Consider the title of the album (Either/Or) for a second -- angeles is about the struggle between the ethical and the aesthetic. I mean, come on, Either/Or is a reference to Kierkegaard's text of the same title which discusses this very struggle. The last part of the song is a seduction into the aesthetic, while the first part he's the speaker and it's basically him saying how he's susceptible to this. Everyone is. But as Kierkegaard points out, the person who follows this path will find themselves in a pit of despair. The "poison arms" are a great image of this. It can work on the drugs level as well, though, with the drugs being that aesthetic route while staying clean is the ethical path. And it's interesting to think of it that way considering what happened to him; he was so aware of the choices he made and yet he still let drugs take over his life for a while.And it can also work in regards to the music industry, which I think actually works a little better because he talks about how he needs money -- "Picking up the ticket shows there's money to be made." He picks up the ticket, and it shows him how little money he has. But I don't think Elliott Smith wrote it simply for its literal meaning. He wanted to explore this philosophy in context of his life, and drugs and the music industry were a major part in his. He also did major in philosophy.
Consider the title of the album (Either/Or) for a second -- angeles is about the struggle between the ethical and the aesthetic. I mean, come on, Either/Or is a reference to Kierkegaard's text of the same title which discusses this very struggle. The last part of the song is a seduction into the aesthetic, while the first part he's the speaker and it's basically him saying how he's susceptible to this. Everyone is. But as Kierkegaard points out, the person who follows this path will find themselves in a pit of despair. The "poison arms" are a great image of this. It can work on the drugs level as well, though, with the drugs being that aesthetic route while staying clean is the ethical path. And it's interesting to think of it that way considering what happened to him; he was so aware of the choices he made and yet he still let drugs take over his life for a while.And it can also work in regards to the music industry, which I think actually works a little better because he talks about how he needs money -- "Picking up the ticket shows there's money to be made." He picks up the ticket, and it shows him how little money he has. But I don't think Elliott Smith wrote it simply for its literal meaning. He wanted to explore this philosophy in context of his life, and drugs and the music industry were a major part in his. He also did major in philosophy.