Waiting for the Worm to Turn

So here’s one of my favorite songs, and ill explain why I like it. Well, its partial bias because we all know its lead singer.

Waiting for the Worm to Turn

Bourgeoise Tagg

We're waiting for the worm to turn
We're waiting for everybody else to come around to our way of thinking
I think we've found the way that it could be

When you look at me that way, you're keeping me out of touch
With the world that I read about every day
You and I seem so faithless lying here on our backs
Naming every cloud that passes, naming them two by two

We're waiting for the worm to turn
We're waiting for everybody else to come around to our way of thinking
I think we've found the way that it could be

The wars are over, my dragon hunting days are over
They're all behind me for now, I just want to see, how it can be
Counting blessings instead of oughta-bes, counting them two by two

We're waiting for the worm to turn
We're waiting for everybody else to come around to our way of thinking
I think we've found the way that it could be
So while we're waiting for the worm to turn
While we're waiting for everybody else to come
Around to our way of thinking... I'm thinking if you could make love to me

They'll forget about us, the rats can run the race without us
While we disappear without a trace, we can find a hiding place
Well build a house in a tree
Then well pull the ladder up after me and multiply two by two

We're waiting for the worm to turn
We're waiting for everybody else to come around to our way of thinking
I think we've found the way that it could be
So while we're waiting for the worm to turn
While we're waiting for everybody else to come
Around to our way of thinking
I'm thinking if you could make love to me
We're waiting for the worm to turn
We're waiting for everybody else to come around to our way of thinking
I think we've found the way that it could be
So while we're waiting for the worm to turn
While we're waiting for everybody else to come
Around to our way of thinking... I'm thinking if you could make love to me
While we're waiting for the worm to turn
We're waiting for everybody else to come around to our way of thinking
I think we've found the way that it could be
So while we're waiting for the worm to turn
While we're waiting for everybody else to come around

So I love all the parts of this song, but unfortunately, its long, so I’m just going to focus on this section.

Were waiting for the worm to turn
Were waiting for everybody else to come around to our way of thinking
I think we’ve found the way that it could be
The wars are over, my dragon hunting days are over
They're all behind me for now, I just want to see, how it can be
Counting blessings instead of oughta-bes, counting them two by two

I like this phrase because it outlines the problems of today. For the first line, the word “worm” isn’t used as the ground-dwelling type; it’s used as the description of a despicable person. “Waiting for the worm to turn” tells that you wait for the person to turn away from their despicable ways. This leads into the second and third lines, where they want “Were waiting for everybody else to come around to our way of thinking, I think we’ve found the way that it could be.” This shows the description of their ideal world, one where everyone turns away from being a “worm” and joins their “way of thinking”.

For the fourth and fifth lines, they focus on the “wars” and “dragon hunting days.” Both of these phrases have negative connotations that may involve death. The point made is to see what happens when you turn away from the dangerous things, because those days are “behind me for now, I just want to see how it can be.”

Finally, in the final line, is the description of what people to do, which is to “(Count) blessings instead of oughta-bes.” The message given is that you should count the good things that come in life, not the things that you wish would happen.

If you do count the “oughta-bes”, then you would be becoming  the “worm”, going back to the “wars” and “dragon hunting days.”

Well, that’s the end of the analysis. Thank you for reading. To enjoy this song, please press here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HabVZ_3QVN8