The Existentialist

I was a teenage existentialist
"We're all going to die" was pretty much the gist
And everyone in Sartre's room was on the same page
A room of gloom, a page of desperation and rage
But where there is despair there's empathy as well
There are other people in hell

And death was the universal solvent
A colossal and calamitous involvement
We thought wе had it all worked out but then
"Mankind" somehow dwindlеd down to "men"

And, wronged, heaven knows how you suffered
At the hands of a man you were so wrong
To make your lover

Your secular religion borrowed sin
But not forgiveness or redemption
For you, whoever once has crossed the line
Must wander endlessly through time
You like to keep forgiveness for the few
You and you, but not you

You draw the lines dividing this from that
Determine who can wear the bloody hat
You mount campaigns to scare
And also sensitise the others
Fair enough
All men are clearly not your brothers

And, wronged, heaven knows how you suffered
At the hands of a man you were so wrong
To make your lover

I was a teenage existentialist
A wishy-washy liberal humanist
I thought I had it all worked out but then
Mankind somehow dwindled down to men