the snake

In the new December issue of Sociological Theory, Mark Gould writes,

I contend that George Herbert Mead's Theory is incapable of explaining the interactions in a song by Oscar Brown Jr., "The Snake," and that a satisfactory explanation of these actions, which illuminate everyday conduct familiar to us all, requires the conceptualization of personality systems grounded in affect and cultural systems understood as symbolic logics that make intelligible certain activities.

In addition to being a prolific songwriter, Mr. Brown, Jr. was a regular on Studs Terkel's radio show in the 1940s, attended the University of Wisconsin at age 16, and made several runs for political office in Illinois. I've always been partial to Al Wilson's (1968) version of The Snake (due, in part, to some swingin' production by secret agent man, Johnny Rivers), but I never figured to see the lyrics appendixed in Sociological Theory.

I enjoyed the article, but couldn't help wondering what popular songs wouldn't offer a critique of cognitive and rational-choice theories -- and whether the gender story in the song had greater bearing on theories of cultural meaning.