Carve Your Heart Out Yourself
Dashboard Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Hopelessness is your cell.
Since you've drawn out these lines,
are you protected from trying times?
Man it takes a silly girl
to lie about the dreams she has.
But lord, it takes a lonely one to wish
Oh look now, there you go with hope again.
Oh, you're so sure
that I'll be leaving in the end.
Dig your ditch deep enough,
to keep you clear of the sun.
You've been burned more than once.
You don't think much of trust.
Man it takes a silly girl
to lie about the dreams she has.
But lord it takes a lonely one to wish
that she had never dreamt at all.
Oh, look now, there you go with hope again.
But I'll be sure your secret's safe with me.
Oh you're so sure
that I'll be leaving in the end,
you're treating me like I'm already gone.
But I'm not;
I will stay where you are, always.
The lyrics of Dashboard Confessional's "Carve Your Heart Out Yourself" explore the theme of hopelessness and distrust in relationships. The opening line "Carve your heart out yourself" is a metaphor for protecting oneself from hurt by figuratively carving out their own heart. The second line, "Hopelessness is your cell," suggests that the singer or subject of the song is trapped in a state of hopelessness, unable to escape from their negative thoughts or experiences.
As the song progresses, the lyrics reveal that the subject of the song has been hurt in the past and is struggling to trust others. The line "You've been burned more than once, you don't think much of trust" suggests that the subject has been hurt in previous relationships and is finding it difficult to trust again. The chorus "Man it takes a silly girl to lie about the dreams she has. But lord, it takes a lonely one to wish that she had never dreamt at all" speaks to the idea that it's easier to lie to oneself than to face the pain of disappointment.
The final lines of the song "But I'm not; I will stay where you are, always" suggest that the singer of the song is committed to staying with the subject, despite their self-imposed isolation and lack of trust.
Line by Line Meaning
Carve your heart out yourself.
You have to be the one to take control of your emotions.
Hopelessness is your cell.
You feel trapped in hopelessness and it's holding you back.
Since you've drawn out these lines, are you protected from trying times?
You've created boundaries to protect yourself from pain, but are they really helping?
Man it takes a silly girl to lie about the dreams she has.
It's foolish to pretend you don't have dreams or to give them up.
But lord, it takes a lonely one to wish that she had never dreamt at all.
It's even more depressing to have dreamed and lost than to have never dreamed before.
Oh look now, there you go with hope again.
You keep getting your hopes up despite your past experiences.
Oh, you're so sure that I'll be leaving in the end.
You don't trust that people will stay in your life.
Dig your ditch deep enough, to keep you clear of the sun.
You try to avoid happiness because you're afraid it will lead to pain.
You've been burned more than once.
You've experienced a lot of pain and hurt in your life.
You don't think much of trust.
You have a hard time trusting people due to past experiences.
But I'll be sure your secret's safe with me.
The singer promises to keep a secret for the listener, indicating loyalty.
you're treating me like I'm already gone.
You're pushing people away because you expect them to leave.
But I'm not; I will stay where you are, always.
The singer promises to stick around in the listener's life to prove that not everyone will abandon them.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: CHRISTOPHER ANDREW CARRABBA
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind