What does Lost Boy mean?

Ruth B: Lost Boy Meaning

Album cover for Lost Boy album cover

Song Released: 2016


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Lost Boy Lyrics

[Intro]
There was a time when I was alone
Nowhere to go and no place to call home
My only friend was the man in the moon
And even sometimes he would go away, too

[Verse 1]
Then one night, as I closed my eyes,
I saw a shadow flying...

  1. 1TOP RATED

    #1 top rated interpretation:
    anonymous
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    Jun 4th 2016 !⃝

    Well we all must know about the true story lines of Peter Pan's intention. You see the author of the book being J.M. Barrie wrote it about a real family overcoming their mother being severely ill with her children being a representation of the lost boys without their mother. Neverland is heaven and we can say that Peter was some kind of angel figure. Peter Pan was named after one of the sons who J.M eventually took up as his own from the three boys the woman he liked to call his friend had. He used play as his canvas finding inspiration in child play. It is all told in the true story being in "Finding Neverland."

  2. 2TOP RATED

    #2 top rated interpretation:
    anonymous
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    May 19th 2016 !⃝

    I disagree with the notions of drug abuse and suicide. The overarching theme of the song is that the speaker doesn't have a place to call 'home,' as evidenced by "no place to call home," "the town that never loved me," and "You (Neverland) are now my home sweet home." Neverland is the imaginary utopia the speaker uses to escape his harsh reality. The line "I realized I finally had a family" indicates that the speaker is either an orphan or feels unloved by his family, both attributing to a desire to substitute a false world for his true existence. "Neverland is home to lost boys like me" suggests that the speaker has witnessed the same desperate situation in many; this line and others connote a cruel neighborhood in which the speaker has been raised. I find the lines "'Run, run, lost boy,' they say to me,
    'Away from all of reality' to be especially powerful as they connect the two realms - the imagination and the reality; in reality, 'they' are really the speaker, forcing himself into the fantasy to cope with his miserable life. It is an effective and emotional message which utilizes a common literary allusion to convey the distress of an impoverished, young black man in the city. It is both sorrowful and beautiful.

  3. 3TOP RATED

    #3 top rated interpretation:
    anonymous
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    Apr 28th 2017 !⃝

    I've encountered many versions of the Peter Pan story in my lifetime. My favorite is "Hook" with Robin Williams as Peter Pan. The way I understand the story, Peter Pan is a boy who never grows up. Tinkerbell is a Fairy who helps him create his fantasy in Never Land. The Lost Boys are his friends who play with him in Neverland. Captain Hook is the evil Corporate type who, in reality, makes people's lives miserable. All in all, it is about fantasy and avoiding growing up to face this cold, cruel world. I know because I too have been accused of being a Peter Pan. I do not mind that. Anyhow, this song is very true to form and a good representation of the original meaning. I love it! Other people may read other things into it, but I like to think it is just that simple. Thanks, Peter

  4. anonymous
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    Apr 2nd 2023 !⃝

    i think it is about a transgender boy who is escaping reality and the town that “never loved me” realising he finally has a family with people who accept and love him

  5. anonymous
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    May 11th 2022 !⃝

    Let me start off by saying I have been a lost boy. I was an orphan going from foster to foster then a group home…. 14 homes in a 3 year period. I hear this song and automatically think of drugs. A lot of addicts myself included will tell you that it was finally a way of acceptance of belonging. The shadow is referring to a dark thing which is drugs…with the sweetest smile because addiction is so cunning. It refers to Neverland and being away from all reality that’s what drugs do. It numbs you from the reality of things. At least in the beginning what it started as the solution to soon becomes the problem. That’s just my interpretation I could be completely off-base but as with anything I think each of us takes from it what we need to which allows us to receive comfort from it in that moment.

  6. anonymous
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    Oct 7th 2021 !⃝

    I think it is about feeling alone or depressed. My life was kind of like this I went through a hard time and then my peter pan came into my life and now I am doing ok. My peter pan was my best friend and the captain hook was my sister

  7. anonymous
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    Apr 25th 2021 !⃝

    It is about a lonly/homeless/depressed person who cant fine the meaning of life or a reason to continue with life as it is. They ether actualy found a "peter pan" (meaning a reason to live or the meaning to life or simply found someone that loves them and is ether their home or give them an actual home etc...) or they couldnt take life and its burdens anymore and "left". In the 1 case then i would take the song literaly and put hook as the earlier thoughts and feeling of lonlyness/ depression.
    In the 2 case peter is an angle figure who took them to neverland/heaven(or what ever you belive in) and the lost boys are others who followed the same path. Hook would be the memories or satan or forbiden thoughts that enter your head uninvited.
    Some times i can relate to this song at the begining part of being alone. I know many people who are also feel alone but if you are teading this and you can relate then
    1 you are loved by if not 1 then many people
    2 suiside is not the answer and it never will be. You may think it will solve your problems and pain but in reality it only pushes even more pain and problems to the people who know and care about you. There is always at least 1 person in everyones life who cares about them. Even if you never/dont always feel it is still there. You more than likely might not belive me but ihave had a few friends think about suiside or one of their friends i never met commited suiside and i had to talk them out of it and comfort them. It always kills me mentaly when my closest friends think of suiside. It brings the people aroynd you down with you and as my mom says 'it just goes down in a neverending downword spiral'

    3 i dont know what religion you belive in or if your simply an athiest but GOD LOVES YOU AND EVERYONR ON THIS PLANET WITH IMESURABLE LOVE. HE GAVE HIS ONLY FRICKING SON TO SAVE US FROM OUR OWN SELF INFLICKED SIN/PAIN AND IF THAT DOESNT COUNT AS LOVE THEN LOVE PLAIN DOESNT EXIST!

    4 its also a very bad idea to suiside because you die and whats the fun in that.

    What im trying to say is there is no comprmize between life and death. Sure life may not be great right now but if you give it some time things will always improve.

  8. CampbellSoup
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    Feb 9th 2021 !⃝

    To me this song is about a boy that is bullied and his parents don't love him and peter pan is his own mind telling him that it will all get better. In the end the boy kills himself and "Peter Pan" is who he thinks guides him the heaven(Never Land).

  9. anonymous
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    Jun 23rd 2020 !⃝

    What I think about this song: I think neverland is heaven and Peter Pan some kind of angle figure.. Captain Hook is satan I guess since satan loves it when people are sad, scared, rude and yeah..

    I have a story based on the song. THIS IS MY OWN STORY! THIS STORY IS NOT BASED ON ANYONE!

    Once there was a boy named ( I choosed a random name ) Jack. Jack didnt had many friends at school and got bullied.. Nobody in town loved him. Hes parents were divorced and Jacks mom didnt gave him any attention and so he got in depression he was only 9.. He thought he was worthless and just a scaredy cat. One night he lay down on his bed, closed hes eyes, tried falling asleep, but suddenly, he hears a weird sound.. he opens his eyes and looks around and he sees a flying thing with wings. He gets scared but the flying thing is sitting down on his bed and say: "Don't worry, I wont hurt you! My name is Peter!".


    He got sprinkled in pixie dust and got wings so they fly away from town, to Neverland ( Heaven ). When they reached Neverland, Jack peacefully hits his feet in the sand. He meets: Tinkerbell and Wendy Darling he finally have friends

  10. anonymous
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    Apr 3rd 2020 !⃝

    My interpretation for this song could be about a person trying to find their true self and where they belong. Could also be about becoming homeless and wanting to be free. Just my thoughts but I could be wrong.

  11. anonymous
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    Nov 27th 2019 !⃝

    I think the song is about the little boy who is homeless and dies on the streets and peter pan takes him to a better place in life but captain hook are the people down below wondering what happened to the little boy. When I listen to this song I feel alsorts of emotions rush though and I think what do I want to do I want to stay or leave

  12. anonymous
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    Oct 16th 2019 !⃝

    Ive always have these dark, negative, and suicidal thoughts in the back of my head and this song definitely pull them all up afront. Like it's reminding me of all the pain ive been through, all the sadness and loneliness, and that I'll never be accepted and loved, that things will only get worse until i decided to take Peter's hand and leave this world to Neverland

  13. anonymous
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    May 1st 2019 !⃝

    I honestly think that’s it is about death. The time being alone is the person suffering. With nowhere to go being no way out of it. Man in the moon probably being quite literal. Maybe they did have some sort of fascination with the moon. I’m feeling suicide in the part where she talks about the night the person closes there eyes. They were dying and they saw an angel. (Peter pan) the talking part is probably the angel explaining what’s going to happen. (The person will die and going to heaven) never land is heaven. Sprinkling in pixie dust probably more like taking the soul away, when he told them to believe he was probably trying to comfort the person, most likely telling them that everything will be alright. The cloud of green is maybe what they saw as they were going to heaven. Beautiful destiny. (heaven) the town that never loved them was probably life or Earth. As they soared above it, the person believed that everything was going to be okay. Tinker bell, Captain Hook, and Wendy are probably family members, saying as it’s their favorite storybook. Maybe it’s about suicide or death after a terminal illness. Whichever it is, it’s definitely an A+ on hitting you in your heart.

  14. anonymous
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    Mar 11th 2019 !⃝

    This is about Corey Feldman. He went to Neverland ranch and was in a movie called Lost Boys. It is about him being lost in despair as a sexually abused boy. MJ is Captain hook.

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
  15. anonymous
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    Feb 21st 2019 !⃝

    I myself am not quite sure, but I feel as though it's an interpretation of someone who is struggling to find themselves. This may not be accurate, but as a teen myself it is a complicated process of trying to make friends, or fit in with anyone. I get the strangest feeling from the way the song is portrayed that maybe it's about a kid who has lost all of their friends, because 'she' is having trouble with her identity. Maybe 'she' feels she was meant to be a boy, and her friends and family are not excepting who 'she' wants to be. She feels lonly and unsure about life, so she takes hers. She thinks that life would be better off without her. Peter Pan is the portrayed as an angel, who takes her to 'neverland' or heaven. Where she meets the other angels and she is happy that they accept her, or 'the lost boy' for who he is. Saying he finally has a family is meaning that they accept him for who he is. Again this is just a thought and there are many others as well but I feel somehow it feels pretty accurate.

  16. anonymous
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    Jan 24th 2019 !⃝

    Some of you in the comments got it so wrong she literally has a video where she explains it... At the beginning of the first verse it shows that vibe of loneliness and kind of also showing a youthful meaning to it.. In the chorus it goes from feeling lonely to find I'm yourself.. And the second verse shows a vibe of confidence and showing that through the hardships and pain will all lead to beauty.

  17. anonymous
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    Dec 14th 2018 !⃝

    This song is a beautifully written song. It speaks to people that have troubles and turn to the only thing they think can help them. In my opinion, I think Neverland is drugs because this song is about a person trying to escape reality and the only for them to relieve their troubles is taking drugs.

  18. anonymous
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    Aug 27th 2018 !⃝

    I think its a biblical reference. She is a “lost boy” like all of us are. We are alone, until Peter Pan comes to save us (Jesus) and take us to heaven (Neverland). Pixie dust is the hy spirit. Always on the run from Captain Hook (the devil, sin, drugs, addiction- whatever). When we have the holy spirit we are free- no more loneliness. I am not super religious- but this meaning really resonates with me. Its such a beautiful song!

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