Pretty Snarky

When it comes to the top Song of the Summer candidate We Are Young by FUN, most of the conversation has centered around the lyric “Asking ’bout a scar, and I know I gave it to you months ago,” which made some people concerned that the song was making light of domestic violence. Personally, I decided the scar in question is an emotional scar, which is bad, but not as bad, and it helps me enjoy the song without feeling like I need to give money to a woman’s shelter every time I sing along.

But I’ve discovered the best argument of all time regarding this song in the comment section over at tbtl.net

Two english teachers are debating the lyric “My seat’s been taken by some sunglasses”

You and I just thought metaphor, right? (I assume no one thought it was just a pair of sunglasses sitting on a barstool.) Well it gets a  whole lot deeper, my friends.

Dave says the sunglasses are actually metonymy, when you refer to something using an object associated with that thing. (Like referring to royalty as “the crown”)

Gary says the sunglasses are synecdoche, when you refer to something using an aspect of that thing. (If a poet were to say, “we’ll take our dreams to the waves” the waves, although only a small part of the ocean, stand for ocean.)

Thankfully, I don’t have to take sides because I’m pretty sure they are both right. Wearing sunglasses at night in a bar is deeply associated with douchebag behavior (and I’m pretty sure FUN is saying that a douchebag is sitting on his barstool.) So it’s metonymy. The douchebag  in question is wearing sunglasses, so sunglasses are a small part of the whole – synecdoche.

Voila! Everyone’s a winner of this particular brand of Words with Friends.

- Jen