Close Textual Analysis

I will be using close text analysis to analyze Dermot Kennedy’s music video for his song Lost. An article by Sage Research Methods defined close textual analysis as; “Close textual analysis, investigates the relationship between the internal workings of discourse in order to discover what makes a particular text function persuasively. A text is an artifact that stimulates meaning” (Close reading, 2017). When analyzing visuals, or in this case a music video, I will look at the scene, color palette, and music. 

Dermot Kennedy’s music video begins with him walking alone on an empty city street at night. The scene is dark, he is dressed for winter and singing acapella. I believe they chose to use a dark, cold scene to display how dark and cold can be a metaphor for feeling lost and alone. The next scene starts with a guy holding his head in his hands. Next you see a girl lying in her bed, staring at the ceiling blankly. These visuals continue to show the people who are feeling alone and lost. There are two more people who are shown in difficult situations, then it flashes back to Dermot walking down the street.

Next a piano starts to play and the song has picked up a bit. The screen now shows the two people who we first saw separately, as a young couple who just found out that they are pregnant. The next person we see is a caretaker who is taking care of a very sick patient. The third person we see is a man sitting at his desk in business attire, looking overwhelmed as his daughter peeks in on him. As the song continues to pick up, you see the people being embraced and cared for by their loved ones. The lyric playing over these scenes says, “I was lost until I found you”. This lyric accompanied with these visuals shows how people who love you can guide you and give you hope when you are feeling hopeless. The next lyric says “If only you could see yourself in my eyes, you’d see you shine”. Which is again stating how your loved one can guide and give hope. They can help you see outside the darkness of your own situation. The screen then shows Dermot walking into a gate and up the stairs into his apartment building. He passes each of the people whose stories we saw play out throughout the video. I believe they made this choice to show how we are all connected and all fighting our own battles, but we are not alone. We are surrounded by people who can offer support and hope.

This song and video follow a format he uses in many of his songs. It starts with an issue and throughout the song he tries to inspire hope and resolve the situation through music. I think it is an effective approach, and makes for powerful music with a great message.

Close Reading. (2017). Retrieved February 13, 2020, from https://methods.sagepub.com/reference/the-sage-encyclopedia-of-communication-research-methods/i2533.xml 

Kennedy, Dermot. Without Fear. 2019