The Pretender

Essay 4 revision

Every day people have to deal with inner emotions, which can cause great strain on an individual. They stare at themselves in mirrors forced to face their own judgment. They are their worst critics. Some people cannot handle their own criticism and choose instead to hide behind a facade. They mold themselves into the person they want to be, not the person they truly are. When people transform, it affects their demeanor immensely. They feel alone and feel they are always hiding a secret. The lyrics of “The Pretender”, by Foo Fighters, present an individual who experiences these inner emotions. The effectiveness of this song is shown through ethos and the determination of the speaker to find his true identity.
“The Pretender” uses bold words like “skeletons”, “bones”, “dark”, and “enemy” to tell a story of a man who goes through life every day wearing a facade; the type of facade that pleases everyone. He is sick of hiding behind this mask, and finally wants to reveal his true self. He wants to be defined as a genuine individual. The lyrics read as a motivational speech. The speaker’s goal is to encourage himself to stop pretending to be something he is not. He does not want to hide any more secrets. He cannot emotionally deal with the fact that he is living a lie. By thinking in a positive light, he motivates himself to inspire himself to be that genuine individual he dreams to be.

In “The Pretender”, the man is speaking to himself in an annoyed way. The lyrics read, “Send in your skeletons/…The secrets that you keep are at the ready/ Are you ready?/ I’m finished making sense/ Done pleading ignorance/ That whole defense” (ll. 5-12). He is admitting that he is finished with his façade and is tired of hiding behind secrets. He does not want to pretend anymore. This internal conflict he is dealing with can also be seen in lines 39 through 42. It reads, “I’m the voice inside your head/ You refuse to hear/ I’m the face that you have to face/ Mirrored in your stare.” These lines reveal that the character is experiencing emotional hardships. He is explaining to himself how he is the only person he has to deal with every day. When he looks into the mirror, he is the one starring back; the one who stares back and judges. He is his own enemy. The one person that can destroy his soul and bring him to his knees is himself. He wants all his internal problems to settle, so he can actually look in the mirror and not experience a feeling of judgment. The chorus reads, “What if I say I’m not like the others?/ What if I say I’m not just another one of your plays/ You’re the pretender/ What if I say that I’ll never surrender?” These words create a picture of a man looking in the mirror talking as if he were two people. He proclaims he will never surrender to the pretender. The pretender is the man’s fake self; the mask he has worn all his life. The man wants to get rid of this mask and will destroy the mask until he reaches his true identity.

“The Pretender” uses the technique of ethos. This is displayed in the lyrics by the male character constantly refering to his own credibility and who he is as an individual. The speaker continually says “What if I say I’m not like the others?/ What if I say I’m not just another one of your plays”. These are strong lines directed to his double self; the one hiding behind the mask and the one searching to find his true identity. The man tries to prove his credibility by describing his determination to his audience, which is himself. He says he is a strong person who will never surrender to the facade he used to hide behind. In lines 25 through 27, it says, “In time our soul untold/ I’m just another soul for sale… oh, well/ The page is out of print.” These lines justify the man’s annoyance of being a “soul for sale,” referencing that he was not living the life he wanted. He is done going through life pleasing everyone around him. He is done with his mask. His pages can no longer be written by anyone else. He is now in control of his own life. The man continues to motivate himself, so he does not get thrown off the course of finding his true identity. He repeatedly says, “So who are you?/ Yeah, who are you?” This is the question that lingers on his mind. He wants to be able to answer that question, and he will not stop searching until it is answered. All these intricate details and key phrases add to the effectiveness of ethos in “The Pretender”. The man continually proves to himself that he is capable of growing as a person by the strong motivation he provides for himself. The strength in him proves that he can be his own person and not a character hiding behind a facade. He is no longer the pretender.

“The Pretender” presents an interesting story of a man’s inner struggle with himself. The song uses ethos to add to the credibility of its main character. This is shown through the lines, which portray the man looking into a mirror fighting to find his true identity. He does not want to hide behind his façade any more. He wants to stop pretending.