The Truth Untold

The Truth Untold fascinates me ad infinitum. First of all, for this song, the creative team that works with BTS had actually concocted a fictitious flower and a medieval folk tale supposedly based in Italy—about a man who lives outside the city walls, ostracized from the society due to his unattractive appearance and controversy surrounding the legitimacy of his birth. This man tends to a garden where nobody visits, until a poorly dressed woman—indicating poverty, possibly even homelessness—enters to pick flowers. Although initially irritated, as her visits become regular, he falls in love, even nurturing a special flower for her. Yet, he’s too scared to show his face and remains hidden behind a mask, watching her secretly in distance. When she stops visiting, he learns of her passing and is devastated, the story metaphorically reflecting the repercussions of not being genuine to oneself.

Furthermore, RM’s extraordinary talent as a writer shines through in each exquisitely poignant line of this song, where the narrative serves as a metaphor, emphasizing the need to love oneself as a prerequisite to loving someone else. It is hard to fathom how someone so young (he was 23 when he wrote the song) can devise such poetic verses, full of imagery and symbolism, that gradually coalesce into a coherent, thematic story. His dedication to his craft is also on full display, for RM stated that he devoted more time working on the lyrics for this difficult piece than for any other songs.

The praise should extend to the vocal line as well; their singing prowess is amply evident here, and their emotional delivery left me speechless on my first listening.

Regarding the translation itself, in the second pre-chorus part sung by Jimin, there is a line that goes “추한 나니까 (choo-hahn nah-ni-kah),” which can be translated as either “Because I’m ugly” or “Because I’m a monster.” However, both leave a lot to be desired, undercutting RM’s verbal artistry. The word he chose, ‘추한 (choo-hahn),’ is an adjective meaning, roughly, ‘hideous and filthy due to one’s physical appearance or unsavory behavior.’ But this word, which is not commonly used in everyday speech, connotes additional layers of meaning, such as ‘inferior.’ Just like many English words have various meanings, so do Korean words. RM is using the word to indicate that the protagonist can’t reveal himself and offer the special flower to the woman he has fallen in love with because he feels deeply that he is an inferior being, beneath others, not just in physical appearance but also in social position and economic well-being; after all, the narrative of The Truth Untold revolves around the theme of not being true to oneself, not loving oneself, and the consequences of such self-loathing. In order to do justice to RM, I would translate Jimin’s verse in this way (literal, not interpretative, mind you): “But I know/ My hopes will never materialize/ For I must hide myself low/ Wallowing in the inferiority of my being.”

On a side note, RM employs intriguing arrangements to rhyme the lines, such as the use of a nominalized verb ‘걸 (guhl),’ an exclamation that usually comes after past modal verbs “should have” and “could have,” throughout the verses but most prominently in Jimin’s second pre-chorus to rhyme two of the lines, a pattern that spills into the second chorus verse sung by V. “Guhl,” which is not often used at the end of a formal sentence or lyric line, can be utilized to convey a regret of a wish unfulfilled or to indicate a soliloquy. In fact, all the verses of this song are structured like a soliloquy where the protagonist is talking (mostly regrets) to himself, much like Hamlet does in his soliloquies.

The best line of the song can be found on the first pre-chorus sung by Jin: “너의 온긴 모두 다 진짜란 걸 (nuh eui ohn-ghin moh-doo dah jin-jjah-lahn guhl),” which can be translated as “Your warmth is entirely real.” However, RM isn’t referring to physical warmth, particularly since the protagonist can’t even touch her. Again, RM is using the additional layers of meaning where ‘온긴 (ohn-ghin)’—which is an abbreviation of ‘온기는 (ohn-ghi neun),’ with the noun ‘온기 (ohn-ghi)’ meaning ‘temperature, degree, or warmth,’—functions here as a symbolism in which the woman who suddenly appears in his heretofore companionless garden is an actual, breathing human being, not a cold, impalpable figment of his imagination. 

In the post-chorus sung by JK, RM echoes a similar sentiment with the line “널 만나러 가 (nuhl mahn-nah-luh gah) (I go to meet you).” The protagonist is too fearful to reveal himself, so naturally he cannot actually meet her. RM is once again engaging in symbolism, suggesting that the protagonist’s notion of meeting her is to observe her from a distance, unbeknownst to her. I believe that even the literal translation should accurately capture RM’s underlying intentions.

Finally, my favorite verse from the song is the third chorus that goes like this: “When you came,/ If I’d summoned/ Just a little/ Courage to reveal myself to you,/ Would our destinies have turned out otherwise?” Through this verse, RM is sincerely imploring his listeners that even if you truly love someone, if you don’t love yourself first, if you are not true to yourself, your wish has no chance of ever coming to fruition and you may end up living a life of permanent regret. I would like to add that this message is true to all things, not just when it comes to love.

Lyrics:

Verse 1 (V):

Solitude is fully

Blooming in this garden, 

With thorns of despair.

I’ve confined myself to this sandcastle.

Verse 2 (JK):

Wonder what’s your name?

Are you stranded all alone?

Oh, could you tell me?

I watched you hiding in my garden.

Pre-Chorus 1 (Jin):

And I know,

You’re not a figment of my imagination.

Those hands plucking a green flower,

I wish I could hold them.

Chorus (Jimin):

But my destiny’s already set.

Don’t smile on me, light on me,

For I refuse to get near you at all.

I can’t ever know your name to call.

Post-Chorus (JK):

You know that I can’t show you me, give you me.

I won’t reveal my sorry existence to you.

Masked again, I’ll watch you from afar.

But I still want you.

Verse 3 (Jin):

In my garden of loneliness,

A flower that befits you,

I wanted to hand it to you,

Without the silly mask on me.

Pre-Chorus 2 (Jimin):

But I know,

My hopes will never materialize,

For I must hide myself low,

Wallowing in the inferiority of my being.

Chorus 2 (V):

I’m terrified of my insignificance.

I’m so afraid,

You’ll flee like the rest.

Masked again, I’ll watch you from afar.

Post-Chorus (JK):

All I can do in this garden, this world

Is to grow a pretty flower resembling you

And persist to exist unbeknownst to you.

But I still want you.

Chorus 3 (Jin):

When you came,

If I’d summoned just a little courage

To reveal myself to you,

Would our destinies have turned out otherwise?

Bridge (Jimin):

I’m in tears.

In this perished, crumbled sandcastle, 

I’m left all alone,

As I stare at the shattered mask.

Outro (Jimin, JK):

And I still want you.

But I still want you.

But I still want you.

And I still want you.