Cavetown: Boys Will Be Bugs Meaning
Song Released: 2018
Boys Will Be Bugs Lyrics
I eat sticks and rocks and mud
I don't care about the government
And I really need a hug
I feel stupid (stupid)
Ugly (ugly)
Pretend it doesn't bother me
I'm not very strong but
I'll fuck you up if you're mean to...
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1TOP RATED
#1 top rated interpretation:I agree with what was said. I do also believe that "boys will be bugs" is a metaphor for something different though. People have no problem killing or hurting a bug, because they are seen as emotionless and not feeling pain. This is the role which boys and men are expected to keep up in society; emotionless, tough, etc. It's comparing boys to bugs and the way we perceive them similarly. Just my opinion :)
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2TOP RATED
#2 top rated interpretation:This song talks about what it’s like being 14, feeling the pressure of society and toxic masculinity, thinking you’re an outcast,and only having friends that are bugs/imaginary friends. Cavetown talks about pretending to be “a big boy” who doesn’t cry/doesn’t show it, someone who does karate and breaks girl’s hearts, know the typical ‘masculine’ image. Cavetown basically destroys this idea and says that none of it is real and that people just put in an act.The phrase “Boys will be Bugs” refers to people saying that boys will be heartbreakers and people who are good at karate, and more Toxically masculine stuff.He asks the question “Boys will be Bugs, right?” Because he deceived living this lie, and asks the person listening, is this what you wanted?is this what being an man is? And he basically says that, when he was a young child, he believed this lie and lived by it even thought it wasn’t him.
There’s my essay / : -
3TOP RATED
#3 top rated interpretation:This song is about being a teenage boy and feeling pressured into acting "tough" or mean. It is showing the effects of toxic masculinity and how a lot of boys who act mean or emotionless in the outside are actually and emotional wreck on the inside, and only act this way because society tells them to. I think the bugs come into play because the song is written in the point of view of a 14 year old boy who acts tough but has a soft spot for bugs.
I think the title "Boys Will be Bugs" is a play on words of "boys will be boys". It is saying that boys are going to be annoying and rude but people just play it off because that's how boys are expected to act.
The song also shows how many teenagers will think they know everything but they are just as confused as the rest of us. The phrase "...and I think I know everything" gets repeated a lot yet the boy Cavetown is portraying is confused about girls, trying awkwardly to talk to a girl he likes. Another line that gets said is "If ladybugs are girls how do you make kids together?" which is showing that the boy may think he knows how everything works but he really doesn't. -
This is about growing up as a boy in a world where you're expected to act and be tough.
This could refer to how ppl don't mind killing bugs,but in this song it refers to how
The world is crushing him and they don't care -
I think this song is about toxic masculinity and societal pressure.
Personally i see this song as a perfect representation of how it feels to be a boy.
What sticks out to me personally is this boy's obsession with bugs, usually armored with carapaces.
I feel like this could just reflect how the boy feels, Blocked out, Too masculine too care as he feels pressured into it.
Another part that sticks out with me is about how this boy went out and skipped class to be with a presumably girl, Commenting on her spotted sweater, once again showing that the boy likes feminine things and showing that the boy likes bugs, as the next line is commenting how girls = ladybugs, also showing that the sweater reminded him of a ladybug. -
I'm only going to interperate a few lyrics, so the bit that says, 'what's it like in a female world?/ I bet it's just so much better' has two meanings, one is sarcastic, he is referring to how he is trans and knows that being treated like a girl isn't any easier than being treated like a boy, there are perks and problems for each gender. On top of that, he had to deal with gender dismorphia and feeling too feminine when people treated him like a girl. The second meaning is a genuine curiosity for what life is actually like for girls, almost putting himself in the shoes of a teenage cis boy, thinking that what teenage girls have to go through is so much easier.
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I personally believe that this song is about Robbie (cavetown)s experience with gender dysphoria and toxic masculinity. Him saying he's a 'I really need a hug' referring to how he's pushed his emotions down to feel more masculine. Also in the line 'im not very strong' shows he isn't strong in the way boys are so often portrayed as being. also when he's talking to the ladybug he says 'whats it like in a female world, I bet its just so much better' he longs to be apart of the female world he was forced out of. 'wanna make you cry, aint that how its supposed to be, though it isn't me, boys will be bugs, right?' he's asking if he's making the right choice by pushing people away in the name of masculinity. ''im a dumb teen boy, all I want to do is quit' all he wants to do is quit and return to being a girl even though he knows that that's not him. 'the other boys at school [..] (are) lying all the time' the whole song he's talking about how he's rebelling and lying to fit in as he feels like a social reject.'if you wanna cry make sure that they never see it, even better yet block it out and never feel it' he's explaining that if the boys see him cry they'll perceive him as not masculine and bully him further. 'I just turned 14 and I think I know everything' he's saying he thinks he knows how to be masculine by pushing down his emotions, pushing people away and lying. this is just my opinion as a trans person I relate this song and a lot of other cave town music to gender dysphoria but I think it makes a lot of sense
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I have two theories. Seeing as the song is written by a trans boy I assume this song is about trying to fit in and how hard it is. "I feel stupid (stupid) Ugly (ugly)" talking about gender dysphoria and "What's it like in a female world I bet it's just so much better" talking about how being a cis girl would be so much better. "Don't mess with me I'm a big boy now" This also hints at how it could be about the struggles of being trans. My other theory is that this song is about toxic masculinity. The female world verse can be turned into just wishing you didn't have to suffer under society's such hard expectations. " if you wanna cry Make sure that they never see it Or even better yet Block it out and never feel it" This is about how boys are told they are not allowed to cry.
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This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
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I think this song is about how boys/men are expected to act very typically "masculine" because that's what society tells them to do. he talks about how he is expected to break girls' hearts, be mean, and all in all about toxic masculinity. he says "boys will be bugs" because boys are expected to be heartless and emotionless. He talks about how gender roles are pretty dumb and he's just sharing that experience.
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Is it weird if i relate to this song even if i was never i grew up as a girl ?
(i'm genderfluid btw) -
Whenever I hear this song I feel sad; I understand this a lot but I also have to disagree with the line saying a female world is so much better, yes generally we don’t have to hide our feelings, but we have a lot of other things. I can relate to this (although I am a girl) in the bit where it says “ my mum said she’s worried but I couldn’t give a shit” I have absolutely felt like this before and no doubt others have too. The boys will be bugs bit I think means being expected to be emotionless. The bit where it says he feels like he has to be emotionless for a girl to like him, but girls like someone who can show their emotions. The bravest thing you can do is be yourself, not what others tell you to be.
Anyways cya :) -
The song always make me cry because of the line ” I just turn 14 and I think I will be me “. My interpretation of this line is Society has so many social standers that we can’t even be who we truly are without feeling judged all the time.
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I think its about a boy who feels pressured to be like the other boys, and act tough and rebellious, but he actually feels hurt and alone. I also think the “spider beetle and bee” represent his other friends who are boys, and they are represented as bugs, because “boys will be bugs”. The “sticks and rocks and mud” represent toxic words and lies from other boys and people, as well as showing that he is rebellious and will do what he wants. But I think the overall message shows the pressure of being 14, and how other kids can influence a person.
Thats my opinion :) -
I think this is about a boy with teenage agnst, who feels like he should act some way now that he's older. All the other boys are mean so he thinks he should be too. "I really liek your spotty sweater" means he struggles to get a girl tolike him too. His bug freind is the voice inside his head tellign him he shouldnt be doing this, but yet he says "I punch my walls, stay out at night, and I do karate" He trys to be imitating enough for the other boys to not mess with him
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Its all about how boys look at the ways they will have to be once they grow up, the toxic ways that men treat others. Even though its sad, boys still think thats how they must be once they are older.
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This song saddens me because it talks about toxic masculinity, and a lot of people think females put that on men. I don't feel like toxic masculinity is something women put on men. It's a man to man thing. For example: Girls love harry styles. The guy wears glitter and dresses. Same with Timothee Chalamet. They're not afraid to show their femininity. That's what girls like
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I think the song is comparing boys to bugs. In traditional gender roles boys and men are veiwed as tough, similar to how people veiw bugs
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