Typewriter Torment
The Perils of Typewriter Obsession: Procol Harum's Artistic Anguish
Lyrics
Typewriter torment, dreadful disease
Typewriter torment refers to the distress or anguish caused by using a typewriter, symbolizing the difficulty or struggle of writing.
Caught it the first day I touched the keys
The narrator suggests contracting this torment from the very beginning of using the typewriter for writing.
You wear down your fingers and churn out your pap
Repeated typing wears down the fingers and produces unimportant or inferior writing ("pap").
It eats up your life like a dose of the clap
The negative impact of writing consumes one's life akin to an infection (like a dose of a sexually transmitted disease).
Typewriter torment it tortures me still
The torment from using the typewriter continues to torture the narrator.
If only my doctor could see that I'm ill
The narrator feels afflicted but believes their condition is not recognized by the doctor.
Typewriter fever it harries me still
The feverish state caused by the typewriter continues to trouble the narrator.
If only my doctor would give me a pill
The narrator wishes the doctor would prescribe medication to alleviate their suffering.
Typewriter fever gives birth to a flood
The feverish state of using the typewriter generates a surge of creativity or output.
It sweeps through your body and curdles your blood
This intense writing sensation affects the whole body, causing agitation or distress.
You curse and discurse but you're damned for all time
The act of writing causes frustration, yet there's a sense of being trapped by the creative process.
The moment your fingers give birth to a rhyme
The moment of creating a written piece is likened to giving birth to a rhyme, which is both painful and inevitable.
Typewriter fever it harries me still
The feverish state from using the typewriter persists and distresses the narrator.
If only my doctor would give me a pill
Reiterating the desire for medical intervention or relief from the doctor's prescription.
Typewriter fever I'm worn to a stub
The fever has worn the narrator down significantly, reaching a point of exhaustion or depletion.
I've dumped my thesaurus and pulled out the plug
The narrator has abandoned aids for writing (like a thesaurus) and disconnected from the typewriter ("pulled out the plug").
I'm rending my ribbon and bending my spool
Destroying the ribbon and spool used in the typewriter as a sign of complete rejection of writing tools.
Don't bother rewinding: I'm done with it all
The narrator won't bother with rewinding or restarting; they're done with the whole writing process.
But why can't my doctor just say that I'm ill?
The narrator desires acknowledgment or validation of their condition as an illness from the doctor.
Typewriter fever is paying his bill.
The feverish condition of using the typewriter is being monetarily beneficial for the doctor through bills.
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