Two Categories Of Maiden Songs

IronDuke

Ancient Mariner
If one were to look at my Maiden-related posts on these forums, you’d probably find a dominant theme that I keep emphasizing, almost ad nauseaum.
Essentially, I contend that nearly all Maiden songs can be divided into two categories: the concrete, and the abstract. These terms are used by literary critics to describe the nature of metaphors in prose and poetry, and I believe they can likewise be applied to the themes of Iron Maiden’s songs.

The Concrete songs are about current, historical, or mythological (Greek, Christian, Egyptian, etc.) events, much like minstrel’s ballads in the Early-Modern Era. The concrete songs “name a real thing or class of things” (Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary.) They deal with very human stories, but are sometimes not universal to all human societies. For example, one would hardly expect the same emotional reaction to “The Trooper” from a fan born and raised in South America or Japan as a fan in Britain.

The Abstract
songs, on the other hand, deal with subjects which cannot be immediately defined. They “express a quality apart from an object” (Merriam-Webster.) I contend that these are the songs that make Iron Maiden truly universal. The themes which dominate the songs I label as abstract are, unlike the previous category, universal to just about everyone regardless of their ethnic origin, language, or belief. The best-known song I would put into this category is “Fear of the Dark.” Everybody, at some point in their lives, been discomforted by being alone in “the dark” (which does not necessarily have to refer to a lack of light; it could be interpreted as a state of ignorance.)

Of course, there are a few problems with this system of classification. Foremost, despite what post-modernists and post-structuralists tell you, we cannot go around assigning meanings to pieces of literature (be it a song, piece of prose, or historical document) which the authors themselves did not consider. It is doubtful that Maiden thinks of their songs in this manner when they compose them, so it would be unwise to solely interpret them in this dualistic manner. Furthermore, many songs can be placed in either category depending how the commentator interprets them. “Powerslave,” for example, can be interpreted both as a song about an Egyptian Pharaoh’s absolute power (a very real historical fact), or a song about death and dying (a universal, though abstract idea.)

While note entirely perfect, below is my categorization of some of Maiden’s songs into the two categories. I don’t include them all for two reasons: I’m not entirely comfortable with all of Maidens’ songs, so I don’t feel qualified to comment on them. Sencond, I’m feeling lazy and can’t be bothered.

Concrete
RunSilent Run Deep
Aces High
The Trooper
Montsegur
Run to the Hills
Rime of the Ancient Mariner
Mother Russia

Abstract
The Clansman
Brave New World
Out of the Silent Planet
Number of the Beast
Wildest Dreams
Powerslave
 
Those are some good ideas, but you said it yourself, Maiden probably don't think about these things while writing some songs. Anyhow, I think all Maiden songs are a blend of abstract and concrete ideas. For example, you put Rime of the Ancient Mariner in the concrete category, but both the song and the poem have the universal theme that stresses the importance of humans having respect for nature. Same thing as you said with Powerslave.
 
I don't quite agree with the categorization, mostly because many songs can mean different things. There are only very few concrete songs (some that spring to mind are Alexander The Great, Aces High or The Nomad), but many are concrete at face value but abstract when you look deeper into it. It is correct that many people read things into the lyrics that the author didn't intend, but a statement by 'Arry, inaccurately paraphrased by myself said that he is always interested in what fans read into his lyrics, and when he revisits them with that in mind, it makes sense.
 
The trouble with analysing any form of art, be it literature, poetry, music or painting, is that you can assign any meaning you like to it, as long as you can argue for it being there. For example, I would class The Clansman as being concrete, in that it is based around the time of the war with England and is narrated from the point of view of Robert the Bruce. Clearly, you have argued that it is about Freedom in a more general way, which is perfectly acceptable. Trouble is, most Maiden songs fall into this 'grey area', especially the ones based on literature, which is often neither Concrete or Abstract either. The mix of these two themes in Maiden's songs is what makes them so appealing-they are not so obvious as to be clearly placed in either category, which provokes deeper thought into potential meanings behind the songs. The music is also a great help in this, as it clearly helps to set the scene-is this song joking or serious, atmospheric or rocking? In this way, you could easily have about 10 different categories that every Maiden song falls into, and then cross-reference them. FOr example, The Trooper is anti-war, fast-paced, concrete and influenced by literature.

I've just realised I've exactly described the tag system on last.fm [img src=\"style_emoticons/[#EMO_DIR#]/tongue.gif\" style=\"vertical-align:middle\" emoid=\":p\" border=\"0\" alt=\"tongue.gif\" /]
 
[!--quoteo(post=130521:date=Mar 3 2006, 04:19 PM:name=Silky)--][div class=\'quotetop\']QUOTE(Silky @ Mar 3 2006, 04:19 PM) [snapback]130521[/snapback][/div][div class=\'quotemain\'][!--quotec--]
The trouble with analysing any form of art, be it literature, poetry, music or painting, is that you can assign any meaning you like to it, as long as you can argue for it being there. For example, I would class The Clansman as being concrete, in that it is based around the time of the war with England and is narrated from the point of view of Robert the Bruce. Clearly, you have argued that it is about Freedom in a more general way, which is perfectly acceptable. Trouble is, most Maiden songs fall into this 'grey area', especially the ones based on literature, which is often neither Concrete or Abstract either. The mix of these two themes in Maiden's songs is what makes them so appealing-they are not so obvious as to be clearly placed in either category, which provokes deeper thought into potential meanings behind the songs.
[/quote]

Very well-stated. Like I said in my initial post, these classifications only work on an individual basis. For example, in "The Clansman" I see the longing for freedom as the most important message in the song. This idea is universal to all peoples everywhere. Another perfectly valid interpretation is to argue that it is specific to Scotland. I happen to subscribe to the former interpretation rather than the latter, but, as you point out, both are equally correct and can be supported by textual evidence.

You are, of course, correct in stating that pretty much all of Maiden's songs fall into a grey area, but to understand that particular shade of grey, we need to examine both the black and the white which made it. I think it would be fun some time to argue which category each song should be placed into - Not for establishing a definate "set in stone" list, but so we can explore both the concrete and abstract elements which are present in most of Iron Maiden's works. Aside from sharpening our debating skills, this would lead to a much greater understanding of our favourite songs.

Any takers?
 
I don't think that it is possible to categorize all of Maiden's songs into two groups. Although it may be possible to define certain songs as 'concrete', it would be a mistake to label all others as 'abstract'. I don't agree for example that Rime of the Ancient Mariner is concrete. Sure, it's based on a piece of literature, but doesn't it seek to recreate the impression which the poem creates, which is far from concrete in my opinion. However I am in no way qualified to analyse the poem's meaning in depth. Anyway, basically, I don't think one can divide the songs into just two groups.
 
[!--quoteo(post=130616:date=Mar 4 2006, 11:19 AM:name=national acrobat)--][div class=\'quotetop\']QUOTE(national acrobat @ Mar 4 2006, 11:19 AM) [snapback]130616[/snapback][/div][div class=\'quotemain\'][!--quotec--]
I don't think that it is possible to categorize all of Maiden's songs into two groups. Although it may be possible to define certain songs as 'concrete', it would be a mistake to label all others as 'abstract'. I don't agree for example that Rime of the Ancient Mariner is concrete. Sure, it's based on a piece of literature, but doesn't it seek to recreate the impression which the poem creates, which is far from concrete in my opinion. However I am in no way qualified to analyse the poem's meaning in depth. Anyway, basically, I don't think one can divide the songs into just two groups.
[/quote]
You've basically reiterated what I have said. ROTAM can't be described as Concrete or abstract abd so a third category needs to be introduced for literary works or fiction. As we move on through the albums, there will probably be a need to invent more categories as it is hard to define 150+ songs under three headlines.
 
The easiest group of songs to define are those which are simply based on history, such as Alexander The Great or Aces High. After that, I think we'll end up with over a dozen categories, depending on how precise you wish to be.
 
Back
Top