Name: Genesis Noor O.

Lumbang Date: October 17, 2023

Strand/Track and Block: STEM 11 G Instructor: Sir JB Villeta

TOA: ETMT2 – Analysis of the Song Course Code: PHILO 01

Titled “After the Storm” by Kali Uchis

Ah Whatever goes around Eventually comes bloom Kali, what you mean? I take it offensive

back to you So you gotta be careful, baby And 'Cause I'm the hottest flower boy That popped

look both ways Before you cross my mind Did up on the scene Feeling better, better than ever

you ever wonder? Yeah, do you ever wonder 'Cause your umbrella, -brella (bright) Sun is

What he might be going through On his own and beaming on me like headlights beaming on

The demons that he's facing alone, I hate that Bambi Now let's pretend the street is the room

sometimes I can't go home And it ain't just the And you are a Camry 'Cause your drama candid

same on the phone, no But everybody's gotta go The Tito to my Randy Now let's produce some

on Don't they? (Yes, we do, baby) So if you thrillers My chocolate wit' yo vanilla, uh The

need a hero (if you need a hero) Just look in the sun'll come out Nothing good ever comes easy I

mirror (just look in the mirror) No one's gonna know times are rough But winners don't quit So

save you now So you better save yourself And don't you give up The sun'll come out But we've

everybody's hurting Everybody's going through it been struggling endless days Someday we'll find

But you just can't give up now 'Cause you gotta the love 'Cause after the storm I know it's hard

save yourself (Yeah, I gotta hang on) The sun'll But do you even really try? Maybe you could

come out Nothing good ever comes easy I know understand When all you had to do was ask And

times are rough But winners don't quit So don't just open your mind When everything is passing

you give up The sun'll come out But we've been by And all you had to do was try Yeah, all you

struggling endless days Someday we'll find the had to was try Try, try, try, try, try All you had to

love 'Cause after the storm's When the flowers do was try Try, try, try, try
 The ‘U’ in superhero

“Life is what you make it.” This was a saying my grandmother said a lot, it implies

that man is responsible for his existence. It was Alexis Carrel who once said, “Man is

both the marble and the sculptor.” I believe that the song emphasizes Nietzsche’s ‘Will

to power’, and Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir’s idea of existentialism;

existence precedes essence. Man makes him, him.

“Do you ever wonder What he might be going through? On his own and The

demons that he's facing alone, I hate that sometimes I can't go home And it ain't just the

same on the phone, no But everybody's gotta go on Don't they? (Yes, we do, baby).”

We can only experience and live our own point of view. Existentialism signifies our

individual experiences; and the authenticity and the journey of self-discovery present

within the song. No matter how concerned or affected we are by another, we won’t ever

be in someone else’s shoes so we must keep on going. In this world, man’s control is

limited by others. One can not simply act nor decide for another, man can only control

and dictate himself. This is the situated freedom that man is born into.

Abandonment is also prevalent within the song. Lines such as “What he might be

going through On his own”, and “So if you need a hero. Just look in the mirror. No one's

gonna save you now So you better save yourself.” Depict that man is abandoned and

has no certain essence; it is up to you, who has the absolute freedom to choose what

your purpose will be, and which course of action you will take. With no predetermined
purpose, we have absolute freedom to define ourselves. But the verse “Nothing good

ever comes easy I know times are rough But winners don't quit So don't you give up”

indicates that there are situations that have been decided by previous actions, or

situations we are born into which limit our capacity to choose.This is what Sartre refers

to as facticity. This line also exemplify the exercise of Nietzsche’s will to power, one

must overcome obstacles and limitations whether they are mental, physical, or

emotional. The circumstances should not define man, but man should define its

circumstance. One can only control so much in his life, so why not take control of the

things you can.

We are born in a serious world, with situated freedom. The lines: “Do you ever

wonder What he might be going through? On his own and The demons that he's facing

alone.” and “And everybody's hurting Everybody's going through it.” The song

acknowledges others as a subject not only in its lyrics, but also by including a featured

artist. We are caught in an ambiguous existence. We acknowledge that the other

subjects are equal. We live in an intersubjective world, in which we are responsible for

our actions as it affects others. A part of who we are is how we present ourselves to

others, and how they perceive us. One cannot truly know oneself as they have not and

will never experience them from the anothers perspective.

‘After the storm’ portrays that existence precedes essence. I believe that life is

what you make it. We are born into abandonment, with no predetermined purpose, we

are responsible for our actions in regards to others, and our decision in defining
ourselves. Although there is no concrete way to prove that the other are subjects, they

should be treated equally. The song's lyrics speak to the idea of making choices and

taking control of one's destiny. Existentialists emphasize the importance of living in the

present moment and embracing one's existence. The song's theme of moving "after the

storm" could be seen as an invitation to live in the present and not be defined solely by

past struggles or future uncertainties.

References:

Jean-Paul Sartre (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy). (2022, March 26).

https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/sartre/

Simone de Beauvoir (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy). (2023, January 11).

https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/beauvoir/