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09 Oct 01 - 05:24 AM (#568038) Subject: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: GUEST,Whistle and Bagpipes I've always wondered what the expression actually means of "I am undone" or such. Off the top of my head I'm thinking of a Liam Clancy tune "Foggy Fogy Dew" in which it is used. What is it's proper meaning? |
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09 Oct 01 - 05:43 AM (#568041) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: Jon Freeman I'm not familiar with that version of the song but it may mean ruined or left without hope/future. A couple of examples that spring to my mind are The Newry Highwayman where "My wife she siged I am undone" and The Jolly Beggarman where we have "For you have stole my maidenhead and I am quite undone". Jon |
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09 Oct 01 - 05:59 AM (#568047) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: KingBrilliant Jon's answer sounds about right. Compare also the saying 'that will be his undoing'. Sort of downfall I suppose. Kris |
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09 Oct 01 - 06:02 AM (#568048) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: IanC Just so
:-) |
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09 Oct 01 - 06:16 AM (#568051) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: Suffet Several ways of translating "I am undone" follow: 1. "Well, I'm f---ed!" Both literally and figuratively. 2. "Fine mess you've gotten me into!" 3. "I'm spoiled goods." 4. "This is my downfall." Morally, socially, and possibly even economically. See #3 above. Also #1. 5. "My reputation is shot!" So says Little Suzie upon waking up. Also see #3 above. 6. "You S.O.B.! If you knocked me up, then you're taking the little bastard!" Anyone wish to add to this list? ---- Steve |
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09 Oct 01 - 06:34 AM (#568060) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: Ringer The earliest reference I know is the KJV of the bible: Isaiah (Chap 6), having been floored before a vision of God, says "Woe is me, for I am undone." Be interesting to know just how close a translation of the original Hebrew this is. I wonder if Cranmer and his ilk, the translators, knew songs in which the phrase occurred. |
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09 Oct 01 - 07:32 AM (#568073) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: catspaw49 Your fly is open? Sorry, bad joke. "I am undone"..See: Discombobulated Spaw |
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09 Oct 01 - 08:29 AM (#568089) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: Jon Freeman Using biblegateway.com which is excellent for searching for pasages in the bible, I have found the verse is Isiah 6 v5. King James Version gives:
"Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts." The New International Version gives: "Woe to me!" I cried. "I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty." So "ruined" would again seem a fair bet. I have also tried Young's Literal Translation which I believe sticks closer to the original Hebrew. It uses neither term though...
"And I say, `Wo to me, for I have been silent, For a man -- unclean of lips [am] I, And in midst of a people unclean of lips I am dwelling, Because the King, Jehovah of Hosts, have my eyes seen.'" Jon |
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09 Oct 01 - 09:44 AM (#568154) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: Amos Interesting underlying assumption that one's being, status, fate, well-being, and so on are the by-products of one's "doing", which then gets "undone" or crushed by an untoward incident. Perfectly true. A |
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09 Oct 01 - 10:08 AM (#568167) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: Paul from Hull Loss of Virginity would be my first interpretation, really, depending on the exact context of course. |
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09 Oct 01 - 10:23 AM (#568174) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: Gary T A plain old dictionary defines it as "ruined, disgraced, etc.," with a secondary meaning of "emotionally upset, greatly perturbed." While it can certainly be a result of loss of virginity, there are countless examples of the term being used where loss of virginity is not involved. It may help to think of it as akin to "unraveled," where one has metaphorically woven or built a life situation or reputation, which is now coming apart. |
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09 Oct 01 - 10:27 AM (#568178) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: mousethief I have also heard it used in a far less negative sense: for example a grandfather might say that he will not, under any circumstances, buy candy for his granddaughter, but "one smile from that cherubic face, and I am undone." Alex |
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09 Oct 01 - 10:33 AM (#568182) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: Paul from Hull Oooops...messed up the HTML there, it was meant to emphasise just the word FIRST...sorry, think that error changed the sense of what I was trying to say. |
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09 Oct 01 - 10:36 AM (#568184) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: catspaw49 Well, lessee here Alex..........If we combine your thoughts with the sexual connotations above, I'd have to figure Gramps for a pedophile. I can't buy the the sexual undone thing anyway. Generally, a guy trying to get a piece says, "Let's DO it." Unless he referring to getting her bra off, "Let's UNDO it," don't make a lotta' sense now do it? I suppose there are quite a few girls who have become pregnant that might like to undo it, but "it" only goes one way. Spaw |
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09 Oct 01 - 11:12 AM (#568206) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: LR Mole Lenny Bruce would disagree, I suppose; he used to have a whole routine asking why "F--k you" is the worst thing one could say, when it's one of the most desireable... "unf--k you" is really what was meant, he felt.But it was a more innocent time then. "Undo you" has possibilities as an imprecation, but sounds like a Rolling Stones album title. |
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09 Oct 01 - 11:19 AM (#568212) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: catspaw49 That was a great bit too........"Fuck You!"...."Why thank you very much! Do you have some for my mother too?" Carlin also had a real funny bit with replacing the word kill with fuck in all the old movie cliches....."Okay Sheriff, we're gonna' fuck you now." Spaw |
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09 Oct 01 - 11:30 AM (#568219) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: Paul from Hull *LOL* In that case, I'll have to try & track down the song where a British Guardsman 'does' the girl again, & gives her back her maidenhead.... No sure of the ttle..I THINK it might be 'The Widow of Westmorelands Daughter'.... *goes to check* |
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09 Oct 01 - 11:59 AM (#568236) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: GUEST,MudWeasel It is Widow of Westmoreland's Daughter, and the only place I've heard it is on a Fairport Convention Live CD called (I think) In Real Time... -MudWeasel |
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10 Oct 01 - 09:32 AM (#568902) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: Paul from Hull Cheers, MudWeasel Not had any luck in Searching for the words, unfortunately, & I certainly cant do them from memory. I'll get 'Les from Hull' to put them up though, cos he sings it. |
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10 Oct 01 - 06:11 PM (#569308) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: Snuffy THE WIDOW OF WESTMORLAND'S DAUGHTER in the Digital Tradition database. WassaiL! V |
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10 Oct 01 - 07:26 PM (#569370) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: GUEST,MudWeasel Ay, that's the one... Getting roughly back to the trhead topic. there's a song (couldn't find it in the DT) that I think Planxty does (I'm being so helpful, I know. I don't even have a title for it. The poor drummer lad falls for a noble lady, and his take on it is "and if she denies me I'm surely undone." No virginity context here, rather the opposite. I could probably bring myself to type up the lyrics if someone was to ask nicely an' all... -MudWeasel |
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10 Oct 01 - 08:13 PM (#569395) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: Paul from Hull *scratches head* I really dunno what I'm doing wrong.....sometimes when I Search in the Digitrad, stuff comes up, but other stuff doesnt though it later proves to have been there all along... |
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11 Oct 01 - 09:02 AM (#569673) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: Greyeyes The DT search engine is fickle, you're better off using the DT/forum search, much more user friendly & it separates the hits into DT & forum. |
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11 Oct 01 - 10:24 AM (#569734) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: Paul from Hull Thanks, Greyeyes! *S* |
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11 Oct 01 - 10:57 AM (#569756) Subject: Lyr Add: THE LITTLE DRUMMER From: Wolfgang MudWeasel, Never type lyrics if there's a cut & paste opportunity. The DT has a version under the title THE DRUMMER BOY which is a bit different from Planxty's. But I could locate a version on the web (http://members.chello.at/phaedra.fantic/little_drummer.htm) which is what I remember Planxty sing. My cut and paste job follows below. Wolfgang THE LITTLE DRUMMER
One fine summer's morning both gallant and gay
He went to his comrade and to him did say,
"Go to this lady and tell her your mind,
So early next morning this young man arose,
He went up to her and he said, "Pardon me.
"Be off, little drummer, now what do you mean?
He put on his hat and he bade her farewell
"Come back, little drummer, and don't take it ill
"And we'll hire a car and to Bansha we'll go. |
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11 Oct 01 - 04:57 PM (#570045) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: GUEST,MudWeasel That's pretty much the version I heard. But I learned something that I would never have known if I had merely continued to sing the song from memory instead of seeing it in print. I now know how to spell "Ballykisteen" Huh. But the point remains that the Drummer boy wasn't "undone" in the sense of being ravaged, raped or deflowered, he was merely "undone" in the sense that the lady's rejection left him suicidally depressed. Side note: In my Band we call this "The Passive-Agressive Soldier-Boy Song". -Mudweasel |
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12 Oct 01 - 02:57 AM (#570308) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: Wolfgang To me the place names looks more like a transliteration. I'd not bet on them being correct (I'll have a look into the Planxty songbook to make sure) Wolfgang |
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12 Oct 01 - 12:30 PM (#570580) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: GUEST,MudWeasel Well, given what I know about Gaelic pronunciation, the actual spelling is more like: Baile Chiqroxaxtmpupsde Go figure. -MudWeasel |
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13 Oct 01 - 08:01 AM (#571141) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: GUEST It's too late, she's gone too far. She's lost the sun, she's come undone. Randy Bachman{I think} Mike |
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13 Oct 01 - 08:23 AM (#571148) Subject: RE: 'I Am Undone' meaning From: GUEST mkebenn, uncookied! |