Lyrics to Smiler With Knife

No, I suppose it's not a gentle pain. Unless he/she likes it rough maybe...

I'm not sure about that line describing Smiler sticking the blade in him or her. I'm a bit sceptical about using the phrase "one-shot" to describe sticking the blade into someone. But perhaps. It could very well mean both of the things. But I'm also pondering the possibility that "knife/blade" is a metaphor for, you know, the "penis". And sure, the narrator could be female. But I think there's too much pointing in the direction of a homosexual relationship and homosexual guilt on Smiler's part.

Rough sex is fine. Unwanted, forced sex is painful. That's why I'm skeptical of that line. The blade is not a metaphor as the narrator is about to die and he/she knows it, but they are fine with it because life has been long and they're tired of being lonely. "You're just in time", "I am sick to death of life", "When my last breath falls away" - all of these lines tell us the story of forced entry (of whatever kind) and the ending of ones life. And, yes, you know, I understand how "knife" could be a metaphor for "penis" - I just don't agree with that assumption.

As said before, the song is open to many different interpretations and I think it can relate to whatever you wish it to mean.
 
Rough sex is fine. Unwanted, forced sex is painful. That's why I'm skeptical of that line. The blade is not a metaphor as the narrator is about to die and he/she knows it, but they are fine with it because life has been long and they're tired of being lonely. "You're just in time", "I am sick to death of life", "When my last breath falls away" - all of these lines tell us the story of forced entry (of whatever kind) and the ending of ones life. And, yes, you know, I understand how "knife" could be a metaphor for "penis" - I just don't agree with that assumption.

As said before, the song is open to many different interpretations and I think it can relate to whatever you wish it to mean.

I don't think that the narrator is being raped. The narrator and Smiler seems to know each other (Smiler calling out his/her name) and the sex seems to be consensual (knowing that only sadness waits for him/her, being a surrendered will). But of course – the blade/knife may very well not be a metaphor for anything. And the lines you quote certainly seems to suggest that the narrator really is about to die, but they do not, as I see it, suggest forced entry. And if the narrator really was raped why would the last thing he/she does be to comfort Smiler saying he'll be okay? But who knows? But what I really like about the lyrics is how they on the surface seems to be saying one thing but underneath something completely different. And what's on the surface and what's underneath constantly seems to change.
 
Its an invitation to Death

"Death smiles at us all, but all a man can do is smile back." - Marcus Aurelius Antoninus
 
I think the song is based on the book The Smiler with the Knife by Nicholas Blake (C. Day-Lewis, 1939) The main character in the series of books is Nigel Strangeways and his wife is Georgia. In TSWTK, Georgia takes lead and is the heroine. Her job was to seek out and take down a right-wing conspiracy. She ingratiates herself with the conspirators, discovers the identity of its leadership (Lord Chilton Canteloe) and the details of the conspiracy. Throughout the story she dances in shadows until the final showdown. I believe "Smiler" is a woman (Georgia) and the narrator of this song is Lord Chilton Canteloe. When all is said and done, Georgia says, "‘I’m safe, I’m safe, I’m safe! I’d forgotten what the word “safety” meant. We’re all safe, all the decent, ordinary, hard-working people, the people who make England…’"

Yes, it's completely open to interpretation. For me, it's something totally different, but I really believe this is the foundation on which the song was built. Why does it always have to be homosexual? Why can't a woman be his killer?

I agree this is one of the best songs Morrissey has ever written, by the way, and it's definitely my favorite song on the album.

Actually a user mozambiguous already suggested it earlier:
http://www.morrissey-solo.com/threa...-Of-Your-Business?p=1986828300#post1986828300
 
I don't think that the narrator is being raped. The narrator and Smiler seems to know each other (Smiler calling out his/her name) and the sex seems to be consensual (knowing that only sadness waits for him/her, being a surrendered will). But of course – the blade/knife may very well not be a metaphor for anything. And the lines you quote certainly seems to suggest that the narrator really is about to die, but they do not, as I see it, suggest forced entry. And if the narrator really was raped why would the last thing he/she does be to comfort Smiler saying he'll be okay? But who knows?

It goes back to the basic foundation of the song - which is the book, in my opinion. Georgia swiftly kills him with a knife. She does so out of fear of losing her freedom and for the good, hard working people of England. I never said the narrator was raped. That's where we disagreed in the first place. Smiler didn't call out his/her name - someone did. The narrator accepts what's about to happen to them, and that's why he/she comforts Smiler - which leads back to the line by Georgia in the book while reflecting upon what she has done. The part about being safe and forgetting what the word safety meant - now that he is dead.

That's just my take on it. It could very well be sexual, but I think Morrissey built the song around that story.

But what I really like about the lyrics is how they on the surface seems to be saying one thing but underneath something completely different. And what's on the surface and what's underneath constantly seems to change.

I completely agree with you here.
 
It goes back to the basic foundation of the song - which is the book, in my opinion. Georgia swiftly kills him with a knife. She does so out of fear of losing her freedom and for the good, hard working people of England. I never said the narrator was raped. That's where we disagreed in the first place. Smiler didn't call out his/her name - someone did. The narrator accepts what's about to happen to them, and that's why he/she comforts Smiler - which leads back to the line by Georgia in the book while reflecting upon what she has done. The part about being safe and forgetting what the word safety meant - now that he is dead.

That's just my take on it. It could very well be sexual, but I think Morrissey built the song around that story.



I completely agree with you here.

I'm sorry. I misunderstood you. But you also misunderstood me. Neither did I ever claim that Smiler raped the narrator. I guess it comes down to the meaning of the word "slam" and how violent it is to slam someone. But I like your interpretation of the lines "someone calling out my name/sex and love are not the same". The lines to me seem to belong closely together and of course have the meaning that Smiler called out the narrators name at the moment of orgasm. But that someone else called out his/her name is an interesting take on it. But how do you see the relation between the line "someone calling out my name" and the one that follows ("love and sex are not the same")?

As I haven't read the book you refer to, or even heard of it before, it's hard for me to judge how likely it is that the song is based on it. I guess I should try and find it and read it. Is it easy to find?
 
I'm sorry. I misunderstood you. But you also misunderstood me. Neither did I ever claim that Smiler raped the narrator. I guess it comes down to the meaning of the word "slam" and how violent it is to slam someone. But I like your interpretation of the lines "someone calling out my name/sex and love are not the same". The lines to me seem to belong closely together and of course have the meaning that Smiler called out the narrators name at the moment of orgasm. But that someone else called out his/her name is an interesting take on it. But how do you see the relation between the line "someone calling out my name" and the one that follows ("love and sex are not the same")?

As I haven't read the book you refer to, or even heard of it before, it's hard for me to judge how likely it is that the song is based on it. I guess I should try and find it and read it. Is it easy to find?

Amazon has it:
UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1/278-7360726-3862120?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=The%20Smiler%20with%20the%20Knife

US: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=The%20Smiler%20with%20the%20Knife

The song gets really tricky with those lines. Maybe the narrator is feeling guilty for sexually abusing not only Smiler, but others as well? I think the narrator just feels like a rotten person and that he/she completely deserves what they are getting.
 
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Amazon has it:
UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1/278-7360726-3862120?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=The%20Smiler%20with%20the%20Knife

US: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=The%20Smiler%20with%20the%20Knife

The song gets really tricky with those lines. Maybe the narrator is feeling guilty for sexually abusing not only Smiler, but others as well? I think the narrator just feels like a rotten person and that he/she completely deserves what they are getting.

Apparently there is a copy at my local libraray. I'll seek it out. Does Canteloe sexually abuse Georgia? But that's an interesting interpretation. The narrator being a sexual abuser and only getting what he deserves.

Perhaps the narrator has sexually abused Smiler as a child as well as other children? And now Smiler comes for his revenge. A death accepted by the narrator as he feels disgusted with himself. Open to so many interpretations...
 
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
Apparently there is a copy at my local libraray. I'll seek it out. Does Canteloe sexually abuse Georgia? But that's an interesting interpretation. The narrator being a sexual abuser and only getting what he deserves.

Perhaps the narrator has sexually abused Smiler as a child as well as other children? And now Smiler comes for his revenge. A death accepted by the narrator as he feels disgusted with himself. Open to so many interpretations...


Oh good! I hope you can read it soon. No, no. Canteloe abused the poor and innocent people of England. The book is very political. This is just another case of our Mozzer borrowing from others and making it his own :) (In my opinion)
 
Now I'm thinking that the narrator might actually be a catholic priest who sexually abused Smiler and other catholic boys in their boyhood and early youth. And Smiler, as said, now takes his revenge. And the narrator, disgusted with himself and sick to death of the life that he leads, welcomes it.

If such things weren't meant to be/Then they would never come to meSuffer little children to come unto me.

But maybe I'm just reading too much into it.
 
I also initially thought this song detailed a homosexual encounter, using death as a metaphor for orgasm. It wouldn't be the first time Morrissey used the act of stabbing as an allusion to sex (this picture and "Scandinavia" come to mind).

However, hand in glove's interpretation is very intriguing and entirely plausible considering Morrissey's propensity for incorporating literary references in his lyrics...
 
Now I'm thinking that the narrator might actually be a catholic priest who sexually abused Smiler and other catholic boys in their boyhood and early youth. And Smiler, as said, now takes his revenge. And the narrator, disgusted with himself and sick to death of the life that he leads, welcomes it.

If such things weren't meant to be/Then they would never come to meSuffer little children to come unto me.

But maybe I'm just reading too much into it.

Well, you never know. Just another take on something that could possibly be interpreted a thousand different ways! The song speaks to me, but not in the way we have talked about it. So, I find that it's easy to relate to this song - but on a different level. I hope that makes sense!
 
I also initially thought this song detailed a homosexual encounter, using death as a metaphor for orgasm. It wouldn't be the first time Morrissey used the act of stabbing as an allusion to sex (this picture and "Scandinavia" come to mind).

However, hand in glove's interpretation is very intriguing and entirely plausible considering Morrissey's propensity for incorporating literary references in his lyrics...

Thank you, Detritus.
 
does anyone know the buck pets song of the same name? seeing them name that song the exact same title, from 1992, makes me think it perhaps a once common phrase or something along those lines that fell out of fashion.
 
The phrase "the smiler with a knife under his cloak" is also found in Chaucer's Knight's Tale. It implies that the friendly face bears hidden ill-intent. You could say this is a continuation/expansion/improvement on I'm OK By Myself (Could this be an arm around my waist?/Well, surely the hand contains a knife?).
 
The phrase "the smiler with a knife under his cloak" is also found in Chaucer's Knight's Tale. It implies that the friendly face bears hidden ill-intent. You could say this is a continuation/expansion/improvement on I'm OK By Myself (Could this be an arm around my waist?/Well, surely the hand contains a knife?).

Great observation.
 
It's highly ironic that the Blue Rose people see "Smiler With Knife" as a nod to them, referring to this (admittedly well-written) short story. They've been mindf****d by MorrisseysWorld for years now and won't realise it.
 
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