Essay on “Linda” by Gerhard
Gundermann
Some of Gerhard Gundermann´s lyrics contain narrative structures
that are typical of allegorical texts. In my essays on “Linda”
and on “Dragonslayer´s Father” I have followed the clues they
provide for an interpretation of the lyrics.
All the translations into English are my own.
I have also posted an overview of the theory with the title
“Allegory” on this blog.
The website http://gundi.de/gundermann/interviews.shtml
by
Gundermanns Seilschaft e.V. provides information on Gundermann and
his work.
With the birth of the child Linda the speaker´s life, is filled with
new joy.
After going through a rough patch, his ability to feel and to love
returns, and he is hopeful.
You have dropped into my heart
like into an empty house,
yanked open doors and windows wide,
let in and out the light
When the child is addressed as “you” in the first line, a sense
of intimacy is evoked. The listener has an intimation of the
intensity of the speaker´s emotional experience, his sense of wonder
and his devotion which is enhanced by the upward movement of the
tune.
The Quest
When he repeats the initial four lines at the beginning of the last
stanza of the song, he has outlined this gloomy episode, which throws
his present happiness all the more into relief. By asking his child
for guidance, he evokes the narrative pattern of the quest with the
spiritual crisis as a typical point of departure.
As the protagonist of a quest the speaker encounters two antagonistic
forces: on the one hand there is his experience of Life in its
fullness represented by the child Linda (stanzas 1 and 3), on the
other the recent bleak episode dominated by Death.
The earlier period
of his life is illustrated by metaphors
which suggest a depressive state of mind. The image of the heart as a
deserted house stands for inner emptiness. The
“thick skin” protects from injuries, but also reduces the ability
to feel.1
The speaker is indifferent to his fate which he is unable to control
("Ich wusste wie die Kugel rollt und war nicht mehr
interessiert") and to death so much so that he even has suicidal
thoughts.
But Life, symbolized in the second stanza by the cherry tree, proves
to be stronger than the wish to kill himself represented
metonymically by the gun.2
"weil ich doch hierbleiben muss", the reason given for
this change of mind, is not a clear reference to Linda´s birth, but
might refer to a decision which preceded it.
The return of joy and optimism in the subsequent refrain and the
beginning of the 3rd stanza, however, has clearly been
effected by her presence.
Interestingly he asks her to be his guide after he has already
overcome his spiritual crisis.
Thus the birth of the child is not depicted as a closure but as a new
beginning bringing with it new challenges. That he asks the child to
be his guide can be seen as a confirmation that he makes a deliberate
choice for Life. Indeed, the imagery which represents Linda´s
actions („hast die Fenster und Türen weit aufgerissen“, „hast
mich wieder ausgeschnitten“) and illustrate her enlivening,
regenerating effect on the speaker, makes her appear as its
personification. As "Vielleicht ...." characterizes the
speaker´s approach as rather cautious, the resulting tone is
thoughtful though still optimistic.
The Christmas story
The image of the heart as a deserted house, which comes to life again
with the birth of the child alludes to the Christmas story as a
praetext.3
Despite the analogy the lyrics plays with, the blissful experience
of release and of a new beginning, which has characteristics of a
moment of awakening, is a purely secular one. A possible allegorical
interpretation is implicitly barred by the speaker´s choice of his
little daughter as a guide persona (Lotse – pilot) instead of
Christ.4
5
“home to Christmas land“ implies that he longs for the experience
of joy and wonder associated with childhood, and believes that his
child can make it accessible to him again.
Dialectic
As has only been implied up to now, the stanzas are not arranged in
chronological order. Instead, the underlying structure is dialectical
with the present as the thesis, the past the antithesis and the
future the synthesis. There is no equal balance, however, between the
depression of the past and the happiness of the present. Instead, the
first stanza, which is about the present, and the third stanza, which
describes the transition from the present to the past, are like a
bracket around the depressive phase of stanza two, which has been
overcome.
Tone
Whereas in the stanzas a serious tone prevails, which allows great
proximity to the speaker´s emotional experience, the refrain is
suffused with a sense of humour. Humour implies a certain distance to
one´s emotions. It indicates that the crisis has been overcome.
Confidence, joy and even exuberance find their expression in the
lively upward movement of the tune.
Simultaneously, the lines of the refrain point to a non-materialist
world view, which is an important theme in other Gundermann songs as
well as in some of the interviews he gave.
"Jetzt komm die fetten Tage" describes a time of plenty in
which everything necessary for a good life is easily available. The
metaphor is extended by "Wir ham so lang auf dich gespart.",
a humorous reference to a barren if not a dull life, humorous as the
formulation points to an object of desire rather than to a wished-for
child. As it´s the child who makes for wealth and not an object or
money, a metaphorical interpretation as spiritual riches is
suggested, that is the child itself makes life rich.6
"Die Alten sind nochmal am Start.“ contains a measure of
self-irony based on the double meaning of “die Alten” both as a
colloquial expression (it is actually a conventionalized metaphor)
for “parents” and in its literal sense as “elderly people”
one couldn´t expect this kind of thing from. This indicates that
they gain new strength with the birth of the child.
Even within the stanzas, the poetic style is interspersed with more
colloquial and idiomatic expressions (e.g. laute Braut", "dicke
Haut"), when it comes to describing the turning point in the
speaker´s life. Thus, a humorous effect is produced.
In the second stanza the arc of suspense built up with „meine
Pistole war geladen“ is deflated with the anticlimax of "ich
hab sie unterm Kirschenbaum vergraben".
A play with different styles of speech can be observed in some of
Gundermann´s other songs as well. 7
Conclusion
In
a nutshell, Linda´s birth means both the end of a depressive phase
and a new beginning in the speaker´s life. Mostly, the
speaker achieves great emotional intensity when he communicates his
experiences of dejection and happiness,
but at times, especially in the refrain, a humorous streak asserts
itself. Remarkably, the new
beginning is described in
terms of a hopeful quest.
Correspondingly, the mood at the end of the third stanza is not
euphoric, but thoughtful and melancholic.
The song ends with the humorous refrain about a fulfilled life and a
new beginning of the parents.
1“Ein
dickes Fell/eine dicke Haut haben” is an idiomatic expression
corresponding to “to have a thick skin”.
2
That is, the instrument of
suicide stands for the act.
3
The
terminology is from Quilligan, The
Language of Allegory,
1992, and explained in Gerhard Kurz, in
Metapher,
Allegorie, Symbol,
Göttingen:
Vandenhoeck, 1982, 6. Auflage 2009p. 44
4“I
am the way, and the truth, and the life.” (John 14:6, English
Standard Version).
5
Thus, “Linda” is an example of an allegorical text with a
predominant
initial meaning
(Quilligan, 1992 and
Kurz, 1982).
6 (1)
This can be seen as a reference to/an allusion to a text from the
bible, 1 Mose 41, about the pharao´s dream of seven fat and seven
lean years which is interpreted correctly by Joseph.
(2) the refrain also
indicates a non-materialist mindset like "und musst du weinen"
7According
to David Robb, Gundermann and other Liedermacher from both
East and West Germany continue the tradition of German political
song of 1848 with the “hybridity of high and low art forms” in
their work.
David Robb ed., Protest Song
in East and West Germany since the 1960s, Rochester and
Woodbridge: Camden, 2007, S. 3
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