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Taylor Swift - Safe and Sound (feat. The Civil Wars) Song Meaning - Review

Taylor Swift – Safe and Sound (feat. The Civil Wars) Song Meaning (Words) – Review

Let’s take a look at Taylor Swift’s new release “Safe And Sound” and see if we can grasp the meaning. As you all well know, this is one of the featured songs from the soundtrack of the upcoming movie “Hunger Games” which doesnt hit the big screen until almost the end of March. And so you have even more of a background, you need to know that the the movie is based on the first book of the trilogy “Hunger Games” written by Suzanne Collins that was published in 2008.

Set in the future, “Hunger Games” follows the main character, 16 year old Katniss Everdeen who has volunteered to take the place of her younger sister Primrose in the violent, kill or be killed games. Katniss also develops a relationship with the main male character Peeta Mellark who is from the same region as Katniss and who will also be fighting.

Sure, it would be a lot easier to watch the movie and determine the meaning of this song, but we don’t have that at our disposal. And as we all know, movies don’t always follow the plotline of the book. Right?

After searching for the meaning of “Safe And Sound” through various sites that discuss lyrics, it’s been my observation that there really isn’t a concensus of opinion. What we can agree on though is that the song itself oozes love, sorrow and protection for the one you love in bucketloads.

Let’s take a look at the song’s lyrics and I’ll explain.

In the opening stanza of “Safe And Sound,” some feel that this is Katniss signing to her younger sister Primrose promising to protect her from from harm and telling her that no matter what she will protect her. This has already been established since Katniss has taken the place of her younger sister in the games.

Others feel that the song is sung to Peeta since Katniss joins forces with him during the games and actually cares for him and nurses him back to health from near death in the movie. You could say it’s a song of undying love that will always persevere and survive no matter what might happen.

And lastly, many feel that the song is what Katniss sings to the character Rue as she dies. Katniss developed a brief allegiance with Rue during the games and is stricken with sadness when Rue is killed before her.

If you have read the book “Hunger Games” and have listened to Taylor Swift’s new song “Safe And Sound” then let us know what you think the song means!

[Taylor Swift – Safe and Sound (feat. The Civil Wars) Song Meaning (Words) – Review @ SongOnLyrics.com]


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  • Lindsey Z. says:

    This is my interpretation of the song.

    First of all, the ‘I remember tears streaming down your face when I said I’d never let you go’ is after the reaping, when Katniss is saying goodbye to Prim and her mother. It refers to Katniss’s promise to try to win the Games, so she can return home to Prim.

    “when all those shadows almost killed your light” I again think It’s referring to Prim, I think It is either talking about when they almost starved to death, or, simply that Prim has taken on so many hardships at such a young age.

    “I remember you said don’t leave me here alone, but all that’s dead and gone and past tonight.”

    Now we’ve skipped ahead to Catching Fire. Even though this is a promotional song for the FIRST film/book, I interpret this as, as I said before, skipping ahead to Catching Fire, and how Katniss intended to die in the arena, and to have Peeta return to district 12, differing from her strategy in the 74th Games, when she was trying to return home.

    “Just close your eyes, the sun is going down, you’ll be alright, no one can hurt you now, come morning light, you and I’ll be safe, and sound”

    I think this is actually referring to either the ‘Valley Song’ mentioned in the first book -deep in the meadow, under the willow- or, at the end of the first book/movie, when Cato is being ripped up by mutts, and Katniss is just praying that Peeta will hold on until morning, because, she assumes, that Cato will be dead by then, there is some flawed logic with this, like the fact that that night, Katniss kept rousing Peeta, because she was afraid that if he fell asleep, he would never wake up, hence, making ‘just close your eyes’ seen irellevent. Also, ‘the sun is coming DOWN’ wouldn’t make much sense either, because they were waiting for the sun to come up, not down.

    “Don’t you dare look out your window, darling everything’s on fire,”

    I think this is about how Prim has had to deal with too many hardships so early in her life, and Katniss’s attempts to shield her from everything that’s going on. EVIDENCE: In Mockingjay, when Plutarch shows squad 451 the diagram of the Capitol street loaded with pods, Finnick says he wonders what he will tell Annie, and Katniss says, “Nothing, that’s what my family will be hearing from me. It’s already bad enough that we’re going to war, they don’t need to know we’re going into a fully-stocked arena.” or something like that.

    “the war outside our door keeps raging on.”

    Pretty obvious I think. It refers to the fact that the ongoing Civil War between the Capitol and the Rebels seems never ending, and that Prim should continue to “not look out her window” while the war is still ongoing.

    “Hold onto this lullaby, even when the music’s gone”

    This is Katniss saying to Prim, that she should hold onto her memory of Katniss, and all the happy moments that they shared together, even if one of them (or both) dies, or so to say, “Even when the music’s gone”

  • Isa says:

    I think SPOILER MOCKINGJAY Taylor Swift (in the song and the video) represents dead Prim going back to District 12 and that the song is sang by Prim for Katniss.

  • Jordan Hampton says:

    I think the song means that no matter what you and I’ll be safe and sound. I think she was singing it to rue because when she says “no one can hurt you now” since rues dying means that no one can hurt her. Also I think it applies to rue because she says ” hold on to this lullaby even when he musics gone…, gone” I think she is saying that while she is dying and is taking her last breath that she needs to hold on to the song she is singing to her.

  • Claire Winters says:

    :O Someone with the same name as me! XD

    Anyway, yeah. I agree with her. Most likely, it represents all three books.

    First stanza:
    First book—Katniss protecting Prim, Peeta (in the first book and Catching Fire), Rue, Gale, and her family

    Second stanza(not chorus):
    War—The rebellion against Snow and the Capitol. Darling—Prim and Katniss’s mother.

    Love the song, anyway.

  • Claire says:

    Ok i think this song represents all of what is above also maybe some of the second book and third this song is to represent all of what has happened in katnisses life throughout all of the books

  • Taylor Swift – Safe and Sound Lyrics (feat. The Civil Wars) | Taylor Swift says:

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