Heartbreak has consistently been a major theme in music throughout history. Sinead O'Connor sings of an awful sadness resulting from a breakup in her 1990 hit, "Nothing Compares 2 U." The song was written by Prince, one of the most prominent singer-songwriters of our time. His melancholy lyrics with Sinead's soulful, solemn voice leave a lasting impact on listeners and helped contribute to the success the song experienced years ago. Through Prince's lyricism, the song presents many poetic techniques that allow the listener to feel the pain that the narrator is expressing. In Sinead O'Connor's "Nothing Compares 2 U," the use of figurative language creates an overall message of despair over lost love.
The song presents several poetic devices to emphasize the sadness of the narrator. In the line, "Since you took your love away," objectification is being utilized, transforming "love" into a tangible object instead of a feeling that, in reality, cannot literally be taken anywhere. This quote reveals to the listener that the narrator and her lover have parted ways. O'Connor says that "It's been so lonely without you here/Like a bird without a song." Prince uses simile to describe how the narrator feels incomplete and alone without her love in her life, comparing it to that of a songless bird. Also, toward the end of the song, O'Connor sings, "All the flowers that you planted, mama/In the back yard/All died when you went away." This is an example of metaphor, in that the flowers are representative of the relationship and love that the couple shared. Once the speaker and her lover break up, the flowers die, just as their love did.
A major factor contributing to the song's message is its use of exaggerated examples, or hyperbole. In the first verse of the song, she says, "Since you been gone I can do whatever I want/I can see whomever I choose." These lines are examples of hyperbole because the speaker cannot technically do whatever she wants or see whomever she chooses; it would be impossible. She then goes on to say that "nothing.../I said nothing can take away these blues," proving that despite what she does and who she sees, it does not mitigate her pain or distract her from it in any way. In the song's second verse, O'Connor sings, "I could put my arms around every boy I see," which is another clear representation of a hyperbole. These exaggerated statements within the song help to show the incessant grief the narrator experiences because of her breakup.
"Nothing Compares 2 U" presents an obvious theme: heartbreak and lost love. The way that this theme is presented makes the song relatable and allows for listeners to put themselves in the place of the speaker as she tells her story. The devices and techniques apparent in the song's lyrics clearly display its theme and evoke emotion from its audience.
