“These Violent Delights Have Violent Ends”
The Rollercoaster of Emotions in Romeo and Juliet and the Music of Louane and Frank Ocean
The songs “On était beau” by Louane and “Ivy” by Frank Ocean are perfect examples of the rollercoaster of emotions that come with love. On était beau examines the immediate high that comes with falling in love, and the process that ensues, whereas Ivy reminisces about the feelings in the aftermath of love.
At the start of “On etait beau”, Louane examines the joys of falling in love, but also the dangers. She sings about how when you fall in love, the other person becomes the only thing on your mind, and how you connect everything to them. “Je me réveille je pense à toi, encore sommeille je pense à toi, trop de soleil je pense à toi, c’est plus pareil, on funambule, je pense à toi, on me bouscule je pense à toi, si je recule je pense à toi” (When I wake up I’m thinking about you, again in my dreams I’m thinking about you, in the sunshine I’m thinking about you, it means me more than anything, as a Tightrope walker, I’m thinking about you, when I’m bumped into I’m thinking about you, if I retreat I’m thinking about you). In the lines, the phrase “I am thinking of you” is repeated multiple times, this repetition is significant because it si used to emphasize the obsession that comes with falling in love. This is shown in Romeo and Juliet when they are so enamored during the balcony scene that they decide to get married, despite having met each other just a few hours earlier. ”Th’ exchange of thy love’s faithful vow for mine. I gave thee mine before thou didst request it, And yet I would it were to give again.”. In addition to the obsession that comes with falling in love, these lyrics in the song depict the high that is felt after falling in love, and how everything good that happens, is associated with that person. A specific example of this in the lyrics is when Louane says “again in my dreams I’m thinking about you, in the sunshine I’m thinking about you”. Sunshine and dreams are two things that are generally thought of as happy things, and the fact that they are being associated with the loved one is important because it displays how happy she becomes after falling in love. This high of falling in love can be found when Juliet talks to herself on the balcony, and also when she exchanges vows with Romeo. As the song goes on, the high of falling in love starts to fade, until it becomes and unnoticed part of a daily routine. “Sur toute les route je pense a toi, si je m’écoute je pensea toi, l’ombre dans le doute je pense a toi, je me dégoute.” There is no part to compare this to in the play because of the speed of the whirlwind romance, that there is no time for a lull in the relationship before the fall.
In the third part of the song, the demise of the relationship is portayed. The lyrics start to associate the loved one with bad things. “Tu sais j’étouffe je pense a toi, quand je t’écoute je pense a toi, je perds mon soufflé je pense a toi, au bord du gouffre, encore un soir je pense a toi, j’ai le cafard je pense a toi, dans le brouillard je pense a toi, je veux pas y croire”, (If I lose my breath I’m thinking about you, At the side of Abyss, One more night I’m thinking about you, I’m sad I’m thinking about you,Under the fog I’m thinking about you,I can not believe it all) In a way, these lines mirror the emotions Juliet feels after finding out that he has killed her cousin, she begins to see Romeo in a negative light, and not as the angel he once was for her. “O serpent heart hid with a flow’ring face! Did ever dragon keep so fair a cave? Beautiful tyrant, fiend angelical! Dove-feathered raven, wolvish-ravening lamb! Despisèd substance of divinest show! Just opposite to what thou justly seem’st, A damnèd saint, an honorable villain. O nature, what hadst thou to do in hell When thou didst bower the spirit of a fiend In mortal paradise of such sweet flesh? Was ever book containing such vile matter So fairly bound? O, that deceit should dwell. In such a gorgeous palace!”. Although Juliet still sees Romeo as ‘beautiful’ and ‘honorable’ she also sees him as a ‘tyrant’ and a ‘villain’ who killed one of her beloved family members. Juliet’s conflicting emotions show very clearly in these lines, as she calls Romeo a “Dove-feathered raven” and a “wolvish-ravening lamb”. She is uncertain as to whether she should be insulting him because he killed her cousin, or defending him because he is her husband.
The chorus of “On était beau” is crucial in depicting the dangers of falling in love. “On était beau, pourtant on accélérait sans freins, on s’aimait trop qu’on s’aimait bien, on etait beau souvent, quand on souriait pour rien, on s’aimait trop, on s’aimait bien”. One line that really sticks out in these lyrics is “on accélérait sans freins” (We were beautiful, However we were accelerating without brakes, We loved each other too much, To love each other well) because it perfectly describes the whirlwind romance that occurs between Romeo and Juliet.
Although the overall theme in the song Ivy is about friendship, the chorus is about love and can relate closely to Romeo and Juliet. The chorus mirrors the balcony scene, where Romeo and Juliet proclaim their love for each other, and dream about their future together. “I thought that I was dreaming when you said you loved me, the start of nothing I had no chance to prepare I couldn’t see you coming”.
All in all, these songs relate to Romeo and Juliet, each in their own way, by relating to many different parts of the play.
Abstract
When writing this, I planned on examining the rollercoaster of emotions that Romeo and Juliet go through, in comparison to songs that have come out in recent years. My main way of connecting themes was by finding major scenes in the play that could relate to different lyrics in the songs.
