Discussion:
What's the meaning of Daughter by Pearl Jam?
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Just Another Victim of the Ambient Morality
2003-09-03 07:41:14 UTC
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I've been reading the lyrics to this wonderful song but, for the life of
me, I can't figure out what he's trying to say with this song, if anything.
Does anyone have an interpretation of this song that they'd like to
share?
Thank you...
Krash
2003-09-06 04:36:00 UTC
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Hi Victim,

I was reading about Eddie and pearl jam as my distinction of "Daughter" was
always that it was to do with
a daughter who tried to please her mum but was never good enough. Hence she
says " Dont call me daughter, not fit to be". But when the song says
somethings wrong I figured perhaps a mental disability. After reading this
excerpt from the Biography I guess I wasn't far wrong..........

Here is an excerpt about Daughter from the Melody Maker's Pearl Jam
Biography by Allan Jones.

Eddie: "The child in that song obviously has a learning difficulty. And it's
only in the last few years that they've actually been able to diagnose these
learning disabilities that before were looked at as misbehaviour,as just
outright fucking rebelliousness. But no one knew what it was. And these
kids, because they seemed unable or reluctant to learn, they'd end up
getting the shit beaten outta them. The songs ends, you know, with this idea
of the shades going down- so that the nighbours can't see what happens next.
What hurts about shit like that is that it ends up defining peoples' lives.
They have to live with that abuse for the rest of thier lives. Good,
creative people are just fucking destroyed."


Trace
Just Another Victim of the Ambient Morality
2003-09-07 18:34:02 UTC
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Post by Krash
Eddie: "The child in that song obviously has a learning difficulty. And it's
only in the last few years that they've actually been able to diagnose these
learning disabilities that before were looked at as misbehaviour,as just
outright fucking rebelliousness. But no one knew what it was. And these
kids, because they seemed unable or reluctant to learn, they'd end up
getting the shit beaten outta them. The songs ends, you know, with this idea
of the shades going down- so that the nighbours can't see what happens next.
What hurts about shit like that is that it ends up defining peoples' lives.
They have to live with that abuse for the rest of thier lives. Good,
creative people are just fucking destroyed."
Hey, thanks so much. This was helpful. I'd listen and read the lyrics
(on some lyrics site) but it seemed so abstract that I just couldn't build
an interpretation. Even the chorus, "Don't call me daughter, not fit to be"
doesn't make any sense to me. You'd think it might be more like "She won't
call me daughter, I'm not fit to be," or something like that...
Krash
2003-09-08 12:05:28 UTC
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Is a great song and glad I could help :)

I know what you mean though, is very strangely worded.
But then listen to the song "Black" by Pearl Jam, my favourite
one of their songs...is just as abstact. Just his style of
songwriting I suppose.

Krash
Cat
2003-09-08 18:33:24 UTC
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Post by Krash
I know what you mean though, is very strangely worded.
But then listen to the song "Black" by Pearl Jam, my favourite
one of their songs...is just as abstact. Just his style of
songwriting I suppose.
Krash
Black is also one of my top Pearl Jam songs. It's a heartbreaker with an edge.

~cat
"The days fly by
Should have done, should have done
we all sigh..."
R.I.P. Warren Zevon (1947-2003)

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