"Ordinary World" by Duran Duran

I think I would like to do a series of essays on important—or at least influential—songs from my life. I haven’t yet thought of a list of all such songs, but today one popped into my thoughts as it played in the car… Duran Duran’s “Ordinary World”, the 1992 single from their 1993 self-titled album.

Duran Duran is a part of my childhood. The first popular, non-Christian music I remember hearing with friends was off their other, earlier, US version, self-titled release in 1983, “Is There Something I Should Know?” They were big in the MTV 80s era British Invasion but had seemed to run their course by the time I headed off to college in the 90s.

When they relaunched in my first semester with “Ordinary World” on MTV, I liked the song enough that I think I bought their album, my first and last Duran Duran purchase. Unfortunately, the rest of the songs were not as good. However, I still enjoy Ordinary World as a song, and especially for its lyrics.

The lyrics of Ordinary World are a deeply personal journey through grief, loss, and the search for healing. The opening verse establishes a scene of quiet isolation, where the protagonist, after coming in from the rain, is haunted by the lingering “ghost” of someone lost. They turn on the lights, the TV, and the radio to drown out the memories, but fail to ignore the overwhelming absence.

The pre-chorus questions the dramatic changes in life, highlighting a sense of disorientation: "What has happened to it all?" and "Where is the life that I recognize?" reflect a universal experience of sudden, irrevocable change, with the past feeling irretrievably "gone away."

The chorus offers a glimmer of resilience. The protagonist acknowledges that mourning will not bring back what was lost, so they must find a way to navigate an “ordinary world”—a place of normalcy and stability, even in the face of deep sorrow. The phrase "I will learn to survive" underscores a hard-earned determination to move forward.

The second verse introduces the theme of pride as a possible cause of estrangement or conflict before the loss occurred. The imagery of pride “going out the window, cross the rooftops, run away” suggests regret over how past conflicts may have contributed to the current void. The line “Left me in the vacuum of my heart” intensifies this feeling of emotional emptiness.

The bridge shifts perspective outward, mentioning suffering, greed, and “holy war and holy need,” juxtaposing personal grief with global struggles. This contrast suggests that personal loss, though deeply painful, is part of a much larger world filled with ongoing tragedies and conflicts. The whole world is broken, not just the singer.

The outro (“Every world is my world”) reinforces an acceptance of life’s changes. The protagonist no longer seeks just one “ordinary world” but embraces the idea that any world can be a place of survival and healing.

This is all especially interesting as it is a refreshing contrast to what much of the rest of popular culture preaches. Most of our culture today tells us to lean into our emotions and accept our feelings as more “real” than reality. We don’t need to adjust or navigate reality; our inner world IS our reality. “Follow your heart.” “You do you.” “How do you identify?” Never mind what is actually real.

Before the release of “Ordinary World”, Queen came out with a catchy hit called “Innuendo.” Musically, it was an amazing single. It mixed flamenco with rock and was anthemic and bold. Unfortunately, its message always bothered me with its naivete. Instead of a message about facing reality and fighting the difficult aspects of life in this fallen world, it preached a defiant message of escapism.

You can be anything you want to be
Just turn yourself into anything you think you could ever be
Be free with your tempo be free be free
Surrender your ego be free be free to yourself

The song also questions reality and the idea of a god, claiming that if their really were a god out there, the world would be good in the sense of the idea that Queen has of a good world. Since the world is not the way that they would like it to be, then they are just going to make their own reality and live in that fantasy.

This all sounds a little simplistic and philosophically sophomoric, perhaps. However, it is the view of the majority of Western Culture these days. Expressivie Individualism preaches the idea that people are the true source of their own reality. Ignore the real (ordinary) world and live in your own fantasy reality.

“Ordinary World”, on the other hand, with its repeated insistence that the protagonist must find an ordinary world and learn to survive, suggests a surrender to reality rather than an attempt to reshape it based on personal feelings. This runs counter to the expressive individualist idea that one’s internal emotions should dictate external reality. Instead, the song acknowledges pain but insists on moving forward within the world as it is.

The section about pride is especially relevant. Expressive individualism often champions self-assertion and the pursuit of one’s own truth, but the lyrics warn that pride can lead to isolation and regret. By stating that pride has now “gone out the window,” the protagonist seems to recognize that clinging to one’s own perspective—perhaps stubbornly refusing to reconcile or acknowledge a shared reality—has only left an emotional void.

Additionally, the bridge, which references global suffering and war, reminds the listener that personal struggles exist within a larger context. This challenges the hyper-individualistic focus of expressive individualism, which can sometimes encourage people to prioritize their own emotional landscapes over engagement with the real world and others' experiences.

All in all, I think 30+ years later, “Ordinary World” is still a relevant and positive song for our day.