Won't Get Fooled Again

The lyrics describe a revolution that promises freedom and a new political order, but the speaker gradually doubts whether anything important has changed. The mood moves from scenes of conflict and cautious celebration to weary skepticism. The repeated hope not to be fooled again suggests that people may recognize the danger of trusting promises too easily.

Several images make this doubt vivid. The “shotgun sings” turns gunfire into a grim kind of music, linking political change with violence. The banners from an earlier war suggest that old struggles and symbols are being reused rather than left behind. The shift from “the parting on the left” to “the parting on the right” hints that rival groups may look different while behaving in much the same way. “Meet the new boss / Same as the old boss” sums up this idea in plain, memorable language.

The speaker may be describing a cycle in which new leaders replace old ones but preserve familiar power structures. Yet the lyrics do not simply say that change is always pointless: the speaker’s wary prayer leaves open the possibility of learning from past mistakes. The line about the “hypnotized” is especially ambiguous; it may mock people who believe unquestioningly, or express the speaker’s own uncertainty about what can be trusted.