Story Thread in 'The Final Cut'?

[theaussiefloydian]

Now sometimes I have these ideas about albums that probably don't actually work, but I thought I might share this one now.
Throughout The Final Cut (I'm talking the version before 2004), I believe there is something of a story in there, even if it wasn't intentional.
So here it is. In the beginning, our protagonist is driving home from work, reflecting on the state of the world at the time (The Post War Dream). The rest of the story is a flashback from here, beginning by seeing him fighting in the Falklands War, exploring his feelings of lonliness and separation from his family during this time (Your Possible Pasts). He watches a lot of his friends die pointlessly, and considers his own survival (One of the Few). He then returns home to return to his job as a teacher, but finds this really hard as he has become hugely depressed. He finds a distance opening up between him and his family, and considers all the glory he had supposedly returned with (The Hero's Return). He remembers the last words of his best friend about the war (The Gunner's Dream). He then goes to the bar to drown his sorrows (Paranoid Eyes), when someone asks him about the Falklands War (Get Your Filthy Hands Off My Desert). He then sees something on the TV about tensions in the world, and begins a drunken rant (The Fletcher Memorial Home). He then tells the story of a woman she knew who watched them go to war (Southampton Dock). He then goes home, his depression hitting a peak, and nearly kills himself (The Final Cut). He wakes up the next morning and throws himself into total and utter apathy for the circumstances of the world, which drastically improves his mood (Not Now John). The story ends as we flash back to the beginning, with him driving home from work. His apathy hasn't lasted long, but he still seems to be in a better mood. However this doesn't last long, as behind him the first nuke of the nuclear war detonates. He keeps driving, oddly calm at the idea (Two Suns in the Sunset).
Feedback? As I said, I know Waters didn't work any story in, but this is one that presents itself to me when I listen to it.

[twcc]

^^^
Interesting thread. I had considered the journal type narrative and the theme at start and end but not seen quite the detail you raise. I'm on a long car journey tomorrow so I'll listen to The Final Cut from start-to-finish and, hopefully, without distraction.

[Wolfpack]

fighting in the Falklands War

Shouldn't that be World War II?
And isn't the teacher the same one as in the movie 'The Wall', as shown in the video EP 'The Final Cut'?

[theaussiefloydian]

fighting in the Falklands War

Shouldn't that be World War II?
And isn't the teacher the same one as in the movie 'The Wall', as shown in the video EP 'The Final Cut'?

I must confess I have not seen the video EP, but I have my reasons for why I made the changes. The biggest one is all the references to 80's politics throughout the record make it difficult to depict a recently-returned soldier in the timeframe given by said references unless something is moved about. Not to mention the original album was influenced by the Falklands war, so it made sense to me.
The character I've created here for The Final Cut could very well be related to 'The Teacher' from The Wall - perhaps a son? Like I said, this narrative was in no way written by Waters, this is my interpretation.

[Hammer]

theaussiefloydian Good effort, I like your version.
I agree there's a little bit of confusion about the teacher character being the same protagonist from TFC, mainly a timeline problem. The album tells of 80's problems while the teacher taught Pink sometime in the 50's presumably.

[nuraman00]

Now sometimes I have these ideas about albums that probably don't actually work, but I thought I might share this one now.
Throughout The Final Cut (I'm talking the version before 2004), I believe there is something of a story in there, even if it wasn't intentional.
So here it is. In the beginning, our protagonist is driving home from work, reflecting on the state of the world at the time (The Post War Dream). The rest of the story is a flashback from here, beginning by seeing him fighting in the Falklands War, exploring his feelings of lonliness and separation from his family during this time (Your Possible Pasts). He watches a lot of his friends die pointlessly, and considers his own survival (One of the Few). He then returns home to return to his job as a teacher, but finds this really hard as he has become hugely depressed. He finds a distance opening up between him and his family, and considers all the glory he had supposedly returned with (The Hero's Return). He remembers the last words of his best friend about the war (The Gunner's Dream). He then goes to the bar to drown his sorrows (Paranoid Eyes), when someone asks him about the Falklands War (Get Your Filthy Hands Off My Desert). He then sees something on the TV about tensions in the world, and begins a drunken rant (The Fletcher Memorial Home). He then tells the story of a woman she knew who watched them go to war (Southampton Dock). He then goes home, his depression hitting a peak, and nearly kills himself (The Final Cut). He wakes up the next morning and throws himself into total and utter apathy for the circumstances of the world, which drastically improves his mood (Not Now John). The story ends as we flash back to the beginning, with him driving home from work. His apathy hasn't lasted long, but he still seems to be in a better mood. However this doesn't last long, as behind him the first nuke of the nuclear war detonates. He keeps driving, oddly calm at the idea (Two Suns in the Sunset).
Feedback? As I said, I know Waters didn't work any story in, but this is one that presents itself to me when I listen to it.

Thanks for this post. I liked the interpretation.

I'll think about this the next time I listen to the album.

[mosespa]

It's my understanding that at least the first half is the story of the Schoolmaster from The Wall and how he came to be such a dastardly character.

The video EP suggests that the character's son has died in the Falklands conflict, so that could still tie in with your suggested storyline.

[theaussiefloydian]

It's my understanding that at least the first half is the story of the Schoolmaster from The Wall and how he came to be such a dastardly character.

The video EP suggests that the character's son has died in the Falklands conflict, so that could still tie in with your suggested storyline.

I stated above that the video EP has no bearing on the story I have presented here. This is an interpretation that fell into place on very late night as I was near falling asleep listening to this record. The first half is a mix of my own interpretations and bits of something else I read in some book on Pink Floyd I read once.

[mosespa]

I was addressing your comment that you knew that Waters didn't throw any story in.

He did, not just in the video EP, but also in the album itself...and it's actually remarkably close to the story you've come up with.

I was just pointing that out. Don't shoot the messenger for the message, please.

[theaussiefloydian]

I was addressing your comment that you knew that Waters didn't throw any story in.

He did, not just in the video EP, but also in the album itself...and it's actually remarkably close to the story you've come up with.

I was just pointing that out. Don't shoot the messenger for the message, please.

No intention of shooting anyone. And I think perhaps the bits and pieces that snapped into place from memory may have been from a description of the video ep that I read ages ago so that would make sense. And I had not been totally aware that the story of the entire record was deliberate. I knew to some extent the first side might have been, but as far as my seriously flawed memory goes the story on the second side is more or less my own interpretation. Not sure now though...
The change from wwii to the Falklands just worked for me in context really. No other reason.

[danielcaux]

Your interpretation is not that far from Waters own vision: a WWII veteran reflects on Maggie's and the whole England society betrayal of the post-war dream and how the Falklands war gives him a sense of complete defeat, of having fought his own war all those years ago in vain. So yeah, the whole first side deals with his issues with the past: his feelings of survivor guilt and the subsequent postwar depression, of being just a sort of ghost lingering around in modern society, and then the second part deals with his thoughts and feelings about the present, the Falklands war, and the future, the incoming nuclear holocaust.


Or at least that's how I interpret it!

[DarkSideFreak]

The problem with this (and The Wall to an extent as well) is that the lines get blurred between Pink, Roger and the narrator. Certainly the first side deals with the teacher and shows a development from One of the Few up to at least Paranoid Eyes but the title track seems to be on a different plane (would you sell your story to Rolling Stone?). And The Fletcher Memorial Home is very much Roger without speaking through some kind of persona, IMO.

I see and hear traces of a storyline but given that some of the tracks were from the "3rd disc" of The Wall (e.g. Your Possible Pasts and The Hero's Return) it's understandable.

Adding When the Tigers Broke Free doesn't make it easier, because that's a song from the perspective of Pink-Roger inserted between two songs about the teacher...

[theaussiefloydian]

Adding When the Tigers Broke Free doesn't make it easier, because that's a song from the perspective of Pink-Roger inserted between two songs about the teacher...

When I consider this interpretation of mine I disregard Tigers entirely. Pre 2004 cut only for me!