Rachel Platten is an American singer-songwriter and is best known for her debut single “Fight Song”. While “Fight Song” is an empowering feminist song, I believe “Broken Glass” reveals feminist themes more clearly. Thus, I hope to convey the feminist themes through four sections of the song lyrics. First, the song starts with the following lyrics:

I’m on a highway full of red lights

I’ve lost so many long nights

Felt words that cut like knives

A highway is the main road that connects two major locations. However, motor vehicles on the road cannot progress to their next location on a road full of red lights. Similarly, in Towards Equality (1974), the Committee on the Status of Women issued “a report of over four hundred pages detailing obstacles to women’s progress” (India, 304). Thus, these lyrics are a metaphor for the obstacles feminists face in pursuit of equality and equity. Furthermore, such obstacles can take a toll on the mental and emotional well-being of the activists. Nevertheless, the song continues to the main chorus: 

I’m gonna dance on broken glass, ey

On broken glass

And I’m gonna make that ceiling crash, ah

That ceiling crash

The chorus breaks apart the phrase “glass ceiling,” which is a metaphor referring to the social barriers that prevent certain individuals, in this case women, from achieving success and ascending in the social hierarchy. Glass is invisible when viewed through a certain perspective. Likewise, Friedan points out in Feminine Mystique that there is a “problem that has no name…shared by countless women in America” (Friedan, 274). However, since Platten uses the first person tense, she acknowledges the invisible and intangible barriers. Thus, she acts upon her knowledge and rejoices when the glass ceiling crashes and breaks. Furthermore, the song also imparts these important and humble lyrics:

You know, you know it’s more than

More than just for me

While not explicit, Platten’s lyrics acknowledges “her classism, her racism, her sexist attitudes towards the masses of American women” unlike Friedan, as bell hooks might say (hooks, 2). These two lines emphasize that feminism is more than just the right to “freedom from intolerance…of only one particular group” (Lorde, 1). Rather, Platten describes feminism as the fight for equality and equity for everyone. Finally, the song mentions hope despite all the possible injuries that might be sustained:

Through to the other side, baby I’ll survive (oh oh)

‘Cause you know I’m a fighter (oh oh oh)

Through to the other side, baby I’m on fire (oh oh)

‘Cause you know I’m a survivor (oh oh oh)

The terms “fighter” and “survivor” may reflect what bell hooks calls “the special vantage point our marginalization gives us” (hooks, 16). Yet, it is also a limitation of the song because it does not explicitly reference the experiences of black, trans, and queer feminists, and Rachel Platten is also a white, cisgender woman. However, in the music video, there are a myriad of individuals from various backgrounds. In conclusion, “Broken Glass” is a song that highlights the foundation of feminism, and the music video addresses the limitation of the lyrics. 

Works Cited

Platten, Rachel. “Rachel Platten – Broken Glass (Video).” Youtube, 2 July 2019, https://youtu.be/b2390GAm4d0.