Working Class Stereotypes: An Analysis of Pure Heroine as a Representation of Class in Everyday Conversations
Sometimes a piece of media is created with the intention of acting as a symbol, and sometimes it is adopted by a group of people and reimagined as a representation of their personal station. Lorde’s first album, Pure Heroine, falls somewhere in the middle of this, with its representation of class being a consistent theme through her songs in addition to the complementary themes of growing up, friendships, etc., ultimately communicating that class is always being experienced. Her album situates the listener in the class divide by making connections to common class symbols and showcasing how class does not simply affect finances but affects many aspects of life. Lorde, being born in the suburbs of New Zealand, experienced adolescence through the lens of a middle-class family; she quickly rose to fame at the age of sixteen, allowing her to actively see how glaring the class divide is. Her album effectively criticizes this same class divide by alluding to many common working-class stereotypes. Making her album one that, though it was written in response to her own experience jumping from middle to upper class, has been adopted as a symbol of the working class and is still relevant twelve years later.
The album as a whole works as a conversation about the working class, starting with the song “Tennis Court,” which actively works to situate the listener in their class with lines such as “Pretty soon I'll be getting on my first plane.” This song is then followed by “400 Lux,” which is also riddled with imagery of being young and unable to afford common luxuries that are romanticized by so many. Lorde alludes to the image of driving around aimlessly, hanging out in parking lots, while also “dreaming of clean teeth,” all of which can be referenced back to universally understood stereotypes of the working class that suggest that they find entertainment in things that are free (hanging out in parking lots) and that they cannot afford health care (dreaming of clean teeth.) “400 Lux" is then followed by “Royals,” which is perhaps the most obvious critique of class on the album and also the most popular, with over a million streams on Spotify. This song states, “But everybody’s like Cristal Maybach, diamonds on your timepiece. Jet planes, islands, tigers on a gold leash. We don't care; we aren't caught up in your love affair.” Though Lorde does not directly name the classes, she is drawing a line in the sand by rebuking a life of extravagance.
Working-class symbols are not a new concept; Kelli Gill’s essay titled “White Bread as a Working-Class Symbol” talks through the different ways food communicates class. After showing a meme that demonstrates all the different uses for white bread with the title “Growing Up Poor,” Gill writes, “The image is but one of many memes that attempted to encapsulate the experience of ‘growing up poor’ through the use of white bread. Often referred to as ‘struggle meals,’ the meme captures a recognizable moment of making do with what was available. What makes white bread symbolic, though, is how recognizable it is to people who didn’t grow up working-class” (150). Much like Gill, Lorde understands how some working-class symbols can be universally identifiable. Throughout her album, she alludes to many obvious symbols, such as when she states in her song “Team,” “We live in cities you’ll never see on-screen. Not very pretty, but we sure know how to run things.” However, she makes underhanded remarks about the class structure as well: “The men up on the news. They try to tell us that we will lose,” which is a line that appears in her song “Buzzcut Season.”
This entire album speaks to a sense of working-class pride; it discourages conformity and suggests that those living in the working class don't need the luxuries they cannot afford. But how is the working-class pride experienced from generation to generation? When the album first came out in 2013, it was immediately a hit, with its target audience being both teenagers and young adults. But this was 10 years ago, and the album is still being actively circulated. Lorde's main audience are all younger; however, they still belong to different generations: millennials and Gen Z. This fact poses the question of how the album will be perceived differently as a result of the generation divide in the audience. As previously mentioned, the song “Royals” was and has been the most popular track from the album, becoming a staple on the radio in 2013 due to it consistently being played. While listening to the radio is an experience anyone of any age can have, it is often a medium that is governed by the needs of young adults. Going back to the year 2013, millennials were the young adults of this time period, and “Royals,” a song that is riddled with working-class pride, was one of the most played songs on the radio. What does this suggest? In Valerie Pilmaier’s personal essay, she talks about experiencing working-class pride as a divide in her family, explaining that her family's pride was so strong, they felt betrayed by Pilmaier’s decision to explore higher education, even noting at the end of her work how this same sense of betrayal has allowed for her family to dehumanize her and how “she will always be an example and not a real person to them” (88). Pilamier’s family is experiencing working-class pride in the same way “Royals” does; not only are they proud of their station in life, but they also resent those above them and have no willingness to climb classes. In other words, “we’ll never be royal. It doesn’t run in our blood. That kind of lux just isn't for us” (Lorde).
While millennials have chosen Lorde’s representation of working-class pride as their anthem, Generation Z has paid much more attention to the album as a whole, specifically the song “Team.” This song holds a strong coming-of-age theme while also having lyrics that suggest where it is situated in class. “Team” states, “We live in cities you’ll never see on-screen,” which is a direct call out to the lack of media representation of the working class. This lyric is followed by, “Not very pretty, but we sure know how to run things. Living’ in ruins of a palace within my dreams. And you know, we’re on each other's team,” a message that again pays homage to the sense of community that is often felt in lower-class areas. While this song has other class connections, it also talks about how scary it can be to get older. The use of various themes in this song suggests that class is not something that you experience singularly, but rather it is a part of your every moment. Class informs your fears and exists when thinking of the future; it influences what you eat, what activities you participate in, how you view growing up, etc. As “Team” has risen in popularity through the recent years, America has plummeted further into an empathy crisis. In response to this, many young adults are looking for a sense of community. “Team” offers this community through a shared experience.
Additionally, TikTok has been on the rise since the year 2020, with millions of users who post videos daily participating. Lorde’s songs are often used as background music for videos that highlight nostalgic feelings. A common example of this would be various clips from old Disney movies with the song “Ribs” playing in the background or a clipped-together video of different high school experiences featuring a similar song. These are young 20-year-olds participating in a trend highlighting nostalgia. Many may say that this is too young to feel so nostalgic; however, the true exigence of this movement is to exist within a carefree space again, i.e., childhood. That is to say, what they are really looking back on is a time before they had to become adults who experience class in a personal way. The use of Lorde's album for this trend is no coincidence and further suggests that the fear of getting old is in many ways a direct product of the class disparities.
Pure Heroine has been relevant for 10 years, consistently rising in popularity in response to various trends. However, the way the album has been interacted with has been dependent on the generation, a fact that answers the question of how each generation is responding to class disparity. Generation Z has found “Team” to be the most appealing song on the album because they are able to see themselves in the lyrics that suggest a strong sense of community. Most of America is not a part of the upper classes, especially when it comes to the younger generations, who often work in working-class environments. Gen Z is responding to the empathy crisis by leaning into their nostalgia through Lorde’s music. In contrast, millennials have chosen “Royals” as their number one track because its lyrics paint a more prideful picture that speaks of strength in lower-class luxuries and an unwillingness to want for more. This album was written as a response to Lorde’s own experience with class; however, media does not always get to choose who relates to it, and though Lorde does not have personal experience in the working class she has created a piece of art that has been reimagined through the years and has ended up as an anthem for many working-class Americans.
Works Cited
Gill, Kelli R. “Chapter 12 White Bread as a Working-Class Symbol.” Brill, Brill, 30 Aug. 2021, brill.com/display/book/9789004501508/BP000015.xml?language=en.
Lorde. "Buzzcut Season." Pure Heroine, 2013.
Lorde. “400 Lux.” Pure Heroine, 2013.
Lorde. "Royals." Pure Heroine, 2013.
Lorde. "Team." Pure Heroine, 2013.
Lorde. "Tennis Court." Pure Heroine, 2013.
Pilmaier, Valerie Murrenus. “Chapter 7 Book Smart and Street Smart.” Brill, Brill, 30 Aug. 2021, brill.com/display/book/9789004501508/BP000009.xml?language=en.
