The song, Counting Stars is an original composition produced and performed by an American all-boy pop-rock band called One Republic that comprises Ryan Tedder and Zach Filkins. Additionally, the song has received wide international acclaim as it resonates with millions of music lovers due to its message and catchy lyrics. The song talks about a society where people are more preoccupied with worldly pleasures as opposed to enjoying what the world can offer. Inherently, the song focuses on highlighting the detrimental consequences of materialism. The thesis of this paper is, therefore, focused on conducting a rhetorical analysis to establish how the song conveys materialism and hope for a better future through its lyrics.
Rhetorical Analysis
Plot Summary
In the first stanza, the writer reveals his internal struggles with materialism and how it affects his view of life. Invariably, the first stanza depicts a man at crossroads with life while contemplating how things became worse and wishing for a better future where the couple would no longer be concerned with material things (no more counting dollars) and instead count stars (blessings). The underlying message is, therefore, the vanity of pursuing a world of materialism that only leads to physical and emotional problems. The writer is losing sleep and often worrying about money but still remains prayerful that the future will be bright. Verse one talks of him seeing life as a thrill ride and he does not care if he steps out of line since its part of the fun. He wants to make an impact on the world in some way nonetheless, hence, him remaining optimistic throughout verse one. The world does not know where it is going, a clear indication of a pointless society with no freedoms as indicated by the declaration that everything that kills him makes him feel alive. The suggestion indicates that he is most likely struggling with drug addiction. Correspondingly, the writer feels something right by breaking rules but bad while living by societal expectations on what is right. He is tired of faking it and that everything that drowns him makes him feel like flying, a stand that he further suggests that he cannot lie about (“I couldn't lie, I couldn't lie, I could not lie”). Eventually, the writer emerges as triumphant as he chooses happiness over material things ("take that money and watch it burn").
Tone and Mood Analysis
The mood of the song Counting Stars is gloomy at the beginning with the indication that the writer had potential problems in his life that were hindering his relationship with his spouse. The stress in his relationship is characterized by a lack of money and a potential addiction when the writer talks about not counting dollars and living through everything that kills him which instead makes him stronger. Towards the end of stanza one and the beginning of stanza two, the mood becomes upbeat, joyous with a tone of recklessness to justify his actions.
The tone of the song grows as the song progresses, the tone is slow to create suspense for those listening to it. The tone then changes to an energetic one to fit in with the carefree and happy message to get rid of any negativity in life. It has an upbeat tone sending a motivational message of enjoying life. ‘I see this life, like a swinging vine' talks of enjoying what life has to offer. ‘Hope is our four-letter word', he is still hopeful that we are not beyond repair and that something can be done. He is clinging to hope. ‘And I don't think the world is sold on just doing what we are told'. He implies that something can still be done about viewing things as non-materialistic. The tone has the ability to appeal to the audience. If the tone used was a sad tone, the listeners would have given up in life and would not receive the hope it's trying to convey. The ability to use a progressive tone from sad to optimistic and finally joyousness indicates transitions in life and that no situation is ever permanent.
Theme Analysis: Materialism and Life
The writer's purpose for the song is to urge society to focus on things that matter in such as joy, value for each other and not material things such as money. The writer's purpose is stated implicitly. Implicit evidence refers to what the writer hints or implies and the reader discovers the meaning as he reads through. The underlying connotation of this song is that the material things should not be overvalued at the expense of personal happiness and freedom. The writer's purpose accomplishes reliability; helps the audience to make a personal inference of their own depending on what they are facing. By so doing, everyone will relate to the song since he or she will have interpreted it based on practical situations in life. Invariably, the theme of the song promotes the idea that life should be lived and enjoyed as it is regardless of the challenges that may arise but rather, people to remain optimistic of a better future to come.
Stylistic Devices Used
Repetition
The purpose of repetition in Counting Stars is to enhance emphasis on the intended message. Repetition appears all over the lyrics as exemplified by the chorus and some lines such as “Take that money to watch it burn” and “sink in the river the lessons I've learned.” The previously mentioned phrase is repeated so many times in the song to urge the audience not to focus so much on the money. The effect is felt as the words are continuously repeated.
Simile
He also uses similes such as “I see this life like a swinging vine.” A vine refers to a plant in the forest that has tendrils and hence supported by other branches. A vine hence swings from side to side and does not stop. The phrase hence means that life has challenges, its ups and downs, and it is good and bad moments which therefore requires people to adjust and overcome problems.
Metaphor
Metaphors have been used to also place elaborate emphasis on the subject on the prevailing themes of materialism and optimism. The line “swing my heart across the line” metaphorically implies overcoming, finishing the race and crossing over the finish line. The metaphor has been used to show similarity to relate with the current events.
Literary Parallelism
The primary goal of using literary parallelism is to create a feeling of discontent in the world the writer lives in. Literary parallelism is highlighted by the line “I feel something so right doing the wrong thing”; I feel something so wrong doing the right thing.”
Audience
The intended audience of the song Counting Stars is the youth aged between 15-30 years. Inherently, Counting Stars is a pop song which is a genre synonymous with the youth. The song addresses more than one group of people. He feels that despite the genre targeting the young; it has a deeper meaning which everyone can relate to.
Pathos
The writer uses pathos (appeal to emotion) creates an emotional response to convince the audience about “Dreaming about the things we could be.” The writer uses this phrase to appeal to the audience that he has included them in his song as he uses the pronoun ‘we’. Therefore, as he sings the rest of the song, the audience feel they are part of it too. This, in turn, helps them relate to the song.
Ethos (Appeal to Ethics)
The writer uses ethos through the phrase “The lessons I've learnt” to convince the audience that they should learn from his experience. He, therefore, creates a sense of trust in the audience creating the need to listen to him more. He tells the audience to sink the money in the river. Logos (Appeal to Logic or Facts)
Logos is the use of logic to provoke thinking. The phrase, “Seek it out and ye' shall find” is extensively used in the Bible and is used by the writer to convince the audience. He relates to the audience who have read such a verse in the Bible and feel their religious views are respected in the song.
Conclusion
The song Counting Stars achieved enormous success because of the way it touched people's lives and how these people could easily relate to its content. The writer of the song is a lyrical genius as he incorporated various stylistic devices to achieve his primary aim of sending a relatable message while exploring the richness of linguistic use to connect with his audiences. The song presents a concrete theme of materialism and optimism that the modern society can resonate with and integrate into their daily living. The rich use of varying stylistic devices such as literary parallelism, metaphor, similes, ethos and logos have ensured that the writer attains the intended objective of connecting with the global audiences in a great and successful way.
