#jurdan song analysis

[viivdle]

Dancing With Our Hands Tied (Jurdan's Version) with @annamatix<3

here is part two of my analysis, and don't forget to look at anna's version in jude's pov on her account!!

"And darling, you had turned my bed into a sacred oasis" fits cardan well. the most obvious reasons are that he calls jude "darling god" and he was never ashamed of his sexuality, he's open about his desires. but all he's done was try to fill the void that jude caused and would inevitably fill. she turned what was fun into something sacred.

"People started talking, putting us through our paces" the folk talk about them, it's inevitable. i think it takes a bigger toll on cardan than he'd ever admit. not because he doubts the strength of their love, but because he knows being mortal in elfhame already sets you up for failure, and how hard jude works to live up to standards and exceed them. being constantly brought down does something to you, even if you're used to it. he is the first to know it.

"I knew there was no one in the world who could take it" again, nobody can take the judging of *everyone* in elfhame without some help. he knows how strong jude is, but he also knows how she's shielded herself from the not-so-whispered whispers before. and he knows how he himself coped with it. if he can help jude ignore the small part of gossip that does get to her, he will.

"But we were dancing, dancing with our hands tied, hands tied" another example of the ability to take it literally. cardan's hands were tied through (almost) all of TWK. beside that, a lot of opportunities didn't present themselves to cardan, even though he was already the high king, because of the prophecy. all throughout the series we read about people looking down at him, this doesn't change after the coronation. it just makes other people weary of what could happen if they were to cut deals with a cursed king.

"Yeah we were dancing, like it was the first time, first time" the scheming of jude was nothing new to cardan, whenever it happened it simply followed a pattern he already knew. their whole story is so diverse but can be looked at from a certain perspective that shows it can all be watered down into the same/similar tropes. betrayal, hurt, anguish - nothing new to either of them.

"I, I loved you in spite of deep fears that the world would divide us" as mentioned before, cardan doesn't like it when jude throws herself into danger - and she does it over and over again. not only that, but there is always the chance of assassinations they can't control - we know they happen quite often as well. all those fears that are reasonable make *him* being the person to separate them even more ironic.

"So, baby, can we dance, oh, through an avalanche?" for me these lyrics fit the scene after balekin's murder when cardan asks jude to marry him. it's risky, not 100% thought through, and definitely not thought of because of rationality. but he had hopes of overcoming what had already divided them before with it.

"I'm a mess, but I'm the mess that you wanted" do i even need to explain? "shabby, worm-eaten, and scabrous" says enough. i could go into a whole rant about it though.

"Oh, 'cause it's gravity, oh, keeping you with me" what else would keep bringing them together if not gravity and the force of the universe? they shouldn't work. they shouldn't. but only if you look at their dynamic and not the chemistry and emotions that actually make them, well, them. every story and song in elfhame is basically "mortals are bad" and "how could an immortal ever love a mortal" those things are buried in the roots of the kingdom's history. cardan tormented jude for ages, and even if you forgive that, it still wouldn't be healthy. but somehow both of their unhealthy personalities better one another. they work when everything speaks against it. gravity.

"I'd kiss you as the lights went out, swaying as the room burned down" is there a better lyric for the coronation scene than this? it all went to hell, it was a massacre. cardan got obliterated but after jude held him captive he somehow wasn't a total and utter wreck. yes, his family was complicated to say the least, but it was still family. but what was more important for some reason? jude.

"I'd hold you as the water rushes in" taken literally, this is about the time the undersea held jude captive. metaphorically, it's the same. he'd stay with her through it all, it was proven many times. again - he didn't know anything but jude when he was a serpent.

"If I could dance with you again" he was sure he had ultimately lost her when he exiled her, and we have evidence of his regrets and thoughts. he didn't even have the chance to properly enjoy being with her without it being part of a scheme before he banished her. before that, she was taken by the undersea and god knows what he thought during that time.

thank you so much for listening to my rant even though again, i doubt people read all this. i had so much fun writing this and having two different sides on it - anna's and mine. i hope you enjoyed and thank you so much anna, you're amazing<3

#cardan greenbriar #jude duarte #jurdan #the cruel prince #the wicked king #the queen of nothing #the folk of the air #tfota #holly black #taylor swift #taylor swift song analysis #tfota song analysis #jurdan taylor swift #jurdan songs #jurdan analysis #jurdan song analysis

[annamatix]

episode 1 of the jenny-anna taylor jurdan collab series YIPPEE (that's a mouthful we'll need to find a better name)

@viivdle did cardan's pov in two parts (linked at the bottom of this post) and i did jude's here

today’s topic: dancing with our hands tied (jurdan’s version)

“i, i loved you in secret” = jude didn’t tell a single soul that she had feelings for cardan

“first sight, yeah we love without reason” = after their first kiss she was super confused and didn’t understand why she was growing feeling for him, hence the ‘without reason’

“oh, 25 years old” = they weren’t 25, but they were very young so this could mean how literally the fate of the land fae was thrust into the hands of ‘kids’ (18?? 19??)

“oh, how were you to know, my love had been frozen. deep blue but you painted me golden” = in tcp jude clearly states that she is not interested in marrying or has feelings for anyone, but cardan kickstarted those feelings, clearly

“oh, and you held me close” = she was around cardan a lot, he kept her close to stead as seneschal and whatnot

“i could’ve spent forever with your hands in my pockets” = this could refer to the way cardan was slowly becoming more spy-like, learning from the roach (‘hands in my pockets’ = him stealing stuff, like her heart)

“picture of your face in an invisible locket” = 1) this is elfhame, so invisible lockets are totally normal, and 2) this could also mean how cardan was always on jude’s mind, like when he turned into a serpent she still imagined him sitting there, giving her pointers in his own sarcastic way

“you said there was nothing in the world that could stop it, i had a bad feeling” = the way when jude was seneschal, cardan would always say things like ‘what a shame not one of them knows who their real ruler is’ and jude always feeling like this power could slip out of her grasp soon

“and darling, you had turned my bed into a sacred oasis” = smirk (sorry) basically this could be about when jude and cardan did something together and agreed on it, it was a rare moment, making it 'sacred'

“people starting talking putting us through our paces” = there’s lots of whispering in courts like elfhame’s and jurdan was definitely affected by them

“i knew there was no one in the world who could take it, i had a bad feeling” = jude crowned cardan against his will, and she had to bear so many responsibilities, so again she felt like the power could fall from her anytime soon

“but we were dancing, dancing with our hands tied, hands tied” = even though she was seneschal, jude felt powerless in many ways, frustrated that she couldn’t control cardan, hence the ‘hands tied’

“yeah we were dancing, like it was the first time, first time” = jude and cardan kept repressing their feelings for each other, and then whenever they felt something/did something, they were always surprised (‘like it was the first time’ = signaling even though they did it before, they were still shocked, like the first time they did it)

(skipping the rest of the chorus, it’s basically a repeat)

“i, i loved you in spite of, deep fears that the world would divide us” = painfully obvious, a mortal and a faerie?? jude duarte and the beloved high king of elfhame?? not even in your wildest dreams, right?

“so baby can we dance, through an avalanche” = jurdan has been through a LOT together, this somewhat symbolizes that

“and say, say that we got it, i’m a mess but i'm the mess that you wanted” = do i even have to say it? jude i-poison-myself-every-day-and-made-a-deal-with-prince-dain-who-made-me-stab-clean-through-my-hand-plus-i-did-a-shit-ton-of-other-insane-things duarte, and cardan is head over heels for this woman

“oh, cause it’s gravity, keeping you with me” = its so hard to keep cardan under her thumb, and also unbelievable he would do it on his own accord. this could also work romantically, its crazy to her that cardan actually loves her

(skipping the chorus cuz i already did it above)

“i’d kiss you as the lights went out, swaying as the room burned down. i’d hold you as the water rushes in, if i could dance with you again” = symbolizes the time when cardan was a serpent, jude didn’t care which type of cardan he would be, what would happen, or anything else, she just wanted him next to her again. girlie was highkey desperate

(the rest of the song is basically the chorus)

wow thank you for reading until here *bows*

sorry if its shallow jenny is the better analyzer between us two 🙏

cardan's pov part 1

cardan's pov part 2

#phew thats a wrap #cardan greenbriar #jude duarte #jude x cardan #the cruel prince #the wicked king #the queen of nothing #tfota #the folk of the air #jurdan #holly black #taylor swift #taylor swift songs #song analysis #analysis #how the king of elfhame learned to hate stories #idk what else to put that should be it yayy

[inkandpapermagic]

Analysis of that Queen of Nothing Epigraph

So I downloaded the Queen of Nothing sample on iBooks, and when I read the epigraph for the first time, I think I blacked out a little. After I had recovered, I googled the rest of it, and basically, “Elfin Song” by Edmund Clarence Stedman is a Jurdan Anthem and may or may not foreshadow all the events of Queen of Nothing (or maybe I’m just reading waaaay too much into this, but y’all, read this poem. 

Here is the full poem: 

What if there be a fated day

When the Faery Isle shall pass away,

And its beautiful groves and fountains seem

The myths of a long, delicious dream!

A century's joys shall first repay

Our hearts, for the evil of that day;

And the Elfin-King has sworn to wed

A daughter of Earth, whose child shall be,

By cross and water hallowe'd,

From the fairies' doom forever free.

What if there be a fated day!

It is far away! it is far away!

Maiden, fair Maiden, I, who sing

Of this summer isle am the island King.

I KNOW, RIGHT? Let’s break it down real smooth. 

What if there be a fated day

When the Faery Isle shall pass away,

And its beautiful groves and fountains seem

The myths of a long, delicious dream!

Could it be? Would Holly really blow up the machine like this? *hyperventilates* 

I can’t imagine Faerie disappearing altogether, but the poem seems pretty straightforward. I’ve mentioned before my theory that Jude and Carden may permanently find themselves in the mortal world. Perhaps Faerie does not truly “pass away” but Jude and Cardan simply leave it, and in time, it becomes a “delicious dream.” I really hope this isn’t true, because I want to see those crazy kids ruling Faerie forever, but the alternative is that Faerie “passes away” in the literal sense, and someone or something just destroys it (giant snake Cardan? I’ve started trying to work that theory into everything because I believe so much in snakegate). 

Also: if Faerie WAS destroyed, that really would make Jude the Queen of Nothing. 

A century's joys shall first repay

Our hearts, for the evil of that day;

And the Elfin-King has sworn to wed

A daughter of Earth 

Sometimes I forget for 2.5 seconds of my day that Jude and Cardan are married and then it hits me all over again and I start cryin in the club. So thanks to this poem for stirring that up again. 

A daughter of Earth, whose child shall be,

A daughter of Earth whose child shall be

A daughter of Earth whose child

Whose child 

WHOSE CHILD 

Things I need in my life more than a Jurdan baby:

A. Nothing

B. Also Nothing

C. A & B

Now I’m sobbing imagining Jude and Cardan’s future child. I think I need to go write a fanfiction about a Faerie gender reveal party where Jude cuts the reveal cake open with a sword or something. 

A daughter of Earth, whose child shall be,

By cross and water hallowe'd,

From the fairies' doom forever free.

“As a child, I imagined returning to the mortal world. Taryn and Vivi and I would rehash what it was like there… I longed for the mundane things: the smell of hot asphalt, the swag of wires between streetlights, the jingles of commercials.” (Queen of Nothing, page 2). 

Jude’s childhood was stolen, and she was condemned to the “faerie’s doom.” She grew up afraid, and although she came to love Faerie, the trauma of her childhood haunts her. 

So it stands to reason that Jude might want, for her child, a life free from the cruelty of the Folk. 

It could go the other way, though. Maybe, through the destruction of Faerie, Jude and Cardan’s child would find his or herself free from the “faerie’s doom.” Although it seems like an unconventional way to end things, perhaps we may see the royal family of Faerie living footloose and fancy free in the mortal world. Fanfiction AU where Cardan and Jude let their kid ride in one of those kiddie car things at the mall and accidentally lose them in the middle of the food court?

What if there be a fated day!

It is far away! it is far away!

Maiden, fair Maiden, I, who sing

Of this summer isle am the island King.

What if there be a fated day, it is far away… and indeed, Queen of Nothing still feels so far away. 

#queen of nothing #qon #qon theories #qon crack #the folk of the air #jurdan #tfota #the cruel prince #the wicked king

[viivdle]

The Joker And The Queen (Jurdan's Version)

"How was I to know? / It's a crazy thing" fits incredibly well for them. on one side, we have jude - all she knows is cardan hating her. he insulted her, kicked dirt in her food, almost killed (!!) her, how was she to know he loved her?? or tolerated her at all?? on the other side, there's cardan - for me, these lyrics represent how low he thinks of himself. his own family didn't love him, so why would anyone else do it voluntarily? with the two of them, it's anything but - though it still counts to him.  

"I showed you my hand / And you still let me win" they both showed their weaknesses during the series - behind the dais in TWK, jude's constant mortality, cardan's confession in TCP,.. there's more of these moments than one might guess. 

"And who was I to say / That this was meant to be?" it would've been fatal for jude to say it. she herself would've thought she'd gone mad. a mortal and a fae prince? yes, right. and cardan for, again, thinking nobody would want what was left of his heart. 

"The road that was broken / Brought us together" is there anything more jurdan?? there road was not just a bit broken, it was DESTROYED. betrayal, lies, deceiving, murder. come on.  

"When I fold, you see the best in me" for jude, folding represents her mortality, her weakness even when she is stronger than most. she can't escape it, no matter what. cardan on the other hand told her he always thinks about her, which was one of the first big steps to their end. he also involuntarily showed his cards when jude saw balekin and him in his room.  

"I've been played before" ironic considering most times they played each other.  

"So I kept my cards close to my foolproof vest" cardan hid his attraction to her with utter hatred, it was truly foolproof - at least it worked on jude.  

"And then you went all in / And we left together" to me, this screams the serpent scene in TQoN. she had to risk everything, but in the end they came out of it together. 

"And I know you think that what makes a king is gold / A palace and diamond rings" cardan knew next to nothing about ruling when he was put on the throne, but it's not the first thing that comes to mind. i can imagine jude telling cardan that when he has doubts, telling him that despite what he thinks, there's more to being a king than gold (i could get into the silver to gold pipeline but i promise i won't)  

"When I folded, you saw the best in me" cardan admires her mortal beauty like no other, he saw the best of her, the parts she despised most in her situation, when she decided to take that leap of faith. even when cardan was a serpent, she saw her husband, not just a monster. even when cardan was a serpent, he saw his wife, not just a target. 

"The Joker And The Queen" 

#i don't know if this makes sense #i'm really tired but it played and i suddenly thought i had to do this #taylor swift #the joker and the queen #ed sheeran #taylor song analysis #jurdan #jurdan analysis #cardan greenbriar #jude duarte #tfota #the cruel prince #the wicked king #the queen of nothing #the folk of the air #holly black #holly blacj #chai and anna #tcp #twk #tqon #taylor (jurdan's version) #or even #jurdan (taylor's version)

[viivdle]

it's been a long time coming..

Dancing With Our Hands Tied (Jurdan's Version) with @annamatix <3

part 1!!

"I, I loved you in secret" is one of the many lyrics you don't need to use metaphorically for them to fit. he *did* love her in secret, and he hid his feelings with every action he took.

"First sight, yeah, we love without reason" we get a description of what he noticed first when he saw jude, and he was (very obviously, might i add) star struck. he didn't have a reason to be attracted to her. if anything, it was the opposite. his whole life he was taught to hate mortals and find them repulsing, but something about her was different.

"Oh, how were you to know?" i think sometimes cardan regrets his actions. he would do it again just to have the same outcome - being with jude. but i think he regrets how long it took because it cost them valuable time together. even after his feelings were clear, he did things that prolonged the time until they got to openly confess their love.

"And my, my love had been frozen" with everything in his life growing up, nobody reciprocated the love he tried to give, so he locked his heart away the best he could. he tried to freeze it so it wouldn't get hurt, but people still found ways to shatter it.

"Deep blue, but you painted me golden" cardan had a horrible life, nobody needs reminders of it. it's in everything he says and does. she ultimately saved his life in more ways than one. this can also be taken literally. "but you painted me golden" fits the scene in which jude struck him and smeared gold over his face, but that's just a funny thing to add. another way to interpret it (i'm already getting unhinged with this) is that he was with nicasia before he was with jude. not only were they bad together, which painted him blue, but nicasia is the princess of the undersea, nicasia is the deep blue that was replaced with gold, jude.

"Oh, and you held me close. Oh, how was I to know?" it's no secret that jude can lie. and that she takes great advantage of that ability. even after everything, i think cardan still had doubts about her love for him because she *could* be lying. he's very self-destructive and thinks little to nothing of himself. "it is a shabby, worm-eaten, and scabrous thing" is only one of the many admissions to it, verbal or not. while he knows jude loves him, but can't be certain.

"I could've spent forever with your hands in my pockets" screams cardan. he thought he was uncapable of being loved, and she proved him otherwise. he loves with all he has and all he can give, and when he got a taste of what it was like to be loved, he never wanted to let it go again. he would've spent forever with her hands in his pockets, and he would've been happy to do so.

"Picture of your face in an invisible locket" i love love LOVE this lyric, and cardan would too. as i said, he loves with all his might, and he proudly does so. he would 100% wear a locket with a picture of jude in it, nobody questions that. he would love it even more if the locket was invisible to show everyone who has his heart. in the standards elfhame sets, he shouldn't feel proud to love a mortal. he is anyway and after finding out how it feels to love her, he stops caring about it and he would scream it from the top of every building in the kingdom.

"You said there was nothing in the world that could stop it" need i remind everyone of when he was a serpent and knew nothing, not even himself (yes, i'm repeating myself again) but he knew jude? nothing in the world could stop his love for her, literally. and it most definitely something he'd admit to jude.

"I had a bad feeling" has so many meanings for me, looking at it and trying to connect it to cardan. literally, hate is a bad feeling - and he felt it for jude. a lot. cardan, despite his very inflated seeming ego, is extremely anxious when it comes to jude. not only is she the only family he has left, she's the only family he ever had. yes, he had his court. yes, he had a complex relationship with the people in it. yes, said relationship also included love. but no, it was never pure love. jude and cardan's story is anything but pure. it's tainted, bloody, cursed... but their love? it's the purest love in his life.

i know this is very, very long, and i doubt anyone's read it - but stay tuned for the rest of my version and anna's post on her account<33

#it's been over a month #it's been a LONG time coming #cardan greenbriar #jude duarte #jurdan #the cruel prince #the wicked king #the queen of nothing #tfota #the folk of the air #holly black #taylor swift #jurdan songs #taylor swift analysis #tfota songs #tfota song analysis #idk how to tag this ahhhh!!!!@ #how the king of elfhame learned to hate stories #htkoelths