thinking about words

 The Beatles - I Am The Walrus what was the meaning of this song ? https://youtu.be/HdoYM8MaD78?si=RA9MMWfGMK0ZRTbe it seems silly with the words, and deep with the message

You hit the nail on the head: "I Am The Walrus" is famously both silly and deep by design. Written primarily by John Lennon and released in 1967, the song was a deliberate, psychedelic prank meant to mock people who overanalysed The Beatles' lyrics. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]

The ultimate meaning of the song is a protest against looking for meaning. [1]

1. The Backstory: Trolling the English Teachers

Lennon received a letter from a student at his old high school, Quarry Bank High School for Boys. The student mentioned that their English teacher was having the class drily analyse and decode Beatles lyrics like classical literature. [1, 2, 3]

Amused and annoyed, Lennon decided to write a song so packed with arbitrary imagery, nonsense words, and convoluted references that it would be entirely impossible to interpret. He famously told his childhood friend, Pete Shotton, "Let the f*ers work that one out!". [1, 2, 3]

2. How the "Silly" Words Were Made

Lennon stitched the song together from three different fragments he had been working on: [1, 2]

• The Siren: He heard a police siren outside his home and wrote the rhythm of "Mis-ter cit-y p'lice-man" to match it.
• The Garden: A brief, peaceful rhyme about sitting in his English garden.
• The Cornflake: A surreal line about sitting on a cornflake waiting for a van. [1, 2]

He then threw in childhood nursery rhymes ("Yellow matter custard, green slop pie"), inside jokes about friends, and pure gibberish like "goo-goo-g’joob" to maximize the confusion. [1, 2, 3]

3. The "Deep" Undercurrents

Even though it was a joke, the song feels deep because Lennon drew from real, intense elements of his life at the time:

• The LSD Influence: The opening line, "I am he as you are he as you are me and we are all together," was written during an acid trip. While confusing, it touches on a very real psychedelic philosophy of universal oneness and ego-dissolution. [1, 2]
• Literary Satire: The Walrus itself is a nod to Lewis Carroll’s poem "The Walrus and the Carpenter" from Through the Looking-Glass. Lennon loved Carroll’s surrealism, though he later admitted with dismay that he realized too late the Walrus was actually the villain of the poem. [1, 2]
• Anti-Institutional Critique: Hidden in the nonsense are jabs at social order—mocking rigid schoolteachers, police officers, and even people blindly following spiritual fads (the "element'ry penguin" was a gentle swipe at the Hare Krishna movement's sudden popularity). [1, 2, 3]
• A Backdrop of Grief: The Beatles recorded this track just days after the sudden death of their manager, Brian Epstein. When Lennon repeatedly sings "I'm crying," the playful tone shifts into a chaotic, intensely dark wall of sound that captures the underlying madness and grief the band was feeling. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]

To see a breakdown of how John Lennon used studio experimentation, Shakespeare radio broadcasts, and sheer imagination to build this masterpiece, watch this short documentary:

Lennon himself later summed it up perfectly in a 1980 interview: "I've had tongue in cheek all along... It’s not that serious." [1]

Are there any specific lyrics or phrases from the song (like "the Eggman" or "Semolina Pilchard") that you are curious about? I can break down the hidden inside jokes behind them!

when I went to Notre Dame High School, in the 1980s, had RE teacher, who play Wings songs, in lessons, well we get our own meaning from songs, and yes, we try to  overanalysed The Beatles' lyrics, or other songs reasons ? I am doing that now, lol

That is amazing! Your RE teacher sounds incredibly cool—using Wings songs to spark theological or philosophical debates is a brilliant way to keep teenagers engaged. And you shouldn't feel bad about overanalysing at all; you are doing exactly what music is meant to make us do!

Even though John Lennon wrote "I Am The Walrus" to tease people for doing it, the truth is that humans are hardwired to look for reasons and patterns in art.

Here is why we love to break down lyrics, and why your instinct to do it now is completely natural:

1. The "Mirror" Effect

When we analyze a song, we aren't just looking for what the songwriter meant—we are looking for ourselves. A lyric might be a random phrase to the artist, but to you, it connects perfectly with a memory, a feeling, or a belief you hold. Songs act like a mirror for our own lives, which is exactly what happened in your RE lessons.

2. Music as a "Safe Space" for Deep Questions

Songs often tackle massive, intimidating topics—like love, death, faith, politics, and the meaning of life—but compress them into a 4-minute package. Overanalysing a song gives us a safe, creative playground to wrestle with these huge topics without it feeling like a dry textbook.

3. The Joy of the "Puzzle"

Pop culture is full of hidden codes. When you look at albums from the 1960s and 1980s, artists loved leaving "breadcrumbs" (think of the "Paul is dead" rumors or hidden messages played backward). Trying to solve the puzzle of a song is just genuinely fun. It turns listening into an active adventure rather than passive background noise.

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🎵 A Fun Thought Experiment: What was your RE Teacher up to?

Since you mentioned your teacher played Wings (Paul McCartney’s post-Beatles band), they might have been secretly testing your analysis skills! McCartney was generally much less cynical than Lennon, and his lyrics often had genuine, open-hearted messages perfect for an RE class.

For instance, they might have played:

• "Band on the Run" – To discuss themes of freedom, isolation, escaping cages, or spiritual liberation.
• "Let 'Em In" – A perfect song for a lesson on hospitality, welcoming strangers, or openness to others.
• "Live and Let Die" – To spark a debate about morality, justice, and how we choose to treat our fellow humans when the world gets chaotic.

You are continuing a grand tradition. The fact that you are still questioning, analyzing, and finding meaning in music today means that cool RE teacher did a fantastic job!

Do you happen to remember which specific Wings songs your teacher played in class, or any particular meanings your class came up with? We could look at those lyrics today and see what else we can dig out of them!

Mull of Kintyre, Pipes of Peace (may be after Wings, I forgot now)

You have a fantastic memory! You hit on two massive, chart-topping tracks that were absolutely perfect fodder for an RE (Religious Education) class.

Your timeline is spot-on too: "Mull of Kintyre" was indeed a Wings song from 1977, while "Pipes of Peace" came just after Wings, released as a solo Paul McCartney single in 1983. [1, 2]

If you look at the lyrics with your old RE class hat on, it becomes incredibly clear what your teacher was doing. Both songs carry massive, profound messages about human connection, peace, and spirituality.

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1. Mull of Kintyre (Wings, 1977) — The Theme of "Home" and Sanctuary 🌲

On the surface, this is a beautiful Scottish folk song featuring the local Campbeltown Pipe Band. But your RE teacher likely played it to spark a conversation about sanctuary, peace of mind, and the concept of "Home." [1]

• The Meaning: After the messy, incredibly stressful breakup of The Beatles, Paul McCartney fell into a deep depression. He retreated to a remote, run-down farm in Kintyre, Scotland, to heal. This song is a love letter to the place that saved his mental health. [1]
• The RE Angle: In an RE lesson, this song serves as a perfect metaphor for the spiritual sanctuary. Lyrics like "My desire is always to be here" open up questions about where we go to find peace when the world gets too loud. It is about grounding yourself, embracing simple things, and finding a place of grace. [1]

2. Pipes of Peace (Paul McCartney, 1983) — Love Overcoming Conflict 🕊️

If your teacher wanted a direct, powerful lesson on morality, war, and the human spirit, this was the ultimate track.

• The Meaning: Inspired by a poem by Rabindranath Tagore and the famous 1914 Christmas Truce of World War I, the song argues that the desire for peace is an intrinsic human trait that politics and war try to crush. [1]
• The RE Angle: The song is a direct call for global harmony. McCartney contrasts the "drums of war" with the "pipes of peace," singing:

  "In love, our problems disappear / Almost before they even start."

  The music video famously showed British and German soldiers crossing enemy lines on Christmas Day to shake hands and play football. For an RE class in the 1980s (during the height of the Cold War), this was a profound way to discuss forgiveness, the true meaning of peace, and seeing the humanity in your "enemy." [1]

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You Weren't Overanalysing!

Your teacher knew exactly what they were doing. McCartney wasn't trying to trick anyone like Lennon did with the Walrus; he wrote these songs to make people feel a sense of unity, warmth, and peace. Playing them in an RE class wasn't a stretch at all—it was exactly where those messages belonged.

It sounds like your teacher used music to make big ideas feel accessible. Do you remember any other artists or songs they threw into the mix during those 1980s lessons? We can see what other hidden lessons were buried in your school playlist!

I think just McCartney  I remember anyway, lol,

That is completely fair! Honestly, if you are going to remember just one artist from school, McCartney is an absolute goldmine. He is widely considered one of the greatest songwriters in human history, so your teacher had fantastic taste.

What is lovely about your memory is how it highlights the difference between the two main Beatles:

• John Lennon gave you "I Am The Walrus"—a song designed to make you throw your hands up and say, "What on earth does this mean?!"
• Paul McCartney gave you "Mull of Kintyre" and "Pipes of Peace"—songs designed to make you sit back, feel a sense of comfort, and think about how we can be kinder to one another.

It sounds like those 1980s RE lessons left a lasting impression, and it is wonderful that you are still looking at music with that same curious, analytical mind today. Never stop overanalysing—it is how we keep the magic of the music alive!

Since we are on a McCartney roll, is there any other Beatles or McCartney song that has always made you wonder, "What was the story behind that one?" I would love to dig up the history for you!