I rarely look for extra-musical meaning in SY. For me, I look for meaning in the music and not in "what it's about". This is part of the reason that I don't pay much attention to their lyrics.
Honestly, I don't think it matters much what SY meant by a song. What matters is what it means to you. In other words, what it means to SY isn't neccesarily the authoritative meaning.
This type of thing is discussed quite a lot in literary theory circles. I guess when you guys are dissecting the lyrics, you're doing literary criticism. I prefer to stay away from that and keep my opinions strictly about the music.
A book that would be enlightening, maybe (I haven't read it, but I mean to. I have friends that have read it, and like it):
Is There a Text in this Class? : The Authority of Interpretive Communities by Stanley Fish
Apparently, he talks in this book about exactly what Trunky is saying. The SY board is an "interpretive community"? I'm going to read this soon.
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