System of a Down: 36 Meaning

36 Lyrics

Television in disgrace
Life you get old, it's the race,
Can you break out,
Can you break out,
Will you live at your own pace.

Life, so, unnecessary,

Television in disgrace
Life you get old, it's the race,
Can you break out,
Can you...

1. anonymous

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   Dec 2nd 2008 !⃝

   "television is disgrace" this refers to how tv is brainwashing, and it's disgraceful to see all the brain-washed people there are out there.
   "Life you get old, it's the race" this is about how people get old, and it's going to happen because we're the human race, and we get old. so why waste your time being brain-washed by tv?
   "can you break out, can you break out" this means, are you able to break free from all of this? are you able to live at your own pace and not the world's pace?
   "Life so unnecessary" this represents how life is truly unnecessary if you don't break away from the world and try to do things at your pace. the world and tv can't control you, you're in charge of yourself and you need to ask yourself, can i break out?
2. anonymous

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   Jun 22nd 2008 !⃝

   I like the previous interpretations, but I have to add that with SOAD I think half of the meaning is held in the lyrics, and half in the music.
   The way they sing this, its like life itself is narrating it. They're portraying that often your life and society are in control of you, and a lot of people just let life carry them along as it will, until one day they look around and realize that they're not happy with how things turned out. The way they scream "WILL YOU LIVE AT YOUR OWN PACE" at the end portrays that sudden realization.
3. anonymous

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   Dec 3rd 2007 !⃝

   This song is basically talking about: life, your sanity, and a little suicide.
   
   "Life, so, unnecessary" a little suicidal sounding if you ask me
   
   "Television in disgrace" It's saying how the whole TV media thing is lying to us, not giving us the facts
   
   "Life you get old, it's the race" life is what you make of it, hence the race. You don't want life to pass you by in the blink of an eye
   
   "Can you break out(x2)
   Will you live at your own pace" Serj is saying that even though life should be lived at its fullest, you can "live at your own pace"

   This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
4. anonymous

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   May 19th 2007 !⃝

   I think this song is about how people waste their lives with TV.

   This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
5. anonymous

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   May 12th 2007 !⃝

   And you are also wrong. 36 appeared as "Your own pace" on the 1998 self-titled recording sessions, as did a few other songs from the Toxicity/ Steal This Album! albums. (I.E. "X" ("multiply" at the time), and "Mr. Jack" ("PIG" originally)) Steal This Album! was really a "spring-cleaning" album made up of songs that never made it on an album. Consequentially the best album in my opinion.
6. me_and_no1_else

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   May 8th 2007 !⃝

   Hey I like that 2nd interpretation... few things I didn't consider and others I hav a slightly different opinion on.. and thanks for explaining the title because (yeah I didn't look far) I always wondered why a song goin for 46 seconds would be called 36 haha...
   
   Television is disgrace
   ---
   i pretty much agree with what second person said, except I'd say it was using TV for the song but refers rather to the whole of the media.
   
   Life you get old, its the race
   --
   i always thought this was just one of those lines saying pretty much life is a reality, you can't stop the inevitable (though usually that's death not age) and I thought "race" referred to all the people who just hurry through life, and really are just running to a dead end...
   
   Can you break out, can you break out, will you live at your own pace
   --
   i thought this elaborated on the people not taking their own time, and asks you if your strong enough to break free and live life properly
   
   Life so unnecessary
   --
   and ummm I'll just go with yours on this 1 cos I never thought bout WHAT makes life so unnecessary... just kinda took it as a statement haha.. as in, it won't matter in the long run, we're all gonna die and when and how doesn't matter.. Tho perhaps it only means that to me. lol
7. anonymous

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   Dec 22nd 2006 !⃝

   This song was written when Serj turned 36 and he just thought he would have a litte fun so he wrote this song as a result.

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