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Hands Clean-Alanis Morissette

 
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river1974



Joined: 20 May 2003
Posts: 525
Location: Taiwan

PostPosted: Wed Apr 20, 2005 9:48 pm    Post subject: Hands Clean-Alanis Morissette Reply with quote

Dear teachers:

Lyrics questions again.

...And overlook this supposed crime (supposed crime?)

...And you've washed your hands clean of this (wash your hands clean means to turn over a new leaf?)

...what part of our history's reinvented and under rug swept? (under rug swept?)

...We best keep this to ourselves and not tell any members of our inner posse (inner posse means friends and relatives?)

Thanks.
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Bob S.



Joined: 29 Apr 2004
Posts: 1767
Location: So. Cal

PostPosted: Thu Apr 21, 2005 10:57 am    Post subject: Re: Hands Clean-Alanis Morissette Reply with quote

river1974 wrote:
...And you've washed your hands clean of this (wash your hands clean means to turn over a new leaf?)

Not quite. It means to refuse to be part of something, to refuse to have responsibility for it.
It is a literary reference from the Christian Bible. When Jesus was taken before the Roman governor Pilate, people were asking for Jesus to be executed. After Pilate questions him, he declares "I find no fault with this man" but agrees to send Jesus to be crucified even though he thinks Jesus is innocent of any crime. So Pilate washes his own hands, a symbolic way to say that this is not my prefered choice, this is not my responsibility, and this man's blood is not on my hands.

Quote:
...what part of our history's reinvented and under rug swept? (under rug swept?)

To sweep something under the rug means to hide something and/or forget about it.
When a lazy person cleans their house floors, instead of dutifully sweeping the dust and dirt out of the house, they may instead just lift a corner of a large area rug and push the dust under it so no one can see there is still dirt in the house.

Quote:
...We best keep this to ourselves and not tell any members of our inner posse (inner posse means friends and relatives?)

Yes. Closest friends.
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bud



Joined: 09 Mar 2003
Posts: 2111
Location: New Jersey, US

PostPosted: Thu Apr 21, 2005 11:31 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Quote:
...And overlook this supposed crime (supposed crime?)


Crime is probably being used as a metaphor, so not a legal crime but a moral wrong. Supposed conveys that while others may consider "it" a moral wrong, "I" (the speaker) most certainly do not.
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river1974



Joined: 20 May 2003
Posts: 525
Location: Taiwan

PostPosted: Thu Apr 21, 2005 6:10 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thank you both for your brilliant explanations!
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