National Day 2018: A (totally nonpartisan) tongue-in-cheek literary analysis of this year's reimagined version of We Are Singapore

JSI1111 Song Interpretation by Jonathan's Junkyard

Final Examination

9 August 2018

Question: These are the new lyrics written by composer Charlie Lim for the revised opening bars of the classic National Day song, We Are Singapore.

How many times have you heard them say
“The future is uncertain and everything must change”
Well all of my worries and all of my fears
Begin to lose their weight, when I hold you near
If all that we are is what we believe
Then I know I’ve got to be the change I want to see
How easy we forget that everything takes time
No, nothing's ever perfect, but I still call you mine (o-o-o-oh, o-oh)

(from genius.com)

What do you think these lyrics mean?

[100 marks]

Answer:

There is a possibility that these lyrics are intended to be pro-government.

"How many times have you heard them say / The future is uncertain and everything must change" could be a reference to the digital disruption, in which people are fearful that automation and artificial intelligence will cause them to lose their livelihoods as more and more jobs are taken over by robots. Following that, the lines "Well all of my worries and all of my fears / Begin to lose their weight, when I hold you near" could be talking about how, if Singaporeans continue to support the policies implemented by the establishment, such as SkillsFuture and the Smart Nation initiative, which are designed to help them modernise and cope with the changes brought about by the digital disruption, they will feel comforted and confident that they will be okay.

"If all that we are is what we believe / Then I know I’ve got to be the change I want to see" could be a veiled jab at Singaporeans' tendency to complain a lot about everything the government does. It serves as a reminder that every Singaporean has a responsibility to play his or her role in making the country even greater, and to stop relying on or blaming the government for everything. Finally, the lines "How easy we forget that everything takes time / No, nothing's ever perfect, but I still call you mine (o-o-o-oh, o-oh)" could be a reference to how people fail to see that unpopular government decisions like raising the Goods and Services Tax and utilities prices are painful in the short term but are for the long-term good of Singapore as a whole, and Singaporeans should not hate on the government or the country because they are unhappy with these policies.

There is also a possibility that there is a hidden anti-government sentiment in these lyrics.

When taken together, the first four lines "How many times have you heard them say / The future is uncertain and everything must change / Well all of my worries and all of my fears / Begin to lose their weight, when I hold you near" could in fact be referring to how the establishment is increasingly making policies that harm the man on the street such as raising taxes and clamping down on freedoms, causing rumblings of discontent among the people who are turning to opposition parties for a glimmer of hope that with more of them in parliament, things will get better.

"If all that we are is what we believe / Then I know I’ve got to be the change I want to see" is, in this context, an obvious rallying call for more Singaporeans to vote for the opposition in the next election, and a reminder that every person is responsible for using his or her vote wisely to bring about a political change in the country. With an eye on the recent swapping of the Najib regime in Malaysia for a new Mahathir government, the lines "How easy we forget that everything takes time / No, nothing's ever perfect, but I still call you mine (o-o-o-oh, o-oh)" are a warning that if a similar switch happens in Singapore, there will be some difficulties in the early days as the new government tries to come to terms with the work involved in running the country and fixing the problems that the previous administration leaves behind, just like what is happening in Malaysia, and Singaporeans must have the patience and perseverance to give them time and a chance to prove themselves capable of handling the responsibility, and avoid the temptation to kick out the new government quickly and vote the old one back in.

✔️

100/100

Very good analysis