River Lea

It is always easier to blame your problems on someone else. Whether it is your parents, siblings, or even friends. As long as it isn’t you. In Adele’s album, 25, the song “River Lea” refers back to a place near her childhood home. The River Lea is an actual river located in England and flows into the Thames. This song is a tribute to her childhood home and signifies the deep connection she has to her home. The link to her lyrics are here.

The theme of “River Lea” I think refers to the fact that people have their flaws and that instead of taking responsibility, people blame it on their past. It is easier to put blame on someone or something else rather than yourself. Also, it shows that people are selfish and immature because they are not trying to fix their issues.

“But it’s in my roots, it’s in my veins /It’s in my blood and I stain every heart that I use to heal the pain.” She feels that the River Lea is deep inside her and that she hurts the people she uses to cover her mistakes. The parallel structure she uses emphasizes the connection she has with the River and how her flaws cannot be her fault. The progression from “roots,” which is near a river, to “veins,” which is literally insider of her, to “blood,” which runs throughout her body, demonstrates her symbolic and physical connection with the river. Also the word “roots” is multidimensional because it refers to the roots of a tree or plant near the river or it refers to the roots of her family and her upbringing.

“No I can’t go back, but the reeds are growing out of my fingertips/ I can’t go back to the river.” She is trying to avoid blaming her past, but the connection is so close that she is literally becoming the surroundings of the river. The imagery that I can envision from “the reeds are growing out of my fingertips” is vivid. Reeds are shrubs that grow near rivers, People typically do not tend to them, but the grow quickly and spontaneously. Not only, does this indicate that she feels that her home is inside her, but it also connotes that she does not have control of the influences from her past.

“But my heart is a valley, it’s so shallow and man made/ I’m scared to death if I let you in that you’ll see I’m just a fake.” She refers to her heart as a valley, which is typically deep and empty. However, she contradicts herself by saying that is not very deep and that it is man made. The juxtaposition and simile used emphasizes that she realizes her problems and fears that if anyone tries to get near her they will see her for the fake she think she is. Therefore, instead of letting people see her flaws (which she thinks makes her fake), she is going to blame her mistakes on her childhood.

I think “River Lea” demonstrates that people do not want to admit and try to fix their issues. People find it easier to lay the blame on something else. It also indicates that people are lazy and really not trying to improve themselves, which can arguably be the point of living. I think “River Lea” exposes those people who cannot take responsibility for their flaws.