Cemetary Gates
The Smiths Lyrics

A dreaded sunny day
The weather is beautiful, but I'm feeling dread for some reason.

So I meet you at the cemetery gates
I want to spend time with you, but we're going to a place of death and sadness.

Keats and Yeats are on your side
You have poets you admire, and they are buried in this cemetery.

While Wilde is on mine
I have my own favorite poet who is buried here, and it's someone different from yours.

So we go inside and we gravely read the stones
We are paying our respects to the dead by looking at their gravestones.

All those people all those lives
There are so many people who have died, each with their own unique story.

Where are they now?
Their bodies are buried here, but their souls, if you believe in that sort of thing, may be somewhere else.

With the loves and hates
These people had stories of love and hate, just like I do.

And passions just like mine
They had things they were passionate about, just like I do.

They were born
These people were born into the world, just like I was.

And then they lived and then they died
They had a life, and then it came to an end.

Seems so unfair
Death seems so unfair and cruel.

And I want to cry
I'm feeling emotional about the reality of death and mortality.

You say ere thrice the sun done salutation to the dawn
You're trying to sound poetic and original by using fancy language.

And you claim these words as your own
You're trying to pass off someone else's words as your own.

But I've read well, and I've heard them said
I'm calling you out on this - I've recognized that these are not your original words.

A hundred times, maybe less, maybe more
These words have been used many times before by other poets, writers, and thinkers.

If you must write prose and poems
If you want to be a writer or poet,

The words you use should be your own
You need to be original and come up with your own ideas and language.

Don't plagiarize or take on loans
You can't steal other people's words or ideas - that's cheating.

There's always someone, somewhere
There will always be someone who knows better and who will catch you if you try to cheat or plagiarize.

With a big nose, who knows
This person may be nosy and annoying, but they will catch you if you try to cheat.

And who trips you up and laughs
This person will embarrass you and make fun of you if you're caught cheating.

When you fall
When your cheating is exposed, you will be humiliated and punished.

You say ere long done do does did
You're still trying to use fancy language, but it's not making any sense.

Words which could only be your own
You're trying to sound clever, but you're failing miserably.

And then you then produce the text
You're trying to pass off someone else's work as your own original creation.

From whence was ripped some dizzy whore
This work was stolen from a disreputable source, and it's not something to be proud of.

Eighteen hundred and four
This work is old and outdated, and it's not something that anyone cares about anymore.

So let's go where we're happy
Let's leave this depressing cemetery and go somewhere that makes us feel better.

And I meet you at the cemetery gates
Despite our differences and disagreements, we can still meet up and spend time together.

Oh Keats and Yeats are on your side
You have your favorite poets and writers who inspire you and who are buried in this cemetery.

But you lose because Wilde is on mine
I have my own favorite writer who I admire more than anyone else, and it's someone different from your choices.