Basic deconstruction questions (class activity)

The Boxer (Simon and Garfunkel)

I am just a poor boy though my story's seldom told
I have squandered my resistance for a pocketful of mumbles, such are promises.
All lies and jest, still a man hears what he wants to hear
And disregards the rest, hmmmm

When I left my home and my family, I's no more than a boy
In the company of strangers
In the quiet of the railway station, runnin' scared, laying low,
Seeking out the poorer quarters, where the ragged people go,
Looking for the places only they would know.

Li la li...

Asking only workman's wages, I come lookin' for a job,
But I get no offers,
Just a come-on from the whores on 7th Avenue.
I do declare, there were times when I was so lonesome
I took some comfort there.

La la la...

now the years are rolling by me, they are -[rockin evenly]-
i am older than i once was
and younger than i'll be that's not unusual.
no it isnt strange after changes upon changes we are more or less the same
after changes we are more or less the same

Li la li...


And I'm laying out my winter clothes and wishing I was gone,
goin' home
Where the New York City winters aren't bleedin' me, leadin' me,
goin' home.

In the clearing stands a boxer, and a fighter by his trade
And he carries the reminders of every glove that laid him down or cut him
'Til he cried out in his anger and his shame
I am leaving, I am leaving, but the fighter still remains.


Li la li...

Characters:
Family

Strangers

Whores

Ragged people

1) Whose message is this? Who created or paid for it?Why?
This song is about a poor boy who wants to improve life in another country. He faced many difficulties but never gave up their dreams. He paid for it, because he was responsible for his actions, he believed in an illusion.

2) Who is the "target audience"? What are the clues (words, images, sounds, etc.)?
Poor boys who want to change their lives (to make money in another country). The clues are: poor boy, strangers, fighter, comfort etc.

3) What "tools of persuasion" are used?
Despite the failures, we must never give up.

4) What part of the story is not being told?
We do not know why he left home, how long he was away from home, where he worked etc.

5) About the chorus...
The chorus of the song remind us the word lie.