Here In The Real World Essay, Research Paper

The Real World

In today s society the music industry bombards the public with songs containing various subject matter. Each song pertains to a different subject and each song has numerous meanings. All though every song means something diverse, we generalize and assume every style of music has to do with certain subjects. When we think of rap, we assume the song will have something to do with sex, drugs, gangs, and/or violence. When we think of country music, we automatically assume the song will have something to do with broken relationships, pick-up trucks, cowboys, beer and/or dogs. Even though this is the case some of the time, it is not the case all of the time. In country artist Alan Jackson s song, Here in the Real World, the issue of lost and broken love is discussed, but it goes further into the idea of love and how Hollywood and broadcasting portray the way relationships should be.

In the first two lines of Jackson s song, he states some of the greatest assumptions of country music listeners everywhere, Cowboys don t cry, and heroes don t die/Good always wins, again and again. (lines 1-2) In today s media, the general idea is cowboys are tough and show no emotion, heroes live on and are never forgotten, and those who do right are always prosperous. When in the movies has the audience ever seen the good guy die? Does Batman ever lose to The Joker or Penguin? Does Marshal Dillon ever lose to the outlaws? No, the good guy never loses and is never circum to the forces of evil. The images of the big, tall, strong, heroic man have been ground into the public s mind. Young boys grow up thinking in order to get the girl and be prosperous in life they must resemble something of the likes of Zeus.

The song continues on to say Love is a sweet dream that always comes true/Oh if life were like the movies, I d never be blue. (lines 3-4) Once again, this speaks of the way love is stereotyped in life and the media. Love and relationships are supposed to be never ending bonds between two people. Most of the time, in movies and on television, love makes it through thick and thin and survives all. However, this is not the case in the real world. Love has its ups and downs, does not always survive, and hearts get broken. In addition, most of the time, the movies portray love and sexual relationships to be between two heterosexual adults. Again, this is not always the case. In real life, boy + girl is not the only way love works.

In the chorus of Jackson s song, the reality of love is clearly stated. But here in the real world/ It s not that easy at all But one thing I learned from you/Is how the boy don t always get the girl/Here in the real world. (lines 5-6, 10-12) These lines state life in its truthfulness. So many times, the media makes love seem like a game a person can never lose. Boy meets girl, boy and girl fall in love, boy and girl live happily ever after, etc. Through this portrayal of love and relationships, people assume a state of mind that all is well and all will turn out as they have planned. This is not the case. Love is a game, true, but love is a game where there is no rulebook and almost everything goes. Yes there are unwritten rules to love, but there is no set guide to how the game should be played. The media portrays love as one big happy , where the steps are laid out in an easy how-to guide, where all one has to do is follow the directions and within four to six weeks he/she should be happily coupled with the mate of his/her choice. No. This is not the way things work, and Jackson does a wonderful job of explaining this in his song.

Looking further into the game of love, the objectification of owning the girl or woman is brought up. In lines 10 through 12, Jackson states But one thing I ve learned from you/Is how the boy don t always get the girl/Here in the real world. Why is it that in the media, the man is always assumed to pursue the woman or make the final decision on which woman he will go after? Does the woman have no say in her man? Is she just supposed to take whichever man views her as a worthy mate? This is a highly unlikely assumption to love and relationships. As Jackson says, the boy doesn t always get the girl. There are times where the boy is not always worthy of the girl. Maybe she finds him to be a complete incompetent fool, or maybe she just doesn t like his hair. Whatever the reason, boy does not always get his beloved prize; girl.

In all, the media does a splendid job of showing the world the happy, unhampered, joyous way life could/should be. However, life is not always a lighthearted relationship playground and things do go wrong. These points are well clarified in Jackson s song, Here in the Real World , and the audience is reacquainted with the things that can and most likely will go wrong with love.

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