Hannah Labonte
10/24
Period A
Tonal Analysis
“Strawberry Fields Forever”- The Beatles
Let me take you down
Cause I'm going to Strawberry Fields
Nothing is real
And nothing to get hung about
Strawberry Fields forever
Living is easy with eyes closed
Misunderstanding all you see
It's getting hard to be someone
But it all works out
It doesn't matter much to me
Let me take you down
Cause I'm going to Strawberry Fields
Nothing is real
And nothing to get hung about
Strawberry Fields forever
No one I think is in my tree
I mean it must be high or low
That is you know you can't tune it
But it's all right
That is I think it's not too bad
Let me take you down
Cause I'm going to Strawberry Fields
Nothing is real
And nothing to get hung about
Strawberry Fields forever
Always know sometimes it's me
But you know I know when it's a dream
I think I know I mean a "Yes"
But it's all wrong
That is I think I disagree
Let me take you down
Cause I'm going to Strawberry Fields
Nothing is real
And nothing to get hung about
Strawberry Fields forever
Strawberry Fields forever
Strawberry Fields forever
Shifting from a sad orphan boy, to a happy boy The Beatles by utilize naturalistic imagery, hopeful lyrics,and first-person narrative to convey the hopeful, yet solemn tones that “nothing is real, and nothing to get hung about” in the Strawberry Fields..
The song “Strawberry Fields Forever” which is originally about John’s real life as a child. When he was a child he would go down to the “Strawberry Fields” to get away from his home life. He lived as an orphan and the lyrics convey that the “Strawberry Fields” was a safe spot for him. The Beatles use naturalistic imagery in the verse “No One is in my tree I think” “I mean it must be high or low” This uses imagery and demonstrates the tone of happiness the boy is feeling. The boy is happy because he is alone and “Living is easy with eyes closed”. Meaning if he shuts his eyes to all of the bad things that are happening outside of the “Strawberry Fields”, Life will be easy.
The Beatles distribute great use of hopeful lyrics throughout the song “Strawberry Fields Forever”. They show that in the “Strawberry Fields” everything is good and nothing bad can, or is happening in the outside world. In the verses “It’s getting hard to be someone but it all works out” “It doesn't matter much to me”. This shows a hopeful tone of lyrics because even though it is hard to be someone, they still have hope that “it all works out”. In the verse “I mean it must be high or low/That is you know you can't tune it/But it's all right/That is I think it's not too bad”. This shows a hopeful tone as well. The Beatles are showing a hopeful tone saying that It is “all right” and that they think it’s “Not too bad” when they are in the Strawberry Fields.
A first person narrative is used throughout the whole song. The artists are singing the song to an audience and also include themselves in the lyrics to show that they are the character in their story. The Beatles use words such as “Me, and I’m” to show that they are the protagonist in the story of the song. “It doesn’t matter much to me” “Let me take you” “No one I think is in MY tree” These are all showing first person narrative that also convey a hopeful tone. It also shows a solemn tone because the boy has to go to this place to feel safe, and feels that everyone should feel as safe as he does.
The Beatles have a great way of using their tone to make the song into a good story to listen to. The first person narrative is a good attribute to the tone because it shows how the character was exactly feeling at the time.Their use of hopefully happy and solemn tones all help to show that when you go to the "Strawberry Fields" everything is alright.
