Deutschland by Rammstein - Interpretation

[LeventeII]

I had the opportunity to interpret a song by my favorite band "Rammstein". I'm actually not very good at interpreting, but this time some classmates helped me. I am more than happy with the result and I would like to share it with you!
It is the song "Deutschland", meaning "Germany". The teaser was released on March 27th and the music video one day later on March 28th. The related album was released on May 17th. "Germany" is the first title on the album.

Before I begin, there are a few things that need to be clarified.
I take the following interpretation from the text and a small piece from the music video. The music video is rated for 18 years. Rammstein's music videos are intentionally provocative, much more provocative than the music itself. The music video is available on YouTube. If you just want to listen to the music, you can also listen to it on apps like Spotify or iTunes.

In the process of interpretation I have noticed that "Deutschland" gives many hints to the time of National Socialism. I can promise that this song does not glorify radical thoughts in any way. Those get criticized rather. Nevertheless, I ask you not to leave any comments with any political background. Here it is only about the music and about possible interpretations. I ask you not to comment any political topics, please.

Finally the lyrics with an approximate English translation. The interpretation is based on the original text, but I try to explain it understandably. I will explain the colors in the text after that.

The original lyrics:

01 Du (du hast, du hast, du hast, du hast)
02 Hast viel geweint (geweint, geweint, geweint, geweint)
03 Im Geist getrennt (getrennt, getrennt, getrennt, getrennt)
04 Im Herz vereint (vereint, vereint, vereint, vereint)
05 Wir (wir sind, wir sind, wir sind, wir sind)
06 Sind schon sehr lang zusammen (ihr seid, ihr seid, ihr seid, ihr seid)
07 Dein Atem kalt (so kalt, so kalt, so kalt, so kalt)
08 Das Herz in Flammen (so heiß, so heiß, so heiß, so heiß)
09 Du (du kannst, du kannst, du kannst, du kannst)
10 Ich (ich weiß, ich weiß, ich weiß, ich weiß)
11 Wir (wir sind, wir sind, wir sind, wir sind)
12 Ihr (ihr bleibt, ihr bleibt, ihr bleibt, ihr bleibt)

13 Deutschland, mein Herz in Flammen
14 Will dich lieben und verdammen
15 Deutschland, dein Atem kalt
16 So jung, und doch so alt
17 Deutschland!

18 Ich (du hast, du hast, du hast, du hast)
19 Ich will dich nie verlassen (du weinst, du weinst, du weinst, du weinst)
20 Man kann dich lieben (du liebst, du liebst, du liebst, du liebst)
21 Und will dich hassen (du hasst, du hasst, du hasst, du hasst)
22 Überheblich, überlegen
23 Übernehmen, übergeben
24 Überraschen, überfallen
25 Deutschland, Deutschland über allen

26 Deutschland, mein Herz in Flammen
27 Will dich lieben und verdammen
28 Deutschland, dein Atem kalt
29 So jung, und doch so alt
30 Deutschland, deine Liebe
31 Ist Fluch und Segen
32 Deutschland, meine Liebe
33 Kann ich dir nicht geben
34 Deutschland!

35 Du
36 Ich
37 Wir
38 Ihr
39 Du (übermächtig, überflüssig)
40 Ich (Übermenschen, überdrüssig)
41 Wir (wer hoch steigt, der wird tief fallen)
42 Ihr (Deutschland, Deutschland über allen)

43 Deutschland, mein Herz in Flammen
44 Will dich lieben und verdammen
45 Deutschland, dein Atem kalt
46 So jung, und doch so alt
47 Deutschland, deine Liebe
48 Ist Fluch und Segen
49 Deutschland, meine Liebe
50 Kann ich dir nicht geben
51 Deutschland!


Translation:

1 You (you have, you have, you have, you have)
2 Have cried a lot (cried, cried, cried, cried)
3 Separated in spirit (separated, separated, separated, separated)
4 United in the heart (united, united, united, united)
5 We (we are, we are, we are, we are)
6 Have been together for a long time (you are, you are, you are, you are)
7 Your breath cold (so cold, so cold, so cold, so cold)
8 The heart in flames (so hot, so hot, so hot, so hot)
9 You (you can, you can, you can, you can)
10 I (I know, I know, I know, I know)
11 We (we are, we are, we are, we are)
12 You (you stay, you stay, you stay, you stay)

13 Germany, my heart in flames
14 Want to love and damn you
15 Germany, your breath cold
16 So young, and yet so old
17 Germany!

18 I (you have, you have, you have, you have)
19 I never want to leave you (you cry, you cry, you cry, you cry)
20 One can love you (you love, you love, you love, you love)
21 And wants to hate you (you hate, you hate, you hate, you hate)
22 Presumptuous, superior
23 Take over, hand over
24 Surprise, invade
25 Germany, Germany above all

26 Germany, my heart in flames
27 Want to love and damn you
28 Germany, your breath cold
29 So young, and yet so old
30 Germany, your love
31 Is curse and blessing
32 Germany, my love
33 I can't give you
34 Germany!

35 You
36 I
37 We
38 You
39 You (overpowering, unnecessary)
40 I (superhuman, weary)
41 We (who rises high, will fall deep)
42 You (Germany, Germany above all)

43 Germany, my heart in flames
44 Want to love and damn you
45 Germany, your breath cold
46 So young, and yet so old
47 Germany, your love
48 Is curse and blessing
49 Germany, my love
50 I can't give you
51 Germany!


Before I begin, I must first explain something very important. The conjugations in German are as follows:

1st person singular: Ich
2nd pers. sg:    Du
3rd pers. sg:    Er/Sie/Es
1st pers. plural: Wir
2nd pers. pl:    Ihr
3rd pers. pl:    Sie

In English they are as follows:

1st person singular: I
2nd pers. sg:    You
3rd pers. sg:    He/She/It
1st pers. plural: We
2nd pers. pl:    You
3rd pers. pl:    They

You can see the difficulty. The 2nd person singular and the 2nd person plural are identical in English. This leads to difficulties in translation. To make it easier, I have colored all pronouns that are "Du" (2nd person singular) blue, and "Ihr" (2nd person plural) red. This should provide some clarification.

I've been able to figure out a lot of things from this song. It's about historical aspects. My interpretations are based on the fact that the lyrical-I represents a generally German person. Although this refers to the entire German people, every single person is addressed individually and not as a collective. The "you" refers to Germany as a country. With the "we" and the "you" there are the following two possibilities or perspectives:

1.    -The "we" refers to the German people in general, regardless of time.
   -The "you" refers to foreign countries, which means the people and thus the perspective of countries other than Germany.

2.    -The "we" refers to the present German people.
   -The "you" refers to the past German people, especially the people during the time of National Socialism.

These two options will only occur in a few places, but they are one of the most important. Also note that the "we" in both options includes the German people of today.
Last but not least the hint, that the text in brackets is sung in the background and therefore less noticeable.

I will use the German terms for the pronouns to keep it clearer.

Beginning with "You […] have cried a lot" (l.1-2) it is shown that Germany often "cried" in the course of history, meaning that it has experienced many dark times.
This is followed by the antithesis that the people are "separated in spirit [...] [but] united in the heart". The spirit represents the opinions and attitudes of the individual people. This ranges from a simple opinion to a complete ideology. There are many different ones, and that creates a difference between the people of the German people. In the heart, however, they are all the same, namely Germans. Independently of any "spirit", they are all Germans, which unites them.
Lines 5-6 show with "We [...] have been together for a long time" that the German people have been together with Germany for a long time. This is also meant to allude to history. Germany's history indeed goes back a very long time, at least to the Germanic people, therefore several thousand years. If you add the Neanderthal, Germany's history is even older!

With lines 7-8 another antithesis appears: "Your breath cold [...] the heart in flames". Normal breath is warm, but if it is cold, there is a problem, something bad. The pronoun "Your" makes it clear that this is Germany's breath. However, "The Heart in Flames" is generally formulated. A burning heart represents longing, meaning the longing of people. This is an allusion to the fact that there were moments in history when many people loved Germany full of pride and longing, but the country was devastated. This can bear witness of two things. Either stubbornness or loyalty. Although Germany was devastated, people were positive about it. The stubbornness could be shown with the big wars that Germany had experienced, especially the Second World War. Although Germany was completely devastated during the Second World War, there were still people who claimed it would be so beautiful even though they were about to surrender. The loyalty, on the other hand, is shown by the fact that although Germany was completely destroyed at the end of the Second World War, the people continued to look ahead and did not simply leave the country.

I did not find a good interpretation for lines 9-12. However, I assume that "you can" (l.9) means that Germany has a lot of potential, therefore possibilities. "I know" (l.10) shows that the people are aware of this. "We are" (l.11) says that the German people exists. It is like an exclamation.

"You stay"(l.11) has, due to the two possible definitions I have mentioned above, two possible statements: In the first case, that "you" means the other countries, this line says that the other countries will remain.
In the second case, that "you" means the German people of the past, this passage is an exclamation. Accordingly, the earlier people will forever remain in the past, which means that there will only be "new peoples", in the sense that they will modernize rather than hold on to old, past and partly unproven things.

Then comes the refrain. Line 13 is actually already explained. Here it is added that the lyrical-I says that his own heart is in flames. The lyrical-I says that it loves Germany itself and longs for it.

Line 14 again contains an antithesis. The pronoun is missing, so it should actually say: "(I) want to love and damn you". That there must be "I" in any case is due to German grammar. "He/She/It" could also function grammatically, but the lyrical-I in line 13 speaks about itself, so it is plausible that it is kept in line 14. In addition it makes sense, because with this line a not quite rare dilemma is taken up: Actually, one would like to love Germany and therefore also its past. However, this becomes difficult because of the partly very dark past, because you would love this as well. On the other hand, Germany has also achieved big and positive things. An example would be the letterpress printing or the automobile.

Then comes "So young, and yet so old" (l.16), which means that Germany is young and old at the same time. If we look at Germany as the Federal Republic of Germany, one notices that it does not exist for very long. If we look at the unification of Germany in 1871, we also see that, compared with other countries, it came into being quite late. But if one looks on the other side and regards Germany independently of the status of a state, then one realizes that "Germans" have existed for a long time. Again the Germanic people or even the Neanderthals are meant here.

In lines 18-19 "I [...] I never want to leave you" the lyrical-I says that it does not want to leave Germany. The reason for this could be longing. If one goes one step further, then it is possible to apply these lines also to difficult political times in Germany, when many people fled to other countries, but also when many people remained in Germany despite the hard circumstances. Be it war or suppression, some people remained in Germany despite the worst circumstances.
The dilemma, as already described in line 14, is repeated in lines 20-21: "One can love you [...] and wants to hate you" shows, that one could actually love Germany, but wants to hate it because of its past.

Lines 22-25 play an important role in this song. The words " Presumptuous, superior, Take over, hand over, surprise, invade" (l.22-24) can be well applied to the time of National Socialism. At that time the German people, guided by the ideology of National Socialism, were presumptuous. They felt superior to other countries and peoples. They wanted to take over, wanted things to be handed over to them. Germany surprised and invaded. Examples are the annexation of Austria and the invasion of Poland. A very important point is that in the German language all these words begin with "above". It piles up, until in line 25 a big hint at the Deutschlandlied (German Song) takes place. "Deutschland, Deutschland über allen" meaning "Germany, Germany above all" is almost the first line of the Deutschlandlied and was the national anthem until 1945. From 1945 it was forbidden. After the reunification the ban was not renewed. Although it is theoretically not illegal to sing the Deutschlandlied, you can get in trouble if you abuse it. This is because the first line of the Deutschlandlied is strongly associated with the National Socialism. This connection shows that the words in lines 22-24 refer to the time of National Socialism. It rises, the "above" stands for the height. At that time, Germany stood very high above everything else from the German people's point of view. This message plays an important role again later.

After that the refrain follows again, but this time it is extended. The extension takes place at line 30. "Your love is curse and blessing" (l.30-31) again represents the dilemma described above. If one loves Germany, then one loves its history, both the very good and the very bad things. So the love for Germany is a present, a blessing, but also a curse.
In lines 32-33 the lyrical-I decides not to love Germany. Even if he wanted to, he could not do it, Germany's past is too burdened for that.
One must not forget that the lyrical-I is a general German person.

Now follows the passage that can be described as "bridge". For this part of the song there are, due to the two possibilities of interpretation, as explained at the beginning, two possibilities. In both cases it is primarily about the time of National Socialism.

Number one. The four pronouns represent Germany (you), a general, German person (I), the German people in general (we) and other countries (you). These four figures now hear certain things, namely the text inside the brackets.
Line 39 is about Germany. "Overpowering, unnecessary" (l.39) is what Germany says to itself. It is a kind of self-assessment. Whereby "superior" and "unnecessary" are two opposites. At this point one can assume that the "unnecessary" refers to "foreigners" and "un-German people".
In line 40, Germany speaks to the lyrical-I and thus to a general German person. They are "superhumen, [still] weary".
In line 41 a threat is made. The German people receive the threat: "Who rises high, will fall deep". Where the threat comes from remains open at this point.
Line 42 depicts what the other countries hear when they look at Germany. They see how National Socialists, full of self-confidence, consider themselves important while singing the Deutschlandlied.

The second option, in my view, is the one that can be explained better. The "you" and the lyrical-I remain the same, meaning the "you" as Germany and the "I" as a general German person. The "we", however, refers to the present, meaning currently living German people. "You", on the other hand, means the past German people, in this case the people during the time of National Socialism.
What is also different is that people do not hear but speak. The four different perspectives say something.

Accordingly, Germany says in line 39 that it itself is overpowering, while others are unnecessary.
The Lyrical-I, a general German person, says in line 40 that it is superhuman and full of weariness. It wants to "experience" something.
Now the following two lines become interesting. The today's German people (We) warns with: "Who climbs high will fall low".
Then the great turn in the whole song takes place in line 42. The people sang "Germany, Germany above all" (l.42). So they were presumptuous. At this point I would like to refer again to the statement made above. Germany is thus in the time National Socialism numerous times "above" all others. They are very high up. But as the warning of the "we" already predicts, a deep fall will take place. This fall happened in 1945.

Lines 43-51 are a repetition of the already interpreted refrain. Thus the interpretation of the text is finished.

What is still worthwhile, however, is the music video.
Although it was not possible for me to get a lot out of the video, it might be helpful if I comment on it.
In the whole video one can see more or less representations of different times of German history. Below that: Battle of the Teutoburg Forest, the Middle Ages, the time of National Socialism, the time of Germany's division.

As already mentioned, it was difficult for me and my classmates to get things out of the video. So I suppose that the scene in which SA soldiers from the National Socialist period fight against police officers from the present warns of threatening, similar situations of today. One can assume that in this regard the SA soldiers are compared with the police. This is intended to criticize all the countries that violently break up demonstrations or suppress the freedom of expression. This applies to the whole world. I am not aware that such extreme cases have taken place in Germany at the present time. I believed this message warns the whole world.

Another assumption, what this scene means, is that Germany lives in the past, present and future and that the history of Germany remains for ever.

So these are the interpretations I could get from this song. My classmates occasionally gave me food for thought, which closed many gaps.

Finally, I would like to point out again that I have interpreted this song as good as I was able with joy and fun; I only presented what this song probably tells us. I ask you not to use this as an occasion for political or difficult historical discussions. I don't think Rammstein is a political band. As far as I know them, they have very few songs that take up history or politics in this depth.
I enjoyed interpreting "Deutschland" and I hope that you liked this interpretation as well and that I perhaps informed you a bit about German language!