The song tells the story of two characters - a "ragged man" and a "lovely soul" - who are stuck in the past. The chorus encourages the listeners to "wake up" and move on from past hurts in order to live brighter, more fulfilling lives. It suggests leaving behind sadness and darkness from what was lost. While the characters physically left their relationship, they still dwell on it mentally. The bridge expresses concern for the "lovely soul" and insists it's time to heal from the past. The final chorus directly addresses the listener to wake up, see clearly, and come alive by moving forward. Overall, the lyrics convey the message of overcoming heartbreak and moving on to find new meaning and happiness

1. Initial impressions, and lyrical
analysis
Wake up! (You could do much
better)

2. There once was a ragged man
Who was not just a tyrant
He would take, but sometimes he'd give
something back
Then there were the ones that loved him so
They would get emotional
When they thought of all the things that they
should have had
Oh isn't it sad?
You can pull it back, if you just...
Wake! Up!
You could do much better if you
Wake up
You're life would be much brighter
With your eyes wide
And a spirit that's alive
Oh don't you think it's time
To leave the past behind?
There once was a lovely soul
Into the wilderness she'd go
'Cos there was nothing here that could hold
her back
In the darkness she would find
It's not as bad as what lay behind
She'll pull it back, she'll pull it back
If she...
Wakes up
She could do much better if she
Wakes up
Her life could be much brighter
With her eyes wide
And a spirit that's alive
But oh the sadness of all those times
And all the touches
She left...
...but in her mind
Oh lovely one
Oh you're beautiful
Oh there's more than this
Are you alive?
Wake up
Time can be a healer if you
Wake up
You can see much clearer
With your eyes wide
And a spirit that's alive
If you wake up
You can do much better if you
Wake up
You're life could be much brighter with your eyes
wide
And a spirit that's alive
Oh don't you think it's time

3. Verse 1
There once was a ragged man
Who was not just a tyrant
He would take, but sometimes he'd
give something back
Then there were the ones that
loved him so
They would get emotional
When they thought of all the things
that they should have had
Oh isn't it sad?
You can pull it back, if you just...
Lexical set of emotions
These two ideas are
oppositional- “tyrant”
connotes power which is
traditional associated with
money and wealth, which
the adjective “ragged”
directly opposes this.
Lexical set of
possession
vs.
There is a contrast between the idea of emotions and the idea of the material. If taken literally, this
could mean that the “ragged man” chooses material wealth over emotional wealth. But if this is the
case, why is he described as ragged? That reading of the lyrics does not seem to be much sense to me.
However, if we take it that the material is actually an allegory for the emotional, the impression that the
audience is given is that it is not wealth , or power that he is lacking- but emotion. In this sense, we can
perhaps interpret “the ones who loved him so” as partners, and “things they should have had” as
successful relationships. I feel that this is a much more interesting, much more subtle reading of the
text and I would do better to pursue this perspective.
Conditional clauses “sometimes” and “should”
indicate variability and instability, with the
exception of the final line, in which the
conditional clause “if you just” is juxtaposed
with enjambment which introduces the
prospect of a possible alternative to the ragged
man’s current state.

4. Chorus
• Wake! Up!
You could do much
better if you
Wake up
You're life would be
much brighter
With your eyes wide
And a spirit that's alive
Oh don't you think it's
time
To leave the past
behind?
The chorus really reveals a great deal of the meaning : it ultimately
expresses the idea that by letting go of whatever holds you back- (“leave
the past behind.”) you can move on in life, and be happier. The idea of
having your “eyes wide” connotes seeing beyond your problems and your
past, and unburdening your soul.
I had mentioned this in my analysis of the first verse, but I feel that this
could perhaps be applicable to the idea of a broken relationship, and
moving past it.
Exclamatory sentences
used to mark a change in
pace- could potentially
use to mark progression
of narrative in video.
Modal verb “could” again constructs
possibility of alternative.
“Wake up” “Eyes wide” “spirit that’s alive-idea of
being completely awake; living life to its fullest- as
opposed to simply going through the motions.
Rhetoric question
creates a gentle tone-
gives the impression
that the performer is
guiding the audience
towards a better life.

5. Verse 2
• There once was a lovely soul
Into the wilderness she'd go
'Cos there was nothing here
that could hold her back
In the darkness she would
find
It's not as bad as what lay
behind
She'll pull it back, she'll pull
it back
If she...
“Nothing here that would
hold her back”- is this
positive or negative?
Implies that her life was
empty, that she did not
have any ties to anyone or
anything. I don’t think
this is positive.
“Lovely soul- a personality that is the
binary opposite to the ragged man.
Structural parallelism reflects
first verse- gives the
impression of two parallel
narratives. Opportunity for me
to link the two here; perhaps
through the idea of a
relationship?
This verse acts as a continuation of the theme of leaving,
but not in the same positive sense as stated by the
vocalist. In this case, it’s more of an idea of leaving
because you have been hurt than leaving because there
are better things ahead. There is also the idea that
though there is a kind of resolution in running away
from pain, that the resolution is “darkness” which is a
binary opposite to life that could be much “brighter”-
which is the resolution that the vocalist proposes in the
chorus.

6. Chorus 2
• Wakes up
She could do much better if
she
Wakes up
Her life could be much
brighter
With her eyes wide
And a spirit that's alive
But oh the sadness of all
those times
And all the touches
She left...
...but in her mind
Continuation of verse two
narrative- counters the idea that
being surrounded by darkness or
nothing is better than what had
been left behind.
Up until this point, the second
chorus had been structurally
identical to the first chorus. Here,
however, is an elaboration which
reveals some more of the
narrative- “And all the touches she
left” conforms to the idea that it is
relationship that she left behind-
for “touches” act as a metaphor for
this.
The connective “but” here
indicates that although
she might have physically
left the “touches” behind,
she still dwells on them
mentally.

7. Bridge
• Oh lovely one
Oh you're beautiful
Oh there's more than this
Are you alive?
Wake up
Time can be a healer if you
Wake up
You can see much clearer
With your eyes wide
And a spirit that's alive
Term of endearment- loving,
gentle tone. Can I present the
vocalist in this way? Possible
means of constructing star
image.
The idea that time can be healer is
linked to the idea of old wounds
healing with time- this is a phrase
commonly used as a metaphor for
emotional pain.
Enjambment on the second line gives the
impression the third line “Wake up” is an
imperative- here, the vocalist becomes more
insistent in her advice.
Rhetoric question- expresses concern . Additionally
describes something of the girls’ character or attitude:
sad, and lost.

8. Final chorus
•
If you wake up
You can do much better if
you
Wake up
You're life could be much
brighter with your eyes
wide
And a spirit that's alive
Oh don't you think it's
time
You came alive?
This chorus acts as a reinforcement of the
message. Structurally and lyrically, it is nearly
exactly the same to the two previous chorus
with the exception of the fact that the
repetition of the pronoun “ you” indicates that
the performer is directly addressing the
audience. In this way, the performer creates a
bond with the audience, and the message
which has been addressing fictional character
throughout now has a very real level of
relevancy to the listener because the song
becomes about their lives.

9. Overall conclusions...
• I would conclude that the lyrics express a couple of
key ideas, some more subtle than others. The main
message of the piece is the idea of moving on, and
seeing beyond the problems in your past.
• On a more subtle level, the narrative seems to
express the characters moving on from a
relationship, possibly with each other. This is
absolutely a narrative I could work towards
presenting in my video; and one which is very well
suited to the indie genre in which relationships are a
common theme.