The meaning of the lyrics of the song "The Real Me" by the artist "Who, The"

The song "The Real Me" by The Who conveys the desperation of the lyrical hero who is desperately trying to find understanding and acceptance for who he truly is.

He turns to different authority figures – a doctor, his mother, a preacher – with the question: "Can you see the real me?". This question isn't merely a desire to be seen, but a cry for help, an attempt to break through the wall of alienation and loneliness.

The hero acknowledges his "abnormality" ("I'm crazy"), but instead of support he encounters indifference ("he never lets it show") or fatalism ("it runs in the family"). The image of "cracks between the paving stones" and "rivers of blood flowing" paints a picture of the fragility and vulnerability of the hero's inner world, who feels misunderstood and rejected.

The "strange people" and the former lover living in the "yellow house" (possibly a metaphor for a psychiatric hospital) reinforce the sense of isolation. Even religion offers no solace, as the preacher, full of "lies and hate," offers nothing but the illusionary "pearly gates."

The recurring question "Can you see the real me?" by the end of the song becomes almost rhetorical, reflecting the hopelessness and uncertainty of the hero's own identity.