Epic II
Hades' Yearning: A Tale of Love, Loneliness, and Underground Riches
Lyrics
King of silver
Refers to Hades as the ruler of the underworld, associated with silver.
King of gold
Highlights Hades as the ruler of the underworld, associated with gold.
And everything glittering
Describes the splendor and allure of everything beneath the ground.
Under the ground
Indicates the treasures hidden below the Earth's surface.
Hades is king
Reiterates Hades' kingship in the underworld.
Of oil and coal
Mentions Hades' control over valuable resources like oil and coal.
And the riches that flow
Emphasizes the wealth that originates from the rivers underground.
Where those rivers are found
Points to the source of riches beneath the Earth's surface.
But for half of the year with Persephone gone
During Persephone's absence, Hades grapples with loneliness.
His loneliness moves in him, crude and black
Describes the emotional impact of loneliness on Hades, using crude and black imagery.
He thinks of his wife in the arms of the sun
Hades contemplates Persephone being with the sun, sparking jealousy.
And jealousy fuels him and feeds him and fills him
Jealousy becomes a driving force, feeding Hades' doubts about Persephone's return.
With doubt that she'll ever come
Expresses Hades' doubt and dread about Persephone's eventual return.
Dread that she'll never come
Reiterates the fear that Persephone may never return.
Doubt that his lover
Continues to express Hades' doubt about Persephone's return.
Will ever come back
Reflects Hades' uncertainty regarding his lover's return.
King of mortar
Portrays Hades as the ruler of construction, symbolized by mortar and bricks.
King of bricks
Reiterates Hades' kingship in construction, emphasizing the River Styx as a river of stones.
The River Styx is a river of stones
Describes the nature of the River Styx, which consists of stones.
And Hades lays them high and thick
Highlights Hades' role in building a protective wall around the underworld riches.
With a million hands that are not his own
Emphasizes the multitude of hands involved in building the wall.
With a million hands, he builds a wall
Details the construction of a wall around the Earth's riches.
Around all the riches he digs from the Earth
Underlines the purpose of the wall as a means to protect the treasures extracted from the Earth.
The pickaxe flashes
Describes the action of mining with a pickaxe.
The hammer falls
Illustrates the work of construction with a hammer.
And crashing and pounding
Portrays the intense and rhythmic work of building and extracting riches.
His rivers surround him
Describes how the surrounding rivers drown out a once-heard song.
And drown out the sound of the song he once heard
Highlights the overwhelming noise of the work, silencing a previously heard song.
La, la, la, la, la, la, la
Repetition of "La" suggests a haunting or monotonous aspect, possibly symbolizing the repetitiveness of Hades' endeavors.
La, la, la, la, la, la, la
-La, la, la, la, la, la, la
-La, la, la, la, la, la
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