Composition

To analyse the song “The River” by Bruce Springsteen, we will first focus on its outer composition and then on its inner composition.

Outer composition

The song “The River” by Bruce Springsteen was performed alongside the E Street Band. The song is separated into five stanzas comprised of 39 lines.

Notice how the song can actually be seen and interpreted as a short story, in which the action takes place chronologically. In his youth, the narrator meets Mary. Later on, they get married. Then, disappointment sets in, as life demonstrates that teenage dreams are not realistic. The ending is quite bitter; the narrator knows his dreams have vanished and deals with the frustration of a wasted life. Still, we do not know what will happen next, so the ending is open. The future will...