Analyse af Pulps 'Common People'

We all have our differences in life, whether it is taste in music, our upbringing, social differences, or classes. “Common People” is a single by Pulp that enhances the values within the “common people” social class. Therefore, this essay will account for the different social classes in the modern English social environment, as well as the social settings that occur throughout the lyrics in the song. The lyrics will be analyzed to interpret the message behind the song which is also displayed throughout the music video to enhance the themes of the song.

The song is focused on stereotypes as the title portrays and the narrator is trying to break some of the stereotypes. For example, Pulp meets a girl at a bar and after finding out her dad is “loaded”, he asks her for a drink, as a reversal of the stereotype where men usually buy women drinks. Instead of asking for a fancy drink like women typically do, he asks for a rum and Coca-Cola which is one of the cheapest drinks at a bar. This showcases that Pulp is not scared to go against the social norms where the roles a reversed.

Rich and spoiled girls most often want to get a taste of the rough side or something else than what they are used to. In the chorus, Pulp sings on behalf of the girl. She wants to do what “common people” do, she wants to have sex with common people and wants to live like them. She wants to do what she has never done before, because most of the time when it comes to rich girls, then they have not tried anything out of the ordinary. They are just used to being in their gated communities and being around their family, so the things common people do are exciting for them even though it might be boring for the average man/woman.