14th 2013 !⃝

    Just leaving a comment


    I'm a Christian but I've become really really really attached to this band

    I look for only the best bands out there

    Like red-skillet-three days grace-fire flight etc you name it

    I loved every single song on the album (dear agony) come to that its my favorite album

    I mean at there best

    I will not bow is crazy catchy
    So catchy that I even sing some of it

    It was just made for that movie so called (surrogates)? Right?

    Anyway according to Ben burnly this song is a about Unforgiveness

    True
    Nuf said

  17. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Jul 30th 2012 !⃝

    In this song ben writes a conversation between two people. One person is ben himself, or a person who who tries to deliver a message of hope and the second is a caricature of a person who is too headstrong and arrogant to accept help. If you know the band and where they stand it's easy to understand it. Ben is really clever in his writing, so not everyone understands the song. The band is called breaking benjamin. Ben made the band to break himself. This song is about the opposite of what they stand for. The character will not break, will not bow. They leave the world in darkness.

    The song starts out with a statement, "fall! " this conversation starts after the fall of the world.

    The first four lines are from the character or perspective of hope.

    Now the dark begins to rise
    Save your breath it's far from over
    Leave the lost and dead behind
    Now's your chance to run for cover

    After the fall dark rises, but it's not over. The voice says says leave the lost, take hope. The next four lines is the other characters reply. You'll notice ben changes his voice, it's almost a high and whiney voice.

    I don't want to change the world
    I just want to leave it colder
    Light the fuse and burn it up
    Take the path that leads to nowhere
    All is lost again, but i'm not giving in

    The character does not wish to change the state of the fallen world. He takes the path that leads to nowhere. Then the chorus kicks in, from the second perspective, the character refuses to bow. Refuses to break although he very well should. (big band culture note, they're called breaking benjamin).

    In the next verse a second chance is offered by the first voice.

    Watch the end through dying eyes
    Now the dark is taking over
    Take the fall and run to heaven

    The voice said to run to cover, run to heaven, run to home.

    Again the second character says "all is lost again, but i'm not giving in. "

    Repeat the chorus again and again. We see the character will survive, paranoid, which is no way to live. There should be a period in one of the lines. I am not proud. Cold blooded, fake. The character dodges all cares for other people, all hope to change himself or the world. Change is required to move forward, the character has fallen behind.

    The world is fallen, the character falls! After the first chorus statement, and then finally falls! Again after the last repeating chorus tantrum.

    This song isn't a good fist-shaking song to be proud of. It's a sad look at a situation that actually happens in the world made from the tender heart of writer. I think ben draws this to tell about the situation he sees and hopefully illustrate the story so others can see it and learn from it.

    To stand first you must bow. To be whole first you must be broken.

  18. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Jul 27th 2012 !⃝

    I think in my opinion this song is about 9/11 even though they said it had no connections with 9/11. it was filmed in tower 7 at the world trade center, and in my opinion the lyrics can bring the memory of what happened on that day.

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
‹ prev 12



More Breaking Benjamin songs »


 


Latest Articles

 


Submit Your Interpretation

[ want a different song? ]




Just Posted

Mad Hatter anonymous
Fire Lake anonymous
I'll Sleep When I'm Dead anonymous
We Gotta Get out of This Place anonymous
Jealous anonymous
Won't Get Fooled Again anonymous
Smokestack Lightning anonymous
True Colors anonymous
Future Love Paradise anonymous
Adios, Adios anonymous
Strangers anonymous
Possibility anonymous
Jailbreak anonymous
Sour Girl anonymous
Cornflake Girl anonymous

(We won't give out your email)