[Fiji Hill]

I may be the only one in the world who had ever come p with this explanation, but I interpret “The End” as a melancholy reflection on the coup d’etat that overthrew the government of President Ngo Dinh Diem of South Vietnam on November 1, 1963, that was backed by the US government.

The singer starts out by describing the situation South Vietnam finds itself in in the fall of 1963—a developing country in dire need of foreign economic and military aid At the same time, it faces an existential threat from the Communists who seek to pull it into the Soviet bloc. However, its defense is in the hands of a corrupt military elite that would rather plot coups than defend the country. The singer also believes South Vietnam will be better off remaining allied with the West.

He then describes the coup itself, led by General Duong Van Minh—and the killings of Diem, his brother Ngo Dinh Nhu, and others. The song concludes on a note of pessimism as the singer predicts the demise of the Republic of Vietnam and hints that he himself will go underground or into exile.

Here is some of the symbolism that I have noted:

• This is the end—South Vietnam’s days are numbered
• My only friend—Journalist Marguerite Higgins, a defender of President Ngo Dinh Diem
• Elaborate plans—efforts to make the Republic of Vietnam a success
• Never look into your eyes—protagonist is preparing to flee into exile or underground
• Stranger's hand--foreign aid
• Desperate land--South Vietnam
• Roman wilderness of pain--government-by-coup-d'etat of the sort that plagued the Roman Empire for centuries
• children are insane--South Vietnam's coup-happy military elite
• King's highway--Route 1, the "street without joy"
• Weird things inside the gold mine—the US State Dept. or CIA
• summer rain--South Vietnam's summer monsoon
• West—The Southeast Asia Treaty Organization. (SEATO)
• the snake--the Warsaw Pact
• ancient lake—the Soviet bloc
• seven miles—the seven members of the Warsaw Pact
• he's old...--Nikita Khrushchev or Ho Chi Minh
• blue bus--military vehicle in which Diem and his brother Ngo Dinh Nhu were held before they were killed
• killer--General Duong Van Minh, organizer of the coup d’etat
• ancient gallery--the CIA or USIA
• hall--the presidential palace
• sister--Tran Le Xuan, Diem's sister and Nhu's wife--or Marguerite Higgins
• father--Ngo Dinh Diem
• brother--Ngo Dinh Nhu
• mother--Tran Le Xuan (South Vietnam’s “First Lady)
• You'll never follow me—protagonist heading into exile

[21twelve]

That is really interesting - thanks for all that work. Did you have that written down before or just in your head? Did you add anything to it just now?

Jim Morrison was pretty bright - he just may have been writing a poem/song in allegory about Vietnam.

Or - he was high when he wrote the song, and you were when trying to figure out its meaning! (Just kidding).

It really is an interesting way of looking at it.

I just hope that you haven’t ruined the song for me now! I have a piece of art in the house that I LOVED when we first bought it. I made the mistake of reading about it more and various reviews of it (trying to see how much it might be worth now). One of the reviews made it so I never look at it the same way that I first did - and sort of ruins it for me now. :(

[x]

Clever and maybe the coup actually could have been on Jim Morrison’s mind, but I doubt he thought it out that thoroughly and exactly. A lot of empires and governments were falling back then — Cuba, Congo, Algeria. It was “The End” in several different places. The Oedipal stuff had to be Morrison’s own, not Madame Nhu’s IMHO.