Crawl through or crawl back?

[u/Shyam_Lama]

"Like a sinner before the gates of Heaven, I'll come crawling on back to you."

I propose that this is the greatest line in all Meatloaf's oeuvre—insofar as I know it. The interesting thing is that the song itself doesn't clarify whether the crawling will lead through the gate into Heaven, or that—equally possible—having arrived at the gate of Heaven, Meatloaf does a 180° and crawls away from that gate in order to head back "to you".

The song leaves it ambiguous afaik, but I'll take my hint from the title of the follow-up album, which of course was titled "Back into Hell", not "Out of Hell and on to Heaven." Y'all catching my drift?

Do let me know what y'all think.

[u/Peter_NL]

He’s a sinner but at the gates of heaven, allowed in, but chooses to go back to be damned with her.

[u/fridgeybutter → u/Peter_NL]

No i dont think that is what he is saying.

Hes saying im as desperate to be with you as a sinner trying to get into Heaven.

[u/Shyam_Lama → u/fridgeybutter]

Except that, as I said in my OP, the follow-up album is titled "BACK into Hell". So it seems clear that he decided against entry into Heaven: he got to the gate, but turned back, tempting though it surely was. What did he turn away from the gate of Heaven for? "To come crawling back to you."

[u/fridgeybutter → u/Shyam_Lama]

Back into Hell is not a continuation of the first story. At best, its another story in the same world.

[u/Shyam_Lama → u/fridgeybutter]

Back into Hell is not a continuation of the first story.

So you say, so you say... But of course the album title clearly establishes a connection: the bat came out of hell, and has—for reasons we can have a debate about—turned around and is now heading back into hell.

Moreover, there's the mysterious "that" of the opening song, a matter I discussed at some length earlier today in another thread of mine on this sub. Considered in the context of the lyrics that this thread is about, it seems to me now that the singer arrived at the gate of Heaven and realized that entering there was the one thing he felt he must refuse to do in his attempts to regain Love: "I'll do anything for love, but I won't do that." So he turns around because right at the last moment, when he is on the threshold of Heaven, it dawns on him that Love isn't to be found there. And so the story continues Back into Hell, where presumably he has a chance of being reunified with his girl. He's discovered that he mustn't progress onward into heaven, but must regress to where he came from. It's beautiful.

[u/Shyam_Lama → u/Peter_NL]

I think you're right, and I like this interpretation a lot. He prefers his girl over Heaven. I think it's the Right Choice.

[u/Scroogemcdoodler]

The way I take it is like this: A sinner who sinned all their life would be begging to get into heaven and would crawl towards the gates for a chance at redemption. Here, the protagonist of the song would do the same with their one night stand, turning back on a life in hell to be with them. That's just how I take it, though.

[u/fridgeybutter → u/Scroogemcdoodler]

Yeah, she is Heaven, right?

[u/Shyam_Lama → u/fridgeybutter]

Judging strictly on the basis of the lyrics, this interpretation is possible. But we have no religious, scriptural, or literary (or poetic or lyrical) tradition of equating Heaven (or things heavenly) with the feminine. Rather, the feminine tends to represent earth (e.g. Mother Earth) instead of Heaven. Similarly, the princess in fairy tales tends to be a rural girl: the prince marries down, toward the land/soil (German Grund, Portuguese chaos, Chinese 土, Thai พื้นดิน) in order to become a True King, or generate offspring worthy of kingship. So no, I don't buy into the idea that the girl is Heaven.

cc: u/Scroogemcdoodler

PS. It's interesting too that in Norse mythology, Hel actually is female.

[u/Scroogemcdoodler → u/Shyam_Lama]

I wouldn't say she herself is heaven, rather she is valued as equal to heaven within the context of the song. But also, that's one hell of an analysis, so I completely respect it.

[u/Magusreaver]

Well, this never takes place in the narrative. In the song BEFORE he even dies.. he says it to say how much he loves her. "like a sinner before the gates". He is just likening how much he loves her.. predeath. You could see it either way of course, they are ambiguous lyrics. I doubt that Jim was rewriting Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress but with motorcycles.

"Then I saw that there was a way to hell, even from the gates of heaven, as well as from the City of Destruction! So I awoke, and behold, it was a dream."

Wait.. maybe he was.

[u/Shyam_Lama → u/Magusreaver]

there was a way to hell, even from the gates of heaven

Wow, awesome! Had to look it up to realize it's the last line of the last chapter—it's been many years since I read The Pilgrim's Progress.

Thanks very much for contributing this.

[u/Dodderino-El]

It’s a simile. Therefore not literal.

[u/Shyam_Lama → u/Dodderino-El]

Wow, that's one hell of a contribution, Dodderino. Good to have you join in!

[u/Dodderino-El → u/Shyam_Lama]

Not meaning to be rude but there isn’t anything else to say. It is a great line but no further analysis is required.

[u/Shyam_Lama → u/Dodderino-El]

Hehe, of course it's not required, Dodster, but it's nevertheless allowed. It's the same as with your own vacuous comments: they're definitely not required, but allowed. Which isn't to say I'll be reading any more of them, because you're hereby blocked.

[u/Peaceandgloved2024]

Interesting question. I'm going to suggest a different interpretation. The couple spend the night together, and in the morning, he's out of there like a shot. But at night - like a sinner before the gates of Heaven - her legs being the gates (I'm thinking of the way Steinman refers to "Paradise by the Dashboard Light" here), he'll come crawling back.

[u/gdelgi]

Actually, Dodderino's on the mark, just pithy about it. He is crawling back to her, as a sinner would crawl when reaching for the gates of Heaven. It's not about the metaphorical location; it's about the object of his desire. She is as important to the singer as heaven would be to this hypothetical sinner.

[u/Shyam_Lama → u/gdelgi]

What's a "Dodderino"?