Bohemian Rhapsody Essay Examples

Introduction

Among the bestselling UK singles that have withstood the test of time is Bohemian Rhapsody, which topped the charts throughout the globe. Some of the countries where this song had an effect include the United States, Australia, Netherlands and many other countries. Let us turn our attention from having a myopic analysis of the song and take a deeper look at what the sale of this song being so huge and what it means. It translates to the fact that many people formed a connection to the song. For a long time, it has been the people’s choice of entertainment. The fact that the song has withstood the effects of time is because of its ubiquitous nature which ensures that the song retains its relevance as days go by. Comparing this song with its counterparts, it is unique from the others but not in terms of instrumentation. Come to think about the whole song and one may picture it as bizarre or rather unpredictable, but how did the song achieve such a global-wide acknowledgment and approval? The essence of this essay is to look at the song and see the poetic elements that the song utilized to make it that popular.

Discussion

The song uses the meaning to lure the audience into listening to it. It is arranged in story form to give the listener a complete story and its arrangement into episodes which tell an interconnected story make it an even more efficient poem. It provides the listener with a platform to analyze the story that is presented and from the angle that one hears. “Is this the real life?” this is the question that the song begins with and line by line the audience can pick up the episodes that the song is giving off one by one. By so doing, the interest of the audience is one hundred percent, which is the target of the poem and the reason it starts with such a powerful line. The episodic type of form it takes manipulates the listener into giving the full attention to the song all in a bid to get the entire song and later on decipher the meaning (Mays 76).
The song speaks of a letter by the poet to his mother saying his goodbyes after feeling dejected and rejected not only by his mother but society. He is also from a poor family, and he thinks that could be the reasons that he feels the people do not love him. The reason he gives us for this rejection is given by the confession to his mother that he had just killed someone: a man by the fact. This could explain the fact that he is feeling rejected in that society, and it is no wonder he gives his goodbyes. These are the reasons he is begging his mother to let him go as he does not belong anymore. He asks his mother not to worry, and that is why he says if he does not return by the same time the next day, she should live on as if he never existed. The entire song is one filled with emotion as the poet describes himself as a worthless entity (he says he is easy come easy go) which means he has no significance to anyone. He lowers his self-esteem and asks the mother to live on. His conscience is eating at him, and he feels it is time to move on. The emotions come in because of the goodbye aspect of the song which appeals more to the feelings of the audience (Bohemian Rhapsody Lyrics).
Structure and repetition have been an aspect that the song took great consideration. It is a known idea that for most songs that attain worldwide success, it may be because they utilize a familiar formula for the structure of the song. The song has eleven stanzas which make it a very long poem. A variation of the verse or chorus is what is in use greatly. This means that the verse leads into a repeated chorus which ends up being a climax. Normally, songs will utilize a build and release formula. It will be significant to note the fact that utilizing any of the formulae is not something that can be attributed to the song being good or bad. Rather, songs which utilize basic conventions familiar with the audience is much more preferable. The repetition in use here contributes greatly to the rhythm of the poem which gives the song a familiar beat to the audience making attracting the attention of the audience. The structure of the song has paved way for rhyme which also gives the song rhythm important for the free flow of the poem (Mays 833). The rhyme scheme of the first stanza, for instance, is “abab” which shows that it is an element that is under the utilization by the song.
The song has also greatly utilized the length aspect as a poetic element. It is organized into stanzas which have the introductory line which is rather catchy. The first stanza starts with a rhetoric question which is: is this real life? This line appeals greatly to the mind of the audience as he or he will try to comprehend along the poet’s line of thought. This will then raise the level of curiosity of the listener who will then be keener. The organization of the song into stanzas with very great introductory elements makes it a piece that can capture the attention of almost anyone (Mays 729).
Conclusion

Works Cited

Bohemian Rhapsody Lyrics. (n.d.). Retrieved February 11, 2015, from http://www.lyricsfreak.com/q/queen/bohemian rhapsody_20112599.html
Mays, Kelly J., Ed. The Norton Introduction to Literature. 11Th Ed. New York: Norton, 2013.