Few of us really understand the true meaning of life. Our life is all that we make of it, what we choose to do. A person can either choose to live their life to the fullest, or just sit around and let life pass them by. In the song “I Was Here”, singer Beyoncé Knowles sings of how she wants to have a positive influence on the world and be remembered for the difference she made. She wants to be influential and inspiring to others, and I feel she definitely does this through this song. Life should be lived to the fullest, and we all want to make a difference somehow. “I Was Here” inspires listeners to try to leave a positive influence on the world and do everything we set out to do, ultimately making one’s presence on this Earth significant. Knowles conveys this message through rhetorical devices such as repetition, symbolism, and alliteration.
Knowles uses repetition when she constantly says “I” and “I was here”, she uses this repetition to show that she, herself wants to be a positive influence in someone’s life, even after death. As said, “I was here. I lived, I loved. I was here. I did, I’ve done, everything that I wanted and it was more than I thought it would be. I will leave my mark so everyone will know, I was here.” Even though she uses the word “I” and it may seem that she is only making this song about her, she really is not. Knowles is inspiring others, including myself feel that we can also make a difference in someone’s life. She also states, “I want to say I lived each day, until I die.” Knowles has a life aspiration to live every moment to fullest until the day she dies. This is a message to everyone, that they should live their lives to the fullest and do everything they have wanted to do with their lives. Another piece of the song that I find inspiring is when Beyoncé says, “When I leave this world, I’ll leave no regrets”. This is exactly how I feel. I want to leave this world with no regrets and be content and proud of the life that I lived. I want to leave this world knowing that I did everything I could to make this world a better place. We should all feel that way once we pass.
Beyoncé also uses symbolism. Such as, “I want to leave my footprints on the sands of time”. The “footprints on the sands of time” meaning that she did something people will remember long after she is gone. We all should want to leave a positive influence on the world and the people around us, leave our mark and always be remembered as someone who made a difference. Then she says, “I just want them to know that I gave my all, did my best, brought someone to happiness, left this world a little better just because, I was here”. This song to me basically describes the epitome of a “full life” or a “life fulfilled”. Wanting to leave this world with no regrets and be happy with the life you left behind, knowing that you made a difference in someone’s life. This should be important to all human beings because we all want to leave the world saying that we lived our life and would not change anything about it, that we gave it our all and leave this Earth with memories and the tools to make the world a better place.
Knowles then continues with, “Know there was something that, and something that I left behind”. She wants to know that she did make a difference and is not leaving the world without something to be proud of. Just knowing that we as individual’s can make a big difference and be significant in the giant world we live in is an amazing feeling. Also, “Leave something to remember, so they won’t forget”. We all want to be remembered, or leave something behind so people know that we did something amazing that helped someone or made a change. When the time comes for us to pass, we want to feel that we will be remembered for the positive impact we had on the world and people around us and that we will be remembered.
Bringing it back to when Beyoncé sings, “When I leave this world I’ll leave no regrets”, this phrase is very meaningful to many. Everyone should leave this world with no regrets. We should be proud of every single decision we made in our lives. We should be satisfied with the life we lived and leave this world contently. Then she sings, “And knows that I meant something in, somebody’s life. The hearts I have touched will be the proof that I leave”. Beyoncé shows how the people that she helped will be the people who help her be remembered. The impact that she made on them made a difference in their lives and they will never forget that “she was here”. She also sings, “That I made a difference, and this world will see I was here”. Knowles knows that the little differences she makes in people’s live will show the world as a whole that she mattered, that she made a big difference and brought a little more happiness to the world. We can all do this; we can all do these little things to make a big difference to the world. After all, it’s the little things that count. It is all of these little things that make a huge impact in people’s lives and just make them happier. Happier human beings, make for a happier more positive world, a better place to live.
Many people take life for granted. We are all put on this Earth for a reason. Whether is it to find a cure for cancer or just simply put a smile on someone’s face, we all have a purpose. “I Was Here” inspires everyone to want to do something that they will be remembered for. It inspires us all to want to make a change and have a positive impact on the world. In high school I had an amazing A.P. English teacher and he assigned readings that had a similar idea to the message in this song, such as Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck and A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway. Both of these novels discussed the idea of the “human spirit” and the love of humanity. The people in these novels felt insignificant until hardships caused them to really re-evaluate their lives. They all did things that helped their fellow human, and I feel this is very similar to Beyoncé’s message. She wants people to remember her as someone who helped and made a difference in any way that she could. This fascination I have with “the human spirit” is the whole reason I like this song. It says to me that if “I want to leave my footprints in the sands of time” as Knowles says, I have to help my fellow human and make difference in someone’s life even if it is a small favor. Some may say that we are just one of many individuals living in this imperfect world, and how would we as an individual be able to make such a big difference in the world, but we can make a huge difference as individuals. It only takes on person to make a change for the better, to bring a new idea, to start a movement. It also takes one person to make a positive impact on those in their lives, make their world a better place to be. It all makes a difference.
Beyoncé’s use of repetition and symbolism is a strong tool to get her message across. Her constant use of the word “I” and the actual phrase, “I was here” empower people to feel that they as individuals can be significant in the world. I hope that I am not the only listener to be inspired to try to make a difference and be remembered as a positive entity and know that although we may not believe that we as one person can make a big difference, indeed we can. I hope everyone can take something from this song. We all must live life to the fullest, do everything we set out to do, make a difference, so we can say “I Was Here”.
