WITH MY OWN TWO HANDS – Ben Harper
This song entitled “with my own two hands” was written by Ben Harper, a famous American folk singer. it is taken from his album “Diamonds on the inside” which was released in 2003. It is about the author’s desire to change life on earth and do everything he can to improve our living conditions.The song is composed of 4 verses, a chorus and a bridge.
When he sings, Ben Harper always starts the verses with the pronoun I and stresses on it: “I can change the world, I can make peace on Earth, I’m gonna make it a brighter day, I can hold you”…This is probably to show that he wants to work and to act, to get involved. He also urges the other to behave like him, that’s why he says “you’ve got to use your own hands”. At the end he uses the pronoun “we” which means that it is by working together that his dreams will come true. He’s very positive. He addresses everybody. The pronoun “you” could refer to one person in particular or a group of people; he probably addresses people in general because we can imagine that he wants to reach as many people as possible.
He wants people to be more respectful towards each other (so that the world can be safer) but also towards our planet (so that the earth can be cleaner). He also wants people to be happier. To achieve these goals they have to be willing to do something, to use their own two hands.
The singer is quite optimistic. He doesn’t complain about the state of the Earth , he just says what he’s ready to do to make it better. He doesn’t think that the end of the world is near; He just thinks that if people make an effort, the situation can change and life on earth can be improved. He’s giving hope to people in his song.
I think that he shares the same point of view as Yann Arthus-Bertrand with the film HOME. In 50 years, mankind has modified more the world’s environment than during all the history of humanity. The earth ecosystem worsens and expresses its limits in every way: fresh water,