What does Torn mean?

Natalie Imbruglia: Torn Meaning

Album cover for Torn album cover

Torn Lyrics

I thought I saw a man brought to life
He was warm, he came around like he was dignified
He showed me what it was to cry
Well you couldnt be that man I adored
You dont seem to know, dont seem to care what your heart is for
But I dont know him...

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  1. anonymous
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     Oct 13th 2012 !⃝

    This song describes my past relationship perfectly. Boy meets girl. They fall crazy in love. Boy makes stupid decisions causing girl to bitch a lot. Boy hates bitching so starts to pull away this causing the girl to bitch more. This puts a end to the relationship. I can honestly say I've never been with a more manipulative person in my life. All I needed was a little care. I'm torn now seeing a guy whose perfect for me but I still miss the hell out of my ex.

  2. anonymous
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     Oct 3rd 2012 !⃝

    i dont feel this song is about rape, because i dont feel anyone begins a song praising the appearance of a man who ended up doing such a despicable thing. Also, the conversation has run dry is a very common feeling for lose of love or lose of a connection, in no way resembles a rape encounter. If the song was somehow infact about such a difficult situation i feel the artist would have spoken out about the specific meaning to help empower others in her situation. It's about love...to think otherwise may be a meer idea to those who haven't experienced the lose of such yet.

  3. anonymous
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     Jun 25th 2012 !⃝

    She was with a guy,he did her wrong and left hr she met another guy,lethim fuck her,he did her wrong as well,the first guy comes back wants to make it right but she ashamed ,she can't be how she was before because she already fucked a bigger dick,(torn). . .he to late,he should have never left,now she feels cold and naked and ripped torn on the floor.

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
  4. anonymous
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     Oct 24th 2011 !⃝

    I think she's dumped by the midget in the video whose name is Torn and now she's solo that's why the solo pops up in the end.

  5. anonymous
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     Oct 16th 2011 !⃝

    I believe this song is about rape within a relationship I've been through this and this song describes exactly how I feel

  6. LolaSays
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     Oct 14th 2011 !⃝

    Even when I was young I've always thought this was about someone she trusted raping her. She thought he was a good guy, even secretly admire this man because he showed her a side of himself that she felt privileged to know. She was shamed and upset but she didn't speak up and tried to pretend like she was indifferent but inadvertently put up a wall around her heart. Now someone else is trying to break through the wall she's placed up but she's telling him "You're a little late, I'm already torn." This line says to me that she may have once considered this new guy but the last guy she trusted hurt her so bad that she can't trust her own judgment. I know firsthand that rape can lead to feelings of shame and disgust with yourself for not being able to see what that person was capable of doing.

  7. anonymous
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     Aug 30th 2011 !⃝

    I thought I saw a man brought to life
    She watched him evolve… and believed her relationship with him had given him a new spark…
    He was warm; he came around like he was dignified
    She began to see a different side of him, a warm and caring side. He made her feel like she could trust him
    He showed me what it was to cry
    She opened herself up to him, became vulnerable, and he betrayed her… showing her real pain.

    Well you couldn’t be that man I adored
    He is no longer the person she fell in love with… he’s changed.
    You don’t seem to know, don’t seem to care what your heart is for
    He seems to be cold and uncaring

    But I don’t know him anymore
    She no longer feels close to him
    There’s nothing where he used to lie
    They’re no longer intimate or together
    My conversation has run dry
    They have nothing in common… nothing to talk about
    That’s what’s going on, nothings fine I’m torn
    Her life is overwhelming sadness, she’s not ok, she’s devastated

    I’m all out of faith, this is how I feel
    She has lost all hope
    I’m cold and I am shamed lying naked on the floor
    She feels alone, humiliated, defenseless… and at the lowest possible place
    Illusion never changed into something real
    Her perception of who he was … was wrong
    I’m wide awake and I can see the perfect sky is torn
    She’s no longer in denial and sees their relationship is broken and over
    You’re a little late, I’m already torn
    There’s nothing he can do to repair the damage…

    So I guess the fortune tellers right
    Should have seen just what was there and not some holy light
    She should have seen him for what he was from the beginning rather than trying to make him something he wasn’t
    To crawl beneath my veins and now
    He crawled under her skin… he got inside her soul… he became part of her life
    I don’t care, I have no luck, I don’t miss it all that much
    She’s trying not to show how much pain she’s in
    There’s just so many things that I can’t touch, I’m torn
    But she just doesn’t understand… and can’t put her finger on what happened… and it’s tearing her up.

    I’m all out of faith, this is how I feel
    I’m cold and I am shamed lying naked on the floor
    Illusion never changed into something real
    I’m wide awake and I can see the perfect sky is torn
    You’re a little late, I’m already torn. torn.

    There’s nothing where he used to lie
    My inspiration has run dry
    That’s what’s going on, nothings right, I’m torn

    I’m all out of faith, this is how I feel
    I’m cold and I am shamed lying naked on the floor
    Illusion never changed into something real
    I’m wide awake and I can see the perfect sky is torn
    I’m all out of faith, this is how I feel
    I’m cold and I’m ashamed bound and broken on the floor
    You’re a little late, I’m already torn

  8. anonymous
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     Jul 12th 2011 !⃝

    I think it is about religion. At least that's how I see it, that's how I relate it. I believed in Jesus, and I waited for him to come, but every prayer never received an answer. And, eventually I ran out of faith, and was killed inside, at first ashamed, but slowly I understood that it was a lie. "Illusion never changed into something real" to me, means, that Jesus never came down to save us, it was all a lie. I think this song is about religion because of the chosen words- faith, holy light, ashamed, etc.

    Don't be a hater, this is how I view this song.

  9. anonymous
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     Jan 20th 2011 !⃝

    I think she was in love with a man who she thought was perfect and she lost her virginity to him. It was all an act on his part, because once she gave herself to him he lost interest and left her. Now she's "torn", emotionally and physically.

  10. anonymous
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     Oct 7th 2010 !⃝

    I think its definitely NOT about religion.Anyway Christianity is all about RELATIONSHIP with Jesus which will never make anyone TORN, instead it BUILDS u.trust me.
    The song, in my opinion relates to her relationship with a guy whom she used to think to be nice, but then it was not like what she was expecting. She feels frustrated and hopeless and feels that her life is ruined because of him.
    "Well, you couldn't be that man I adored."

  11. anonymous
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     Jun 16th 2010 !⃝

    I wondered if the song might be about rape or other crime-- but when she says "crawl beneath my veins" I wonder if it's about heroin use.(a scenario that could stand alone or be included in a crime victim scenario, including a rape scenario.)

  12. anonymous
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     Apr 24th 2010 !⃝

    I interpret it as:
    Protagonist was led to believe in religion, most likely Christian--"I thought I saw a holy man brought to life". She was also led to believe in its sanitized image--"he came around like he was dignified". She has invested a lot of emotional stock in it.

    However, she was betrayed somehow and came to realize that the church is not what it seems. She stopped believing in its stories. "There's nothing where he used to lie". "My conversation has run dry" means she no longer engage with the church anymore.

    She now has lost faith in the church--"I'm all out of faith"..."Illusion never changed into something real." She now think the church or religion is just a sham--"The perfect sky is torn".

    So "Torn" is the tearing of the veil that hold up religion.

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
  13. anonymous
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     Apr 20th 2010 !⃝

    This song was originally written by the much edgier band Edna Swap, so I think there's a definite possibility it is about rape. She met a man she thought she was in love with, then discovered it was an illusion when he hurt (raped) her. She describes being naked, shamed, and cold after her rape. I think "torn" is a reference to a torn hymen, indicating a loss of virginity, thus the shame.

  14. retrorockerboy
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     Oct 5th 2009 !⃝

    This song is about the loss of virginity to someone a girl perhaps thought she may as well have sex with him because he seems 'good enough'. Her virginity is something special to her but because she had given up hope on finding ideal love, she gives it up to someone who she 'thought' was a man. But really he was just lustful for fornication and leaves her after she's lost her virginity. He breaks her heart by taking it away. The next man is who this song is sung to. 'Should have seen just what was there and not some holy light'. Meaning she should not have given up on her integrity and what she stands for. It's not just the sex. It's the effort, it's the self-preservation and hope. Because the next man, is 'the one'. He kind of was looking for a virgin but really doesn't mind because she's beautiful, he loves her. She's just sad about not saving it for him.

  15. anonymous
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     Oct 2nd 2009 !⃝

    I believe the song is about a mother whom has a son. Tried to raise him right and all fails. He doesn't seem to love anyone and that is hwy she is torn. Torn from the fact that she may have done everything in her power to raise him to be kind and it didn't go as planned.

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
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