APLC P1 Lyric Analysis Hotel California

Pursuit of Happiness Success has always been one of mans greatest aspirations, the connotation of the American dream. Every one of us has our own interpretation of success, each one of us with a different purpose in life. No matter how much we deny as individuals, our will to strive for success is often kindled by the idea of being recognized for our achievements by our peers. Consequently, but not consistently, fame is often associated with that recognition but when left to surge in an alarming level can become the grounds of materialism and greed as depicted by The Eagles on their ballad Hotel California. With the use of personification, abstract imagery and metaphor, the ballad metaphorically describes the ascending nature of fame and the destructive side effects of escalating fortune and adulation that comes along with being in the music industry and the American dream. The Eagles use of personification is substantiated in the ballad as they illustrate the summon of materialism in a lamenting tone as she [shows them] the way to an inviting setting called Hotel California. Although a lovely place, Hotel California served as an epitome of the materialism involved and how the mind is twisted by [the] Tiffanys [and] Mercedes Benz. This shows the

intoxicating effects of fortune and materialism to a person, the distortion of ones perspective and how occasionally can lead to self-destruction. In addition to the effects of materialism involved in the song, the use of abstract imagery on the lyrics illustrates in a poetic tone that the songwriters perceives Hotel California; with the mirrors on the ceiling and the pink champagne as heaven but in the midst of their sightless intoxication to, the songwriters becomes

fully aware of the [inner] beast involved and that [they] are all just prisoners of their own [crusade]. In addition, the songwriters abhorred the idea of losing their freedom in exchange of their fame and fortune and have come to the point of epiphany. This conveys the truth that in any aspects of life, our destiny has a turbulent nature that can swiftly transform from righteous to woeful. As the ballad ends, the songwriters metaphorically describe themselves in a panicking tone to running [back] to the door as they try to hamper their escalating journey to fame and find the passage back to the place [they] were before. With fame and prosperity comes with a price, and in this case, the price was that they can check-out anytime but can never leave the vortex of their unrestrained lifestyle. This manifests the turmoil associated with the excessive lifestyle and without restrain comes bigger problems that one will have a hard time to liberate from. Furthermore, this shows the wretched underbelly of living the excessive American dream, the substandard effects of extravagant lifestyles, fame and fortune. The Eagles ballad, Hotel California exhibits that happiness cannot be bought by money, nor can we compare fame to happiness but sometimes the pursuit of happiness can be found from the place we were before.