Power over me by Dermot Kennedy, is a love song that talks about being overtaken by your feelings for someone. In an interview with Complex, Dermot explained the meaning of the song. “The whole song started with just that one idea, that sole lyric of ‘you’ve got that power over me’. The idea of being totally bewitched by somebody, to be totally under their spell, in a really good way. Just totally enamored.” (Espinoza, 2020)
I will be using the elegy frame to analyze the lyrics of this song. The elegy frame means that the person telling the story feels passive, or unable to control the situation. The first lyric I want to look at is, “I’m outrunning the dark, that’s all that love ever taught me” (Kennedy, 2019). With this lyric he reflected on past relationships. When he states that he feels like he is trying to outrun the dark, the darkness symbolizes an ending of a relationship. This is him stating that all his previous relationships have taught him that there is an ending or a breaking point. The lyric, “outrunning the dark”, also makes you as the listener feel that he is in a hopeless place. This is an example of elegy because he does not have total control over the relationship.
Next we will look at the chorus:
“You’ve got that power over me, my my
Everything I hold dear resides in those eyes
You’ve got that power over me, my my
The only one I know, the only one on my mind
You’ve got that power over me (My my)
You’ve got that power over me (My my)
You’ve got that power over me” (Kennedy, 2019)
The chorus is showing how this person makes him feel. He is clearly infatuated with this person, and feels powerless when it comes to them. The lyric “everything I hold dear resides in those eyes”, perfectly states how this person is the most important thing to him. That statement conveys to the listener that he would do anything for this person. The line that repeats in the chorus is “You’ve got this power over me”. This is a great example of the elegy frame. It shows that he is not in control of the situation and that the power lies within the other person. Ultimately, whatever happens is up to them.
Using the elegy frame to analyze the lyrics puts an interesting twist on this love song. Rather than focusing on the bliss of a new relationship, he looks back at past loves that didn’t work. The chorus reveals him realizing that he is in trouble because he feels powerless when it comes to them.
Espinoza, J. (2020, January 30). Premiere: Dermot Kennedy Shares “Power Over Me”. Retrieved February 26, 2020, from https://www.complex.com/music/2018/10/dermot-kennedy-power-over-me
Kennedy, Dermot. Without Fear. (2019)
Elyse's Rhetorical Criticism Blog 
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I really liked how you organized this post. The introduction started off strong with explaining what the song was about and using a citation from Dermot Kennedy, explaining what the song is about. Then transitioning into analyzing the lyrics and relating it to the elegy frame, and then concluding the post with how elegy relates and why it helps the listener hear the song in a different way. I don’t have any critique comments for this post as it seemed amazing as is. Good job!
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This is absolutely, completely elegy. Great analysis!
You’ve provided very close analysis of the lyrics, and your support for your reading is strong. You have description, interpretation, and analysis, in other words.
What’s missing? Evaluation. Do you find that this frame tells the story in the best possible way? What are the advantages/disadvantages of using elegy in a love situation? Would this lead to a healthy relationship? Etc. The last step is to judge/assess/evaluate the rhetorical utility of the choices made.
You are doing wonderful work here. Keep at it!
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The introduction of this post was very telling and allowed me to know how you honestly studied this method. I see how the theory is setup and you proceed to go down the right path. You are very descriptive whenever you go into depth about what goes on within the songs. It is something that I like from your posts.
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