The meaning of the lyrics of the song "Song of the Masks" (Pesnya o maskah) the performer of the song "Vladimir Vysotsky"

I laugh to tears - as if by trickster mirrors,

I must have been cleverly played:

Hooks for noses and grins up to the ears,

Like at a Venetian masquerade!

A circle closes in around me,

They grab me, pulling me into the dance,

So-so, my normal face, it seems,

Has been mistaken for a chance

Firecrackers, confetti... But it's not the same,

And masks look at me with reproach,

They shout that I'm offbeat again,

That I'm stepping on my partners' feet.

What should I do - run away, and fast?

Or maybe, join them in their glee?.

I hope that underneath the beastly cast,

Lie many human faces, you see.

All masked, bewigged - all as one,

Some - fantastical, some - literary...

My neighbor on the left - a mournful clown,

Another - an executioner, every third - a fool, clearly.

One - tried hard to whitewash his face,

Another - hides from publicity's embrace,

And some - can no longer differentiate

Their own face from the ever-present mask.

I join the dance, laughing along,

But still, I feel uneasy with them:

What if someone finds the executioner's guise

To their liking - and they choose not to condemn?

What if the clown forever stays glum,

Admiring his own melancholy face,

What if the fool, in his foolish sum,

Forgets his normal look, leaving no trace?

I chase after the masks on their trail,

But I won't ask a single one to reveal,

What if, when the masks are shed and unveil,

All that's left are half-masks, half-real?

How to spot a kind face in the crowd,

How to guess the honest ones with certainty?

Everyone's learned to wear a shroud,

To protect their faces from life's severity.

I've finally pierced the masks' mystery,

Confident that my analysis is keen:

The masks of indifference I see,

Are shields against spittle and wounds unseen.

Смеюсь навзрыд — как у кривых зеркал,

Меня, должно быть, ловко разыграли:

Крючки носов и до ушей оскал

Как на венецианском карнавале!

Вокруг меня смыкается кольцо

Меня хватают, вовлекают в пляску,

Так-так, мое нормальное лицо

Все, вероятно, приняли за маску

Петарды, конфетти... Но все не так,

И маски на меня глядят с укором,

Они кричат, что я опять — не в такт

Что наступаю на ногу партнерам

Что делать мне — бежать, да поскорей?

А может, вместе с ними веселиться?.

Надеюсь я — под масками зверей

У многих человеческие лица

Все в масках, в париках — все как один,

Кто — сказочен, а кто — литературен...

Сосед мой слева — грустный арлекин

Другой — палач, а каждый третий — дурень

Один — себя старался обелить

Другой — лицо скрывает от огласки

А кто — уже не в силах отличить

Свое лицо от непременной маски

Я в хоровод вступаю, хохоча,

Но все-таки мне неспокойно с ними:

А вдруг кому-то маска палача

Понравится — и он ее не снимет?

Вдруг арлекин навеки загрустит

Любуясь сам своим лицом печальным

Что, если дурень свой дурацкий вид

Так и забудет на лице нормальном?

За масками гоняюсь по пятам

Но ни одну не попрошу открыться,

Что, если маски сброшены, а там

Все те же полумаски-полулица?

Как доброго лица не прозевать

Как честных угадать наверняка мне?

Все научились маски надевать

Чтоб не разбить свое лицо о камни

Я в тайну масок все-таки проник,

Уверен я, что мой анализ точен:

Что маски равнодушия у иных

Защита от плевков и от пощечин

In "The Song of Masks", Vysotsky explores the theme of pretense and insincerity in society. The lyrical hero, initially amused by the "distorting mirrors", finds himself drawn into the carnival of life, where everyone wears a mask.

The author uses vivid imagery of the carnival, theatrical masks (Harlequin, Executioner) to illustrate how people conceal their true selves behind socially acceptable facades. Some hide their cruelty ("Executioner"), others – their sorrow ("Harlequin"), and some are simply afraid to show their true faces ("Fool").

The hero, initially perceiving the situation as amusement, gradually becomes filled with anxiety. He realizes that masks can become ingrained, blurring the lines between pretense and reality. It's frightening to imagine the "Executioner" getting used to his cruelty and the "Harlequin" to his feigned sadness.

Even more terrifying is the thought that behind the masks may lie not faces, but emptiness – "half-masks, half-faces". In a world where everyone wears a mask, it becomes difficult to distinguish good from evil, sincerity from falsehood.

The final lines are a bitter acknowledgment that masks have become an integral part of human nature. People hide their faces not only out of fear, but also out of indifference, protecting themselves from pain and disappointment. "Masks of indifference" are a symbol of alienation and loneliness in a world where everyone is for themselves.