The Emptiness of "Imagine"

A short time ago, YouTube channel Now You See It posted a piece on how wealth controls the conversation about classism. A picture of Gal Gadot from her “Imagine” video was used for the thumbnail. This resurfaced some incredibly-traumatic memories, both of the video itself and the Antisemitic ire lobbed at Gadot. But it also resurfaced the disdain I have for “Imagine”. Because ignoring the New Year’s Eve ritual of listening to it in Times Square, I think it’s a terrible song. I’ve thought so since high school. 

“Imagine” is a 1971 song from John Lennon and Yoko Ono. Yes, that John Lennon and Yoko Ono. Written a year after The Beatles disbanded, it was intended as an anti-war, anti-religion and anti-possession (amongst other “antis”) song meant to appeal to human decency. It’s since been covered and misunderstood so frequently that, decades after Lennon’s assassination, that’s overshadowed its questionable content.

I don’t think it’s the worst song ever. I don’t even think it’s the worst post-Beatles song from Lennon-that honour belongs to “War Is Over”-but it’s definitely sparked more ire personally. Because while “War Is Over” was also thematically empty, it had its heart in the right place by focusing on the American government’s invasion of Vietnam. “Imagine” takes more general swipes, hence being so frustrating. Let me explain.

Let’s look at how the song approaches its targets. Each stanza begins with “imagine”, followed by blanketing a hot-button topic. Whether it’s Heaven, country borders, or religious beliefs, Lennon has no shame calling them out. He even makes it seem like it isn’t hard to do, all while asking people to join together as one. It’s him trying to get you to think, and it works. 

Unfortunately, it doesn’t work for the right reasons. For one, Lennon gives no practical solutions to his imagines. He doesn’t explain what’s wrong with them, what the solution is, or how to achieve an alternative. He simply speaks about them and moves on. Like that. In a condescending manner.

And two, these points ring hollow because Lennon implies nothing about them. When he asks people to imagine no Heaven, he doesn’t say why Heaven’s an issue for those who’d be excluded from certain faiths’ understanding of the concept. When he asks people to imagine no more borders, he doesn’t talk about colonialism and geopolitical conflicts. And when he asks people to imagine no religion, he ignores, perhaps offensively, both why many people have left it and why many haven’t. He doesn’t expand on any of these, he merely says they’re a problem and moves on.

This is what bugs me the most. Ignoring how I’m a religious person, hence I see value in religion, making blanketed statements without backing them up isn’t only faulty logic, it’s bad-faith arguing. It’s something I’ve learned time and time again, and it’s worth repeating because Lennon knew this. Or, at least, I’d hope he did. Especially since he understood what he was conveying more than those who didn’t. 

This also isn’t that hard to remedy. Lennon and Ono could’ve added in a brief explanation of why they considered these to be issues in the first place. Perhaps with Heaven, they could’ve talked about the problems some people have over who gets in or not, and the violence that’s caused. With borders, they could’ve mentioned centuries of imperialism and eugenics, both of which made developing nations become exploited. And with religion, they had a goldmine of topics, including how people commit atrocities in the name of God. This is all pretty basic, too.

Honestly, “Imagine” wouldn’t bug me as much if it weren’t for how catchy it is. Like “War Is Over”, the song stays with you because of its repetition and pleasantries. It doesn’t even register how bland and empty it is until you’ve thought about it, and by then it’s too late. Because you’ve already consumed an annoying song. Congratulations!

If it feels like I’m being unfair, many people have already spilled ink over “Imagine”. I’m not the first to call it empty, and I won’t be the last. I also recognize that it’s a popular and uplifting song about the challenge to overcome issues and work together for the betterment of everyone. On New Year’s Eve, after the devastation of conflict and loss, that’s inspiring. Doubly so in New York City, where Lennon spent the remaining years of his life. 

Still, I can’t suddenly pretend that I like it. Plenty of inspirational works of art have been misguided, and that inspiration doesn’t help. “Imagine” simply happens to be a lovey-dovey, feel-good ditty that doesn’t address what it mentions. It’s a 3rd-Grader’s understanding of the world, one without the effort that comes with maturity. It’s also vain and naïve. And those are bad qualities for a song addressing systemic injustice.

I also think one of those topics, religion, gets too much flak. Can it be abused? Yes. Has it done lots of harm throughout history? Yes. But it’s a tool, and tools are as effective as those who harness them. If we’re going to discuss its harm, we should also address its power to heal. Are we going to ignore Mother Theresa because of Charlemagne? Is that how this works?

A while back, I wrote a piece on “Baby It’s Cold Outside”, its questionable lyrics, and how we should learn from it instead of pretending it doesn’t exist. I feel the same about “Imagine”. Except, this time, I also think it deserves acknowledging for how hollow it is. Its place in history’s important, and I can think of far worse songs, but it’s time to let it go. It’s time to imagine that “Imagine” isn’t the best New Year’s Eve song, irrespective of how good or bad a rendition was. 

Also, that celebrity mashup was terrible. Seriously, talk about tone-deaf!