"Origin of Love" by Hedwig and the Angry Inch

We've encountered Hedwig before. I've had this song in my back pocket for a while. Now that I'm writing about it, I'm not sure exactly what to say. It's a power ballad, for sure, with lyrics whose brilliance are unrivaled by any other song I've heard. In fact, after seeing "Hedwig and the Angry Inch," I felt so strongly about this song, I had to make The Husband (formerly The Boyfriend) listen to it immediately. When he dismissed it as "the most emo song he's ever heard," I cannot begin to describe the level of disappointment I felt. Because I was hoping - just hoping - that he would understand what the song was saying as much as I did. Which is silly, because it isn't the type of song he would get. Not only are the esoteric references over his head, I'm not sure he's even interested in googling the Cliff's Notes for Plato's "Symposium," which is the text the lyrics are based on. Mind you, you don't have to be well-versed in classical philosophy to follow the story - some people just know it's true in their heart. Or so I've been told....maybe that's true for you, too.

For those who haven't spent a lot of time perusing ancient Greek philosophy, I'll sum up "Symposium" here as best I can. "Symposium" is an imagined collection of speeches given by celebrated philosophers of the day in praise of the god Eros. "Origin of Love" is based on Aristophanes speech. Aristophanes tells the other guests that, in the beginning, there were three sexes. One looked like two females attached at the back (Children of the Earth), another was two males (Children of the Sun), and the third was comprised of a man and a woman attached together (Children of the Moon). The humans conspired to climb Mt. Olympus and confront the gods. The gods, frightened by the humans strength and determination, devised an especially cruel way to punish them. Zeus used lightening to cut the humans in half and then scattered them to the wind. And thus, humans are doomed to walk the earth, searching for their other half, wishing to be whole again. However, Aristophanes posits that if they do find their other half, they will be inseparable. It's the essential Love Story, which all other love stories are based on. This text is the basis for the idea of Twin Flames - a single soul split between two bodies. It's not the same as soulmates, if you believe in that kind of thing. You can have dozens of soulmates over your lifetime, but you only have one Twin Flame.

Last time I saw you

We just split in two

You was looking at me

I was looking at you

You had a way so familiar

But I could not recognize

'cause you had blood in your face

And I had blood in my eyes

But I could swear by your expression

That the pain down in your soul

Was the same as the one down in mine

Aristophanes called his speech a eulogy for the human race - I think that's probably right. It sounds like a sad and lonely existence searching, knowing you're missing something. What a monumental task, to find that one other person out of 7.5 billion people? And, like our friend Wreckless Eric reminded us on Monday, "she probably lives in Tahiti." Eric was obviously from Great Britain - how the fuck would he know to go searching in Tahiti? Or what if they're in some place even farther away? It's basically guaranteed that they'll be from a different culture or socioeconomic status or any number of things that make a relationship difficult. Or what if they ended up dying early this lifetime? Or can't be with you for some other stupid reason? So many "what ifs" and "oh nos." Maybe it's better to not believe in such things, unless it's in a movie or a book. Otherwise, it's just depressing to think about....enough to call back that existential dread that lingers around in the back your mind.

Anyway, this idea also serves as the basis for Hedwig's story, too. At first, she believed Tommy Gnosis was her Twin Flame. Then, he freaks out after discovering she's transgender, steals all her songs and goes on to be a famous rockstar. Hedwig spends the majority of the movie following his tour while playing with her band of Eastern European immigrants. Finally, Hedwig hits rock bottom, having pushed away her friends, and starts working as a hooker. Hedwig and Tommy do reunite briefly, when he solicits her "services." It's a funny scene - Hedwig gets really pissed off when she finds out that Tommy fucked up the lyrics to "Origin of Love" (He was calling Osiris "the Cyrus"). When the paparazzi discover them together, their fortunes reverse - Hedwig becomes a big star and Tommy fades into oblivion. In the end, she realizes she never needed Tommy - she was whole all on her own. And that's the moral of the story, kids.

Including the scene from the movie (because I like the illustrations that go with the song) as well a clean version from the soundtrack.

"Origin of Love" Scene

Soundtrack Version