But perhaps they are just from me. I certainly am concerned about anyone’s taking my colleagues on this blog to endorse this song; in fact, I’ve spent a lot of time on this worry. However, for me Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” captures a lot of what I feel about a new year.
A look around Facebook and other media makes it clear that many, many people found 2015 a very difficult year. Should we hope for better? One reading of Cohen’s song is that humans end up having to value things that can lead to very difficult loses. Our response needs to be “Hallelujah,” though perhaps bitter and cold.
Taken more literally, the song refers to Delilah and Sampson.
Feminist Philosophers 