In the first three verses the narrator (who I'm guessing is a man, although it may be a woman) is describing Marie-Claire's lifestyle and he seems to imply that she is living in a materialistic and superficial fashion. however in the chorus the narrator implies that her background is very different from her present situation, and with the words 'I want to look inside your head' I think he means he wants to know if she can remember the past, and also, is she any happier now than she was then.
In the fourth verse the narrator tells us that the two of them grew up together in a poor part of Naples, but they both hated the stigma attached with being poor - so they tried hard to 'better' themselves.
In the fifth verse, the narrator meets Marie Claire and looks into her eyes. He then knows that she does remember the past and that she is in a constant state of denial about the past. Hence the lyric 'then go and forget me forever'. Becase she is in a constant state of denial she cannot be happy ('But I still know you bear the scar, deep inside'). After all, she goes to bed alone and is not married. And also, she surrounds herself with people who are superficial who don't really care about her: 'But they don't care where you came from. And I wonder if they really care, or give a damn.'
I think the song is about the importance of being true to your roots, and not forgetting about those who one knew and loved you. Marie Claire seems to be ashamed of her roots, which means she doesn't have a firm sense of her own identity and will struggle to find happiness.
In the first three verses the narrator (who I'm guessing is a man, although it may be a woman) is describing Marie-Claire's lifestyle and he seems to imply that she is living in a materialistic and superficial fashion. however in the chorus the narrator implies that her background is very different from her present situation, and with the words 'I want to look inside your head' I think he means he wants to know if she can remember the past, and also, is she any happier now than she was then. In the fourth verse the narrator tells us that the two of them grew up together in a poor part of Naples, but they both hated the stigma attached with being poor - so they tried hard to 'better' themselves. In the fifth verse, the narrator meets Marie Claire and looks into her eyes. He then knows that she does remember the past and that she is in a constant state of denial about the past. Hence the lyric 'then go and forget me forever'. Becase she is in a constant state of denial she cannot be happy ('But I still know you bear the scar, deep inside'). After all, she goes to bed alone and is not married. And also, she surrounds herself with people who are superficial who don't really care about her: 'But they don't care where you came from. And I wonder if they really care, or give a damn.'
I think the song is about the importance of being true to your roots, and not forgetting about those who one knew and loved you. Marie Claire seems to be ashamed of her roots, which means she doesn't have a firm sense of her own identity and will struggle to find happiness.