Essay #3

Desperado:

Connections with “Desperado”

An Essay by Inpyo Hong

9th Grade English

Pine Point School

10/20/11

Mother Teresa said, “The most terrible poverty is loneliness, and the feeling of being unloved.” “Desperado” portrays the loneliness of a man who does not let himself fall in love. Joon-Pyo, a main character from a Korean drama—“Boys Over Flowers”—and my cousin, Myung-Hoon, have a few resemblances to “Desperado.” Without love, there are manifold significant matters we lose, manifold hindrances we gain, and manifold lessons we learn.(Anaphora)

To begin with, “Desperado” and Joon-Pyo have a few similarities. First of all, the lyric that says, “Desperado, why don't you come to your senses? You’ve been out ridin' fences for so long now. Oh, you're a hard one. I know that you got your reasons. These things that are pleasin' you can hurt you somehow,” has a connection with Joon-Pyo. The lyric is about a man who meets different women but does not let himself fall in love with someone who truly loves him, and this void in his being is detrimental to him. Joon-Pyo dates several girls who do not actually love him but meet him only because of his magnificent wealth, but he refuses to meet a girl named Jan-Di—another main character—from the countryside who certainly loves him. Furthermore, there is another similarity in the verse that says, “Now it seems to me, some fine things have been laid upon your table. But you only want the ones that you can't get.” The verse describes how the man could choose one of numerous fine women, but he only wishes to date the ones who will not love him sincerely. Joon-Pyo could date Jan-Di, an intelligent and adorable girl, but since he believes that love is childish and unrefined, he avoids seeing Jan-Di. Moreover, Joon-Pyo and the lyric—“Desperado, why don't you come to your senses? Come down from your fences, open the gate. It may be rainin', but there's a rainbow above you. You better let somebody love you, before it's too late”—have another relationship. The lyric reveals that the songwriter is advising the man to forget about his shallow desires and look for a woman who truly loves him. Similarly, after Joon-Pyo loses his friends and finds himself alone, he looks for a woman who sincerely loves him. Finally, Joon-Pyo learns that without true love his affluence(F.A.S.T) and fame are hollow.

“Desperado” also has several connections with my cousin, Myung-Hoon. Firstly, the lyric—“Don't you draw the queen of diamonds, boy. She'll beat you if she's able. You know the queen of hearts is always your best bet”—has a similarity with Myung-Hoon. The lyric suggests the songwriter is advising the man to choose the queen of hearts, a woman who is intelligent and substantial, instead of the queen of diamonds, a woman who is superficially alluring.(F.A.S.T) Similarly, Myung-Hoon is interested in a woman who is beautiful and attractive rather than a woman who is intellectual and substantial. Additionally, the verse that says, “Desperado, oh, you ain't gettin' no younger. Your pain and your hunger, they're drivin' you home. And freedom, oh freedom well, that's just some people talkin'. Your prison is walking through this world all alone,” has a connection with my cousin. The verse shows that the man has not settled down with a woman yet even though his time is running out. Myung-Hoon is very similar to the man depicted in “Desperado” since he is getting older and older but he has not found his true love yet. Furthermore, Myung-Hoon and the lyric–“Don't your feet get cold in the winter time? The sky won't snow and the sun won't shine. It's hard to tell the night time from the day. You're losin' all your highs and lows. Ain't it funny how the feeling goes away?”—have another resemblance. The lyric shows the songwriter questioning how cold and lonely it is to wander from a woman to woman, and how it is getting pointless. My cousin also wandered from a woman to woman and he feels empty now because he is getting older but he could not find his love yet. Thus, my cousin lost his time wandering from a woman to woman, and became lonely, and grown older without finding true love.(Polysyndeton)

To conclude, we stand the chance to lose what really matters and build walls instead of relationships without love. Joon-Pyo loses his friends and becomes lonely because he ignores true love and lives without it. Myung-Hoon wasted precious time, grew older, and became lonely without true love. Therefore, “Desperado”, Joon-Pyo, and Myung-Hoon mirror Mother Teresa’s concept: “The most terrible poverty is loneliness, and the feeling of being unloved.”

Self-Assessment:

1. One issue I am continuing to work on: I am continuing to work on using apt words that fit perfectly in sentences. I worked hard to not make any grammar mistakes.
2. One possible strong point I see in this essay: Quotes and examples support the topic of this essay. My examples are well related to the song, “Desperado”.
3. One possible weak point I see in this essay: I might have used too many words in each sentence. I used a few short sentences, but I think it could make people confused.
4. I would give my self an A-.