Hear Her Lyrics, Taste Her Venom
The enduring hardships of womanhood are a tale as old as honey. This message is one that singer-songwriter Maisie Peters mercilessly displays in the striking lyrics of her song “History of Man,” which depicts how the underlying ache of womanhood transcends both time and history. In a victorious fashion, this artist has made an impact, and uproar it seems, as women are holding onto her every word, specifically regarding history; the history of man and its proceeding repercussions…
Tale as old as honey
A moment everybody knows
Yeah, I'm sure there was heartbreak
Inside the walls of Jericho
According to the Old Testament, Jericho was considered an uncompromising city with steep reinforced walls that boasted an impenetrable status. To the bewilderment of its citizens, this confidence in the city’s durability was proven to be unwarranted after the wall was brought down by Joshua and the Isrealites. With this historical reference, Peters is alluding to her personal — yet relatable — experience of a relationship’s walls quickly crumbling at the hand of lies and empty promises. She, like the heartbroken citizens within Jericho’s walls, fell victim to the false sense of security that women are repeatedly lured into.
I couldn't believe it
How you could just stop wanting me?
You burnt down Easter Island
As if it wasn't sacred, as if it wasn't sacred to me
The treasured Moai figures of Easter Island are pillars of history. Said to have been carved in the 13th century, these giant head statues are widely considered a sacred landmark that is worthy of both reverence and respect. Due to suspected human meddling in 2022, however, Easter Island saw a severe wildfire that resulted in irrevocable damage being done to these priceless pieces of history. In “History of Man,” Peters compares the lack of care for the figures’ damage to the scars found not only on her heart but also on those of women who have been used and bruised by an unapologetic flame that spreads with no regard for who it burns.
You didn't even falter
Didn't look back once, did you?
So Samson blamed Delilah, but given half the chance I
I would have made him weaker too
In another reference to the Bible, Peters alludes to the tumultuous relationship of Samson and Delilah. In this tragedy, Delilah is said to have forcibly cut her husband’s hair in exchange for a reward and the stripping of his admired supernatural strength. Throughout history, many have labeled Delilah as a traitorous criminal. Peters’ bold claim that she would have performed the same so-called villainous act as Delilah puts the story into a new light, a light in which a husband and wife exist in a continuous power imbalance, with the wife somehow always falling short of matching the overpowering sense of the importance of her counterpart. In the song, Peters plays devil’s advocate for Delilah, untwisting her historical image into one of a woman who was desperate to even the playing field that was never in her favor.
He stole our youth and promised heaven
The men start wars yet Troy hates Helen
Women's hearts are lethal weapons
Did you hold mine and feel threatened?
Hear my lyrics, taste my venom
You are still my great obsession
The phrase “beauty is pain” is a reality Helen of Troy knew all too well. In Greek mythology, Helen was said to have been the most beautiful woman to walk the earth. However, due to the greedy fixations of the Trojan Prince, Paris, her marriage to the King of Sparta was disrupted, with Helen being taken from her home in a suspected act of force. In an attempt to resolve the wounded pride of the Spartan king, forces gathered, attacked, and destroyed the city of Troy. Today, the battle is known as the Trojan War: a bloody, overzealous, and tragic loss of life over the fickle whims of men. This story, depicted in The Iliad, has long been poisoned by the sexist view of Helen as the catalyst for Troy’s fall. In the minds of many, Helen was nothing but a beautiful threat, a prize to be won. Rather than a woman who, ultimately, did nothing to warrant the violent actions of the men who sought her affections. Sound familiar? Peters seems to think so, as she views the paralleled themes of the modern world that are still silencing and controlling the narrative of countless women today. She goes on to bolden her message with lyrics exposing the fear that a woman in power strikes in the hearts of men, a testament to the power imbalance that has festered into an addiction in the past and present.
I've seen it, in the poems and the sands
I've pleaded, with the powers and their plans
I tried to rewrite it but I can't
It's the history, the history of man
In writing “History of Man,” Maisie Peters is essentially acting as a heroine to all women. She demands that the world listen and taste the venom of her generational anger. As stated on Peters’ socials, the song is “ about women who never got to tell their own story, who had their own narrative taken away from them by a man who did not deserve the pen he stole.” Akin to a lion roaring, Peters ignites a heart-wrenching call to avenge the hearts of all women whose lives have been overlooked or twisted by the narrative of men that history books have prioritized for far too long.
Written by Logan Hansen, Photography: Alyssa Moore, Social Media: Sofia Mora, Styling: Isabella Garcia