On My Own

All of the songs from "Les Miserables" were powerful, but were I to choose just one that struck me the most, it would have to be "On My Own," sung by the character Eponine. I realize the message is cliche and overdone to the extreme, but it was the song that I related to the best in the entire movie. It made me realize more about the movie itself, and how it shows that people go through the same things and make the same mistakes throughout the years.

I related to this song the best because I am a teenager like Eponine filled with angst and one-sided relationships. I don't know exactly how she feels, but I know what it's like to be that heartbroken. Eponine's entire character, and not even just this song was a perfect representation of the "best friend" niche that some people in the world fill, like myself. Poor, poor Eponine.

The song is about how she is in love with Marius, but he's madly in love with another girl Cosette who actually reciprocates his feelings. One of the lines, "without me his world will go on turning, a world that's full of happiness that I have never known" probably stuck with me the most. It's a true statement, however sad it may be. Even though her world would be a wreck, he could continue his own life in happiness with Cosette.

This song led me to the realization that Eponine is probably one of the bravest characters in the entire musical of "Les Miserables" along with Jean Valjean and Marius. She ends up taking a bullet for Marius, who still doesn't really say anything about true love or anything because they were never ever meant to be together. So she just took a bullet for a man that she knew would never be her's. That's the bravest thing I've ever heard of anyone doing even if it is just a movie.

This was an emotional, powerful song and scene in the movie. It gave me new insights and realizations about the film and life in its entirety. Seriously, if you haven't seen this movie, you should.