LyricsAn old man turned ninety-eight
He won the lottery and died the next day It's a black fly in your Chardonnay It's a death row pardon two minutes too late And isn't it ironic... don't you think It's like rain on your wedding day It's a free ride when you've already paid It's the good advice that you just didn't take Who would've thought... it figures Mr. Play It Safe was afraid to fly He packed his suitcase and kissed his kids goodbye He waited his whole damn life to take that flight And as the plane crashed down he thought "Well isn't this nice..." And isn't it ironic... don't you think It's like rain on your wedding day It's a free ride when you've already paid It's the good advice that you just didn't take Who would've thought... it figures Well life has a funny way of sneaking up on you When you think everything's okay and everything's going right And life has a funny way of helping you out when You think everything's gone wrong and everything blows up In your face A traffic jam when you're already late A no-smoking sign on your cigarette break It's like ten thousand spoons when all you need is a knife It's meeting the man of my dreams And then meeting his beautiful wife And isn't it ironic...don't you think A little too ironic...and, yeah, I really do think... It's like rain on your wedding day It's a free ride when you've already paid It's the good advice that you just didn't take Who would've thought... it figures Life has a funny way of sneaking up on you Life has a funny, funny way of helping you out Helping you out |
Explanation One of the major themes present in The Nun's Priest's Tale, that encompasses many of story's components, is irony. Within the song, some of the lyrics relate to events that take place in the tale:
"It's the good advice that you just didn't take." Before the concluding incident of the story, Chaunticleer had a dream that revealed to him his fate and destiny, involving a fox who kills him in the yard. Initially, he understood the dream as a prophetic message sent to him from God that he should take heed too. However, due to his wife's berating, he dismisses it and he faces the consequences later when it does happen. “Well life has a funny way of sneaking up on you When you think everything's okay and everything's going right And life has a funny way of helping you out when You think everything's gone wrong and everything blows up In your face " This stanza presents a similarity to the poem, as Chaunticleer is unsuspecting when the fox that shows up in the yard asks to hear him sing. Despite having a dream that specifically showed the fox attacking him and having him dead, Chaunticleer thinks "everything's okay" and isn't skeptical about the fox's intentions. If Chaunticleer had paid attention to this vision, a vision which could be seen as a way of life trying to help him out, he may have been more cautious of the situation and wouldn't have let his guard down from the fox's flattery. |