Speaking on a more thematic level, this song falls into the same category of most popular music today. In conclusion, the picture this popular song paints of 21st century male-female relationships is shocking traditional, even medieval. This song suggests that patriarchy is not only alive and well, but that women somehow desire it. For centuries, women were considered the property of men, and it took decades of struggle and hardship for women to reach a kind of equality. One might interpret these lyrics metaphorically, that she wants the man to be the dominant one in their sexual encounter, but the reference to ownership remains. “Take control,” she sings, “Own me just for the night.” It is deeply disturbing that a 21st century woman would want to be “owned” by a man. Instead, we find a woman who is totally complicit in the singer’s patriarchical desires. One would hope she would provide a reasoned contrast to the male singer’s narcissistic lust, but sadly that is not what we get. In the bridge to the song, we get the female perspective, as sung by pop diva Christina Aguilera. “We can ride it” seems a pretty clear reference to intercourse, which seems to be the singer’s ultimate goal. The car imagery in the second stanza of this verse is a crude attempt at a metaphor. However, the lines “I’ll make you believe that I’ve got the key” suggest that this compassion is merely an act, whose goal is, again, sex. He acknowledges the pain and confusion of a woman who desires an ego-maniac. Here the singer offers glimpses of compassion. When you feel like you're broken and scarred The singer of Maroon 5 seems to want to return to the days when women were the property of their men.
The connotations of these lines are frightening, as they seem to undo decades of feminism and the struggle for gender equality. The singer, in his narcissistic lust, wants to “control” and “own” his woman. The lines “I don’t need to try to control you, Look into my eyes and I’ll own you” move the song in a dark direction. The line “kiss me til you’re drunk” suggests that sexual desire clouds reason, making it difficult for a woman to really think through the consequences of having sex with a narcissistic ego-maniac like the singer. This ego-mania is reinforced by the last few lines: “My ego is big, I don’t give a shit.” The conflicting ideas of love and extreme narcissism turn out to be a major theme of this song. However, the singer of this song thinks so highly of himself that his idea of someone shooting for the stars is for that person to try to have sex with him. Maybe joining the peace corps, traveling in Asia, trying to make a difference in the world. The first line of the song is a popular cliché that sets the tone: “Just shoot for the stars.” This vague command to dream big, however, is immediately undermined by the singer’s very specific command to “aim for my heart.” Normally, when people think of “Shooting for the stars” they think about following their dreams. So, here is a close reading I did of “Moves Like Jagger” with input from one of my English 101 classes. Therefore, in analyzing a song like “Moves Like Jagger” by Maroon 5 featuring Christina Aguilera, we might get a sense of current cultural values. Presumably, music that is popular resonates with a large segment of the population. I have no problem with Shakespeare or Wordsworth, but I am interested in understanding modern culture, and I think, to do that, we have to look carefully at popular music. Usually, In English classes, students analyze poetry that is considered “classic” like Shakespeare and Wordsworth.
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