Song Analysis – I See Fire Ed Sheeran Oh, misty eye of the mountain below Keep careful watch of my brothers' souls And should the sky be filled with fire and smoke Keep watching over Durin's son If this is to end in fire Then we should all burn together Watch the flames climb high into the night Calling out for the rope, sent by and we will Watch the flames burn on and on the mountain side hey And if we should die tonight Then we should all die together Raise a glass of wine for the last time Calling out for the rope Prepare as we will Watch the flames burn on and on the mountain side Desolation comes upon the sky Now I see fire, inside the mountain I see fire, burning the trees And I see fire, hollowing souls And I see fire, blood in the breeze And I hope that you'll remember me Oh, should my people fall Then surely I'll do the same Confined in mountain halls We got too close to the flame Calling out father hold fast and we will Watch the flames burn on and on the mountain side Desolation comes upon the sky Now I see fire, inside the mountain I see fire, burning the trees And I see fire, hollowing souls And I see fire, blood in the breeze And I hope that you'll remember me
Oh, misty eye of the mountain belowKeep careful watch of my brothers' souls
And should the sky be filled with fire and smokeKeep watching over Durin's son
If this is to end in fireThen we should all burn together
Watch the flames climb high into the nightCalling out for the rope, sent by and we will
Watch the flames burn on and on the mountain side hey
And if we should die tonightThen we should all die together
Raise a glass of wine for the last timeCalling out for the rope
Prepare as we willWatch the flames burn on and on the mountain side
Desolation comes upon the sky
Now I see fire, inside the mountainI see fire, burning the trees
And I see fire, hollowing soulsAnd I see fire, blood in the breeze
And I hope that you'll remember me
Oh, should my people fallThen surely I'll do the sameConfined in mountain halls
We got too close to the flameCalling out father hold fast and we will
Watch the flames burn on and on the mountain sideDesolation comes upon the sky
Now I see fire, inside the mountainI see fire, burning the trees
And I see fire, hollowing soulsAnd I see fire, blood in the breeze
And I hope that you'll remember me
And if the night is burningI will cover my eyes
For if the dark returns thenMy brothers will die
And as the sky's falling downIt crashed into this lonely town
Tom, 10/19/16,
The refers to The Lonely Mountain, which is based in J.R.R Tolkien’s book of “The Hobbit” and the same world as “The lord of The Rings” also by J.R.R Tolkien.
Tom, 10/19/16,
This means there is some other dark evil out there, and that if it returns, which suggests it was thought dead, that there is nothing anyone can do to stop it.
Tom, 10/19/16,
“Confine in mountain halls” suggests they are trapped inside of the mountain, “too close to the flame “ suggests that they have started a fight with the dragon and came too close to losing.
Tom, 10/19/16,
This suggests that Thorin, heir to the throne makes the journey to take his home back for his people, and that if he fails the rest will also fall.
Tom, 10/19/16,
This gives the audience an idea of the destructive power that the dragon Smaug has. “hollowing souls” makes the song sound dark and the dragon sound dangerous.
Tom, 10/19/16,
This suggests they will have one last supper, one last celebration before they go on their travels. “for the last time” suggests that they do not expect to come back or survive.
Tom, 10/19/16,
This backs up the previous point of them fighting and dying together, as they will fight to take back their homeland.
Tom, 10/19/16,
This means there is high risk of death on their journey, and if they are all to die they will die fighting for each other and with each other.
Tom, 10/19/16,
“My brother’s souls” refers to the company of Thorin, a group of protagonists in “The Hobbit” and wishing for a blessing to placed on them for good fortune in their journey. “Should the sky be filled with fire and smoke” refers to the dragon Smaug, who took over the Kingdom of Erebor under The Lonely Mountain from the dwarves.
And with that shadow upon the groundI hear my people screaming out
Now I see fire, inside the mountainI see fire, burning the trees
And I see fire, hollowing soulsAnd I see fire, blood in the breeze
I see fire, oh you know I saw a city burning (fire)And I see fire, feel the heat upon my skin (fire)
And I see fire (fire)And I see fire (burn on and on and mountains side)
Tom, 10/19/16,
: “Sky’s falling down” could mean the dragon, as dragons fly in the sky and swoops down to the ground. “crashed into this lonely town means an attack on a town, lonely means that there is no help for them. “shadow upon the ground I hear my people screaming out” suggests an attack on the town from Smaug, the screams of terror suggesting there is no hope left.
