The music video for the song “First Day of My Life” by Bright Eyes, is very progressive. Throughout the video many different couples, families and single people are shown wearing headphones. The music video does not specify the meaning of each relationship, but the visual aspect that symbolizes the relationships of all the characters are the headphones that each person is wearing and their immediate reactions. The song that is being played in the background and in the headphones talks about how before the singer met this special person the world had no meaning to him. He continues to explain how important his significant other is and how glad he is to have met her. The headphones each person is wearing is able to show the heartfelt message the lyrics represent. By looking at the headphones, we can see that the people wearing them are feeling a very strong emotion, which is important because typically headphones are used to show isolation whereas here it shows togetherness and acceptance.

The headphones show so much of the theme in the song. Even without music playing it is understood that a song “First Day of My Life” is being played and everyone is having a reaction. Single men, single women, straight couples, gay couples, and families are all shown wearing the headphones. The headphones show the audience that although everyone who puts them on is different, they feel the same way. Love is such a universal feeling and can be shown by music. Music is interpreted by everyone so differently but with the headphones it brings everyone together and shows that everyone loves the same. 

It is understood that normally when people are wearing headphones it portrays a message of isolation, like an angst ridden teen who puts on headphones to block out the world. Even when walking down the street or sitting on a bust if someone is wearing headphones it is know they do not want to be disturbed.  But this isn’t the case here, the headphones show different feelings, like nostalgia when it focuses on the elderly single women, who you assume lost her husband. Another example is when the young woman is holding a framed picture of what looks like someone she loves; this shows she has lost someone who was incredibly important to her at one point. Then it shifts to different emotions like love and togetherness when the young or middle aged together couples and shows happiness and passion in that moment; they show that in that present moment they are so in love. Finally, it shows hope when and looks towards the future when they show the pregnant mother or the family with a young child and shows hope for the future ahead of them.

Another aspect that is shows great importance is the angle of the camera. It never changes. Not once does the camera stray or move in any way from the focus of the scene which is the couch that all the participants sit on. Its solitary position sends a great message about equality and solidarity between the different people shown in the video.  It shows that no one is more important or gets a different angle. 

It also shows that although every relationship is different, they are all in the same position literally and symbolically. Throughout history, the only socially acceptable relationships were marriage between a man and a woman. This music video was released in 2005 which makes it very progressive in showing acceptance of formally non-acceptable relationships, such as gay marriage. With gay marriage not being not even being legalized until last year, this music video shows acceptance and understanding of all love being an equal love. They show gay couples constantly throughout the music video, but they don’t show just gay couples in one section they are spread equally throughout to show that they are the same type of relationship as any other relationship. 

Viewers are able to interpret and learn from the meaning of the headphones and the universality of them. The headphones connect the viewers to the people in the video because everyone can imagine putting themselves in that situation. Everyone also has someone who they know made their life so different when they met them, which connects to the message of the sing. This video shows openness and acceptance through the use of the headphones by showing the audience that everyone is able to feel the same love no matter what kind of relationship they are in. This is shown frequently in the video, but especially when it shows the various types of couples showing affection while wearing the headphones. Although we don’t know the specific dimension of each relationship each one is able to express themselves freely in an equal environment which is presented with having the exact same camera angle throughout the entire video.

The headphones are able to show the exact same message in several different ways. The theme of love and togetherness is shown in the happy times and in the sad times. In the times when the happy couples are together love is easily evident, but in the shots when people are alone love is still shown because it is obvious in their faces and their actions that they are thinking about someone or remembering someone who means the world to them. Everyone in the video is brought together by the headphones. While headphones normally block out others or show a standoff atmosphere here it is seen that the headphones only bring people and thoughts together. Weather it is a couple showing affection, or a single man thinking of someone who once or does hold a special place in his heart, the headphones are the common thread that bring those thoughts together. Everyone has someone to love and everyone has the right to show that love no matter what. This music video embraces that and shows all viewers that every form of love whether you are single, married, straight, or gay is the same love.
