Say John Mayer Analysis

As society changes, artists are starting to integrate ideas of transcendentalism into their songs. For instance, "Say" by John Mayer encourages the listener to be honest and open about what they believe, even if they are the only one. In addition, “Breakaway" by Kelly Clarkson stresses that being independent will help in achieving goals. As shown by “Say” and “Breakaway”, Mayer and Clarkson created songs that echo the tenets of transcendentalism such as being an individual, trusting your intuition, and learning that nature enables us to find our true selves. John Mayer stresses the importance of taking the opportunities you are given to speak up for yourself. The words “say what you need to say” (Mayer, “Say”) are repeated over thirty

Mayer shows this by saying that keeping your thoughts to yourself can cause "frustration" and "wasted honor", so he feels that it is better to “put 'em in quotations” (“Say”). John Mayer refers having courage and speaking up to "walking like a one man army" (“Say”). This that although you are feeling alone against the world, the ability to fight and to beat the doubts in your mind will set you better off in the long run. Ralph Waldo Emerson first posed the idea of trusting oneself in his essay titled Self-Reliance. He that it is genius “to believe your own thought, to believe that what is true for you in your private heart” and to “speak your latent conviction” (Emerson, “Self-Reliance”). By not

Another message of the song is that people should have dreams to make their lives colourful. She starts the song by talking about “when the rain would fall down” she would stare out her window (Clarkson, "Breakaway"). Clarkson sought comfort in the rain and would use that time to dream of a better life. The third verse shows the beauty of nature and how it has the potential of helping her. She wants to “feel the warm breeze” “sleep under a palm tree” and “feel the rush of the ocean” (Clarkson, "Breakaway"). Although that can easily be seen as just a vacation, she is actually breaking away from society. Nature would provide her escape and give her happiness. In the chorus, she speaks of going “Out of the darkness and into the sun” (Clarkson, "Breakaway"). By saying “the sun” instead of “light”, she is tying in the actual beauty of nature and the hope it provides. Kelly Clarkson is able to write "Breakaway" so that she talks about achieving what you want on your own and the importance and beauty of