The meaning of the lyrics of the song "I'm probably done for." (Naverno, ya pogib) the performer of the song "Vladimir Vysotsky"

Perhaps I am lost. I close my eyes and see.

Perhaps I am lost: I’m shy, and then -

How could I compare to her! She was in Paris,

And just yesterday I learned - not only there.

What songs I sang to her about the distant North!

I thought: just a little more - and we’ll be on first name terms.

But I sang in vain about the neutral zone -

She doesn't care what flowers bloom there.

Then I sang some more - I thought it would be closer to her heart -

About the South and about the one who was with her before.

But what does she care about me! She was in Paris,

Marcel Marceau himself whispered something to her.

I quit my job, though I had no right to,

I buried myself in dictionaries with a heavy heart and fear,

But what does she care! She is already in Warsaw,

We speak different languages again…

She will come - I will say in Polish: “Proszę pani,

Accept me as I am, I will not sing anymore!”

But what does she care! - she is already in Iran, -

I realized - I certainly can't keep up with her.

After all, she is here today, and tomorrow she will be in Oslo -

Yes, I'm in trouble, yes, I'm in trouble!

Whoever was with her before and whoever will be after -

Let them try. I’d better wait.

Наверно, я погиб. Глаза закрою - вижу.

Наверно, я погиб: робею, а потом -

Куда мне до нее! Она была в Париже,

И я вчера узнал - не только в нем одном.

Какие песни пел я ей про Север дальний!

Я думал: вот чуть-чуть - и будем мы на "ты".

Но я напрасно пел о полосе нейтральной -

Ей глубоко плевать, какие там цветы.

Я спел тогда еще - я думал, это ближе, -

Про юг и про того, кто раньше с нею был.

Но что ей до меня! Она была в Париже,

Ей сам Марсель Марсо чего-то говорил.

Я бросил свой завод, хоть в общем, был не вправе,

Засел за словари на совесть и на страх,

Но что ей до того! Она уже в Варшаве,

Мы снова говорим на разных языках...

Приедет - я скажу по-польски: "Проше, пани,

Прими таким, как есть, не буду больше петь!"

Но что ей до меня! - она уже в Иране, -

Я понял - мне за ней, конечно, не успеть.

Ведь она сегодня здесь, а завтра будет в Осле -

Да, я попал впросак, да, я попал в беду!

Кто раньше с нею был и тот, кто будет после, -

Пусть пробуют они. Я лучше пережду.

Vladimir Vysotsky's song "Perhaps I Have Perished" unfolds as a tale of unrequited love, tinged with irony and self-deprecation. The lyrical hero, upon learning about his beloved's rich past, feels insignificant and unworthy of her attention.

The image of the woman remains largely unrevealed, an unattainable ideal, a constantly elusive mirage. The only thing we know about her is her passion for travel, emphasized by the enumeration of geographical locations: Paris, Warsaw, Iran, Oslo.

The hero, on the contrary, appears static: he "quit his factory", "buried himself in dictionaries," effectively abandoning his own life for the illusory hope of reciprocation. He tries to match his object of adoration, learning languages, singing songs about different countries, but all his attempts are futile.

The recurring phrase "But what does she care for me!" serves as a refrain, emphasizing the insurmountable gap between the hero and his beloved. He recognizes the futility of his hopes, the pointlessness of his efforts, hence the image of death in the first line: "Perhaps I have perished." Of course, this is not a physical death, but the death of hope, the collapse of illusions.

The humor and self-irony that permeate the entire work help the hero cope with his feelings of inadequacy. In the finale, he arrives at a bitter, yet sobering realization: "I'd better wait this one out." This is not so much a surrender as an acceptance of reality and an attempt to save face.