A Queen's Opinion Podcast

Decoding James Brown's "It's a Man's World"

Queen Season 3 Episode 7

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0:00 | 12:04

We explore James Brown's famous song "It's a Man's World" to uncover deep truths about gender roles and relationships. The lyrics reveal that despite all of men's achievements and creations, life is meaningless without partnership with women.

• Equal sharing in relationships means equal portions, not just having a part
• The lyrics of "It's a Man's World" acknowledge man's incompleteness without woman

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Podcast Introduction

Speaker 1

The views and opinions expressed on this podcast or website are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of A Queen's Opinion . Any content provided by our bloggers or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion , ethnic group , club , organization , company , individual or anyone or anything .

Speaker 2

Welcome to A Queen's Opinion . My name is Queen , my voice , my opinion and your listening ears

Analyzing "It's a Man's World"

Speaker 2

this episode . We are analyzing the song . It's a Man's World . What does a man's world look like with a woman ? Few people get the opportunity to experience that everlasting love that till death do us part love . Why , I am not sure why , but from this woman's perspective , sharing life together with a partner is love . The word sharing means to have a portion of something with another or others . I would elaborate on the definition by adding the words equal portion . It's the equal portion that is significant .

Speaker 2

I was told as a young woman that the man is the head of the house , the king of the house , the big dog in the family . In the family , I was told that it is up to them , as men , to provide everything for survival in this life . And by saying this we are not acknowledging the significance of the woman's role . There is a reason why God chose a woman to carry life in her womb . In the beginning , god created man and took a piece of man to create the woman . I like to think that somewhere in God's thinking that by creating the woman he created the whole man , that's , w-h-o-l-e . Whole man .

Speaker 2

This is an example showing that man is incomplete without a woman . Now , together , let's take a few minutes to listen to the lyrics of that famous song

Breaking Down the Lyrics

Speaker 2

it's a Man's World and let's see if we can hear the significance of a woman's role . Many people understand and get the meaning of the song by James Brown it's a Man's World . I want to just take a few minutes to express my opinion of the song . Come on , just walk with me through the lyrics . Right up front , his chorus says this is a man's world , but it wouldn't be nothing , nothing , without a woman or a girl . I like this . This chorus backs up my opinion that man is incomplete without a woman .

Speaker 2

Now , in the first verse he said you see , man made the cars to take us over the roads . Man made the train to carry the heavy load , heavy load . Man made the electric light to take us out of the dark . Man made the boat for the water , like Noah made the ark . I really like this verse . You see , he implies that man made a way for the woman . I like the fact that he talks about transportation . We no longer have to walk on the long roads and carry the heavy loads because the man provided cars and trains . Line three implies that we should not be scared of the darkness anymore . Man created the light to get us out of the dark . But my favorite line is the fourth line . He said man made the boat for the water like Noah made the ark . Now , if you have ever attended any Sunday school , you know how important it was for Noah to create the ark and have two of everything .

Speaker 2

Now , it didn't say why it was important to have two of everything . But here again , I would go on to say that you need two of everything to procreate . So when the water receded and the land was available again , all creatures could procreate , since they had traveled in pairs that could reproduce , which means that you must have a boy and a girl , a male and a female , to continue to reproduce life . Once again , this course backs up my opinion that we need each other to reproduce and feel complete .

The Spiritual Connection

Speaker 2

This is a man's world , as James would say , but it wouldn't be nothing , nothing without a woman or a girl . Now , in his second verse , he says man thinks about our little bitty baby girls , our baby boys . Men make them happy because men make them toys . And after men make everything , everything he can do you know that man makes money to buy from another man . Well , verse two tells us that he thinks about the children and what he can do to make the children happy . So man created toys . The verse goes on to say that man has created everything . Man has met all the requirements of taking care of the woman and the children and there is nothing else he needs or can do . He tells us that man even made the money , literally made the money and once the money was made he just bought and sold goods to another man or men . Just like the first verse , he follows it up with the chorus line and the outro . The chorus again says this is a man's world , but it wouldn't be nothing , nothing , not one little thing without a woman or a girl . The outro goes on and says he's lost in the wilderness , he's lost in bitterness , he's lost , lord , have mercy now in loneliness .

Speaker 2

I think James Brown realized when he was writing this song , although he may have had an argument or disagreement with this woman , that he still needed her . I think somewhere in those disagreements that he's probably told the woman many times that everything you have , everything you needed and everything you wanted I have provided for you and the kids . Sometimes , when we have these disagreements and arguments with our spouse , we say some hurtful , harmful things we didn't even mean at the time . The words came out of our mouth in the heat of the moment . I think James Brown wanted his woman to know that , even though he's done all these things for their family , for her , for their relationship , that none of that means anything . None of that means nothing if she is not with him . In the outro , he tells us that man is lost , lonely and bitter . Why ? Because , after all , man has created and done . It means nothing without a woman by his side .

Speaker 2

Now , I don't know if James Brown is praying or not in the song , but he calls on the Lord asking him for his mercy in times like this . If he is a praying man and if he is praying in the song , that is the type of man I want to be with in a relationship . A good man knows that there is only one person you can call on for help . I want a man that has a relationship with the creator , the most high king , the king of kings , my Lord and savior . I want a man to know that all our help comes from the Lord . You see , if you have a man that has a spiritual relationship with the Lord , then you can work it all out . There is nothing you can't work out together . What does a man's world look like without a woman ? Well , james Brown used the words lost , lonely and bitter . I say lost because to me , this indicates an emptiness inside , with no place to call home and feelings of incompleteness , feelings of loneliness , no one to share the good and tough times in life , which , over time , builds a bitterness of a life built without a partner to share with . My outro for this episode is this what does a man's world look like with a woman Happy , loving , fulfilling and complete ?

Closing Thoughts and Contact Info

Speaker 2

A Queen's Opinion is a podcast that allows people , especially women , to think out loud about life situations and seek an opinion without being judged . This podcast is supposed to lift you up , encourage you to be the best person you can be , to inspire you to step out of your comfort zone and into your queen zone . I didn't say my opinion will solve your problems . I am not saying that I am right , but what I am saying is I'm going to give you another view of the situation from a distance . No more thinking or questioning a situation by yourself . Ask the queen . Go to our website , wwwaquingsopinioncom , and click on get in touch to leave your feedback or leave a question for the queen . Don't forget to like us wherever you get your podcasts . Thank you for taking time out of your day . I hope you join me for our next episode . Until then , goodbye .