Essay 18

Maddy Neff

Mr. Salsich

English 9

April 8, 2010

Heart Cooks Brain:

An Essay about One of My Favorite Songs and "The Tempest"

Music is my lifeline. Without my music, I would be in a nasty mood morning, noon, and night, because it is one of few things in my life that gives me total happiness. The song "Heart Cooks Brain", by the band Modest Mouse, is often playing on my ipod; when I am listening to this song, I turn up the volume all the way and get lost in the sound and the lyrics. These lyrics share a few ideas with those of Shakespeare's play, "The Tempest," as well.

TS Modest Mouse is one of my favorite bands because, because beneath lyrics that seem like nonsense, I often uncover meanings that match my own emotions perfectly. SD The song "Heart Cooks Brain" states "my brain's the burger and my heart's the coal." CM To me, this means that strong negative emotions can ruin someone's ability to think straight because thoughts are distorted by despair or rage. CM When a person is feeling distressed, they may feel as though their brain has been "fried" by their hopelessness, unable to function properly because it is trapped in a cage of dark emotion. SD I especially like "Heart Cooks Brain" because I know that I get frustrated when I am upset, and my emotions overtake me; I cannot think of anything but the thundercloud of hurt and worry looming over me. CM In fact, I often listen to "Heart Cooks Brain" when I feel this way, because I am consoled in knowing that I am not the only one who can't do her math homework when she is unnerved, who can't concentrate on her piano lesson when she is fighting with a friend, who can't do well on her test because she is crestfallen (apt thesaurus word). CM The lyrics "my brain's the cliff and my heart's the bitter buffalo" restate the same idea: harrowing emotions can drive a person's brain over the edge, making him or her feel confused, and I know how awful those times can be. SD The song also states "In this life that we call home, the years go fast and the days go so slow," and these words make me a bit fearful. CM The meaning that I take from them is that sometimes, we feel as though days of misery trudge forward interminably, but if we look back on those days later on, we might feel as though they we an absolute waste of life. CM When I hear those words, I try to think brightly and positively, because I do not want to look back and see that I spent precious time absorbed in my own angst. CS Modest Mouse is one of the few bands I can listen to and always love what I hear; their lyrics, especially in "Heart Cooks Brain," wholly express my own feelings in times of trial.

TS The lyrics of Modest Mouse's "Heart Cooks Brain" relate in a few different ways to the themes in Shakespeare's "The Tempest." SD The main relation I find is between the line "I push things out through my mouth, I get refilled through my ears" and the theme of listening in the play. CM Often times, when Prospero is trying to convey and important message to his daughter Miranda, he seems to believe she does not care to listen. CM He says to her "Thou attend'st not" and "I pray thee, mark me," because he feels as though his words are passing through her unheard, just as the line from "Heart Cooks Brain" expresses the feeling of being ignored; words are spoken, but they aren't heard, and they are pushed back into our minds where they stew and make worries. SD Another connection can be found in the line "The ravens and the seagulls push each other inward and outward," referring to an unending conflict between different species, or types of people. CM In "The Tempest," Caliban, the native monster, is always at odds with Prospero, the more powerful invader. CM Caliban resents Prospero for taking his freedom, and they fight over the land and who has rights to it, just as the birds in the song battle over whose patch of sky is whose. SD Also, the line "My brain's the weak heart, and my heart's the long stairs" reminds me of Miranda's reaction to the news of the king's ship lost at sea. CM She says "O the cry did knock/Against my very heart!"when she learns that the ship had been "dashed all to pieces," meaning that she felt deep sorrow for the men who had drowned in the shipwreck. CM Her grim knowledge tired out her "weak heart," making her depressed, and she was nearly reduced to tears. CS The emotional lyrics of Modest Mouse's "Heart Cooks Brain" contain many parallels to the themes and events of "The Tempest."

When my music reaches my ears, no matter what disasters are unfolding around me, I can't help but close my eyes and smile. Modest Mouse is a band whose music always makes me feel uplifted, and when "my brain's the burger and my heart's the coal," or when desolation distracts me, I can listen to "Heart Cooks Brain," and all my problems fall away. Now when I listen to "Heart Cooks Brain," I will be reminded of "The Tempest:" Prospero telling his daughter to pay attention, Caliban's feud with his master, and Miranda's sorrow for the sinking ship.

Self- Assessment

1. One writing issue I am continuing to work on: I'm still trying not to clutter up my writing with words I don't need. I am continuing to edit my writing to make it more fluid.

2. One strong point I see in this essay: In a few sentences, I used some alliteration, and I think it made my writing more poetic. I also think I connected the song to the play well, and backed up my points with good quotes.

3. One possible weak point I see: I could have made the closing paragraph a bit more interesting. I didn't really close the essay with a strong hook.