Human Stuff
Original Broadway Cast Lyrics

The song "Human Stuff" is from the Original Broadway Cast of "The Little Mermaid". The song is sung by the characters Flotsam and Jetsam, who are the evil eel minions of Ursula. The song revolves around their attempt to convince Ariel to give up her mermaid voice in exchange for "human stuff". They show Ariel various human artifacts such as hairbrushes, forks, combs, etc. and explain how those items are used by humans. They also persuade Ariel that having a human appearance is more fashionable than her current mermaid appearance.

In the first few lines of the song, Flotsam and Jetsam sing about the desire to have a hairdo like the humans. They say that using a "thing a ma bob" or a "jig" can help them achieve that. They demonstrate the use of a "dinglehopper" (a human fork) and explain how to use it to create hair waves. They then persuade Ariel that having these human things will make her popular among humans and make her "the dogs meow".

The song is an example of villain persuasion, where the villains persuade the singer to do something that they shouldn't. In this case, they're convincing Ariel to give up her voice in exchange for material possessions. The song also addresses the theme of wanting to be someone else, depicting how Ariel desires to be a human rather than a mermaid. Overall, "Human Stuff" is a fun, catchy, and playful song that adds to the narrative of the story.