Gioia R
Hi there, I'm watching the <CATS> recently, I think there're some american humors in the text, can you help me do find them out? For ex.sb's bark is worse than their bite, I'm not sure if here's a trick to make it funnier... Are you blind when you're born? Can you see in the dark? Dare you look at a king? Would you sit on his throne? Can you say of your bite that it's worse than your bark? Are you “coke” of the wall when you're walking alone? When you fall on your head, do you land on your feet? Are you tense when you sense there's a storm in the air? Can you find your way blind when you're lost in the street? Do you know how to go to the Heaviside Layer? Can you ride on a broomstick to places far distant? Familiar with candle, with book and with bell? Were you Whittington's friend? The Pied Piper's assistant? Have you been an alumnus of heaven and hell? Are you mean like a minx? Are you lean like a lynx? Are you keen to be seen when you're smelling a rat? Were you there when the pharaohs commissioned the Sphinx? If you were, and you are, you're a Jellicle cat We can dive through the air like a flying trapeze We can turn double somersaults, bounce on a tire We can run up the wall, we can swing through the trees We can balance on bars, we can walk on a wire Can you sing at the same time in more than one key Duets by Rossini and waltzes by Strauss And can you (as cats do) begin with a C That always triumphantly brings down the house? Jellicle cats are queen of the nights Singing at astronomical heights Handling pieces from the messiah Hallelujah, angelical choir The mystical divinity of unashamed felinity Round the cathedral rang Life to the everlasting cat! Feline, fearless, faithful and true To others who do-what Thank you in advance. Gioia
Dec 9, 2023 7:54 PM
Answers · 3
1
"Can you (as cats do) begin with a C" is an actual joke that can be explained. Trained female opera singers--sopranos--are capable of reaching a "high C," the note on a piano that is an octave above middle C. Good singers can sing it beautifully, but it is considered the high end of the range and it is a challenge. And a singer would not begin with a high C, they would work up to it--it would be at the climax of a song, near the end. The word "cats" begins with a C. So "can you (as cats do) begin with a C" is a pun. So they can "begin with a C," sort of. The song is combines many different impressions and feelings. It suggests that cats are magical, mystical, have special powers, are connected with myths and fairy tales. At the same time, this solemn content is expressed in verse that sounds humorous, like the books of Dr. Seuss. There is too much clever internal rhyme ("tense when you sense," "blind when you find.") These carry the idea that the singer is a clever trickster. And also a highly educated one. A few more until I run out of space. "Can you ride on a broomstick to places far distant?" is a reference to the idea of witches riding broomsticks. Part of the legends of witches is that they have pet cats, their "familiars," who share in their witchcraft. The "Heaviside layer" is not really a cultural reference, exactly. The Heaviside layer is a layer in the atmosphere, in the ionosphere, which reflects radio waves. Before satellites, shortwave radio worked by bounding waves off the Heaviside layer. It means the very highest level of the atmosphere.
December 10, 2023
1
Oh, you have chosen a real challenge! These lyrics contain numerous references to British and US culture. "Cats" is loosely based on "Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats," by T. S. Eliot. It is humorous, but it is a very "dry" humor--not like jokes. I don't know if I can help much but I can point out some of the references. "Dare you look at a king?" is a reference to an old saying, "A cat may look at a king." It means even a lowly person (or being) has some rights. "Can you say of your bite that it's worse than your bark?" This is a reference to a saying about _dogs._ If someone is kind but has a gruff manner, we say "His bark is worse than his bite." But of course a cat does not bark. A cat meows, or screeches. "When you fall on your head do you land on your feet?" Cats, if the fall isn't too short, usually do land on their feet; they have a way of twisting themselves in the air. So "to land on your feet" is a characteristic of a cat. However, how can you land on your feet if you have actually fallen on your head? I don't know. It just makes the lyrics sound like a riddle or puzzle. "Whittington" is a reference to a fairy tale. "The Pied Piper" is another fairy tale. The Pied Piper made a contract with the town of Hamelin to get rid of the rats. He played his pipe (flute) so beautifully the rats marched after him and he led them into the river where they drowned. The town refused to pay, so the piper then took out his pipe and led all the town's _children_ away.
December 10, 2023
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