"We Didn't Start the Fire"

In 1989, singer/songwriter Billy Joel created a very interesting song, whose meaning still resonates today:  We Didn't Start the Fire.

The basic message of the song this that there has always been controversy in the world, ever since you were little, ever since I was little, it never seems to end.  The "we" in the song seems to refer to the singer's generation, although can able to all generations.

Billy Joel really drives home the idea that "we didn't start the fire" by using internal rhyme, cacophony, and assonance, to persuade the listener that world events, both good and bad, continue throughout history.

For an example of assonance, Billy Joel says "Princess Grace, Peyton Place."  Here the "ace" at the end of both words, makes the phrase rhyme and continues the song's theme.  Princess Grace refers the the ascent of Grace Kelly, and American actress to the throne of Monaco.  Peyton Place refers to a controversial 1956 novel of the same name and a later TV series.

Billy Joel uses the technique of internal rhyme when he sings "Moonshot, Woodstock" referring to the ubiquitous landing on the moon in 1969 of John Glenn of the United States.  Woodstock of course refers to the music festival of the same era that defined a generation.  The way that these events are temporally placed and in various rhyming fashion draws the listener to the message.

One of the most used sound patterns in "We Didn't start the Fire" is cacophony.  As Billy Joel says "We didn't start the fire, it was always burring since the worlds been turning" he exhibits cacophony though "burning," "turning," and "fire."  At the same time, Joel drives the point home that the problems of the world are truly not the fault of any generation, but are problems of humankind.

Billy Joel
"We Didn't Start the Fire"
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/billyjoel/wedidntstartthefire.html