I think this song is about the slow decline into moral degredation; The point where the vices you enjoy stop being recreational, and start being in control of your life. I think the inversion hangable is talking about is part of how Waits makes that point. The man isn't throwing the dice anymore, they are throwing him.
I particularly like "A dog won't bite if you beat him with a bone", which I think means that people don't fight back against their vices and habits that are slowly destroying them.
Granted, there are some lines that I have no idea about ("round rises up and starts to moan" huh?), but generally, I think that's the idea.
I think this song is about the slow decline into moral degredation; The point where the vices you enjoy stop being recreational, and start being in control of your life. I think the inversion hangable is talking about is part of how Waits makes that point. The man isn't throwing the dice anymore, they are throwing him.
I particularly like "A dog won't bite if you beat him with a bone", which I think means that people don't fight back against their vices and habits that are slowly destroying them.
Granted, there are some lines that I have no idea about ("round rises up and starts to moan" huh?), but generally, I think that's the idea.