Option #2
While reading, “The Anatomy
of Desire” by John L’Heureux, I came up with a few songs that I think go well
with the plot, characters, and emotion of the scenes. After each scene I
covered, I paused to find the right song before moving on. I did this to pick
songs that would appropriately portray the characters and events at that moment,
without any prior knowledge of subsequent events.
“The Weeping Song” by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
This
song starts out with a slow beat of the piano, into a deep male voice. This
song would play during the opening scene, where Hanley is walking around the
hospital searching for someone to love him. The lyrics, “this is a weeping song,
a song in which to weep,” fits the sad, lonely mood of the main character as he
mopes through the corridor.
“Hatchet in the Teeth” by Xander Harris
The
next song goes quite well with the next scene of the book, which is a flash
back to how Hanley lost his skin. In this part of the story, the narrator talks
about how Hanley gets captured by the enemy and dragged to their general. This
song is just instrumental, and has a spooky sound that something bad is about
to happen. Hanley’s encounter with the general is very bizarre and fits the synthesized
sound of the song.
“Careful With That Axe” by Pink Floyd
During
the next gruesome scene, where Hanley is hung up on a stripping post and
stripped of his skin, I chose this very creepy Pink Floyd song. The act of
skinning someone, I assume, would take a long time, and therefore the slow
tempo would match the methodical task. The song contains faint screaming or wailing
sounds that could further intensify the painful scene. Lastly, the whispers of “kill,
kill”, followed by laughter is repeated right before the climactic part of the
song. I imagine the disturbing general watching from afar, laughing and
enjoying the sight of Hanley’s torture.
“Possession” by Sarah McLachlan
Hanley so
deeply desires the love from his nurse, and so the next song’s lyrics talk about
a person going through similar issues. The words “would I spend forever here, and
not be satisfied” remind me of the sadness he feels about his appearance and
the fact that no one will love him. The song continues to talk more about this
person’s obsession for the other and how their “… body aches to breathe your breath;
your words keep me alive.” Hanley finally gets the affection of the nurse, and
she has become infatuated with him. She tells him she can’t live without him,
which makes this soft love song a perfect fit for both characters at this point
in the story (L'Heureux 341).
“Something I Can Never Have” by Nine Inch Nails
The story
ends with Hanley feeling unfulfilled after he “possesses” the nurse. He is
forever searching for something that he can never have back, which is his skin.
This song expresses the emptiness and hopelessness that his character is
feeling. Once again the slow piano melody, accompanied by the creepy voice and
lyrics of Trent Reznor, makes this song an ideal fit for the story.
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