Quotation from the TMBG FAQ, maintained by John Relph <relph@engr.sgi.com>.

22. What is "Particle Man" about?

"Particle Man" concerns the nature of the life, the universe and everything. Triangle man has been construed to represent the Holy Trinity. Triangle Man has also been interpreted to represent change, religion, the homosexual community, and is a reference to a quantum physics phenomenon as well.

In an interview with Peter Koechley <koechley@facstaff.wisc.edu>, John Linnell had this to say:

We pretty much write these songs and let other people figure them out. I remember one thing that went into it was that we were watching Night of the Hunter or something on TV and somebody commented that Robert Mitchum reminded them of a triangle. Something about his body type. He seemed like this kind of evil triangle. That was one of the things that went into the song.

[People said that the triangle represented] the three branches of government or the holy trinity but that's not what it is at all.

Actually, "Particle Man" is a song. Any meaning gleaned from its lyrics exist only in the mind of the listener. All meanings are correct. All meanings are bunk.

Jens Alfke <jens_alfke@quickmail.apple.com> writes:

More quantum-mechanical theorizing on "Particle Man". The song says "What's he like? It's not important" which makes sense for a particle; QM asserts that subatomic particles have only a few constant properties (mass, charge, spin...) and beyond that are completely featureless and indistinguishable. I.e. any two electrons are identical.

ram@iris3.carb.nist.gov (Ram Samudrala) writes:

Particle Man is about the environment, of course! (:

But "tmbrich" <tmbrich@aol.com> has the last word:

In response to this debate,

"Nobody knows, particle man.", answers the question!

So, you see, nobody knows!

This document copyright (c) 1995 by John Relph. While some information included herein is not copyright and may be used without permission, the compilation of this information in this document in this format is copyright and may not be published in any form whatsoever without the permission of the author. Just ask. This document may be distributed electronically and otherwise if and only if the entire copyright notice and attributions are included.

Quoth Dr. Banana <sdc116@psu.edu>:

What "Particle Man" really means. A fresh, new analysis by Dr. Banana.

Well it seems that there has been some debate over what the song "Particle Man" really means. By applying my patented, New Scientific Method to the song I believe that I have developed a clean, concise explanation that will put your questions to rest. First it is important to identify all the different personalities represented in the song:

Particle Man

Our main character. By splitting up the word and looking at the roots it is possible to draw a clear meaning from his name. 'PAR' the Greek word for 'SMALL' and 'TICLE' the Swahili word for 'PICKLE' combine to make 'SMALL PICKLE' or in common terms, 'RELISH'. As in hot dog relish. So Particle Man is representing condiments.

Triangle Man

The nemesis of the story. Triangle Man took some more research, but we finally discovered just what he was. Observe the well-known fire triangle:

            /\                   Oxygen + Heat + Fuel = Fire
          /    \
OXYGEN  /        \  FUEL         Triangle Man IS the fire triangle.
      /    FIRE    \             You see in reality, Triangle Man
    /________________\           is a pyromaniac!
           HEAT

Universe Man

Here again we break down the larger word to draw a conclusion. Here 'UNI' a Swedish word for 'HORSE' and 'VERSE' an English word meaning 'VERSE' combine to give us Horse-Verse Man or in simple terms, Mr. Ed.

Person Man

This one was almost unsolvable until Bob from the mail room shed some light on it. It seems Person Man was a not-so-famous Super Hero from the know defunct Mega Fern Comics. Person Man's limited success stemmed from the fact that he had no super powers, no astounding intellect, no millions of dollars to buy cool equipment with, and he didn't even have a nifty costume.

Ok, now that you know who the characters really are, this is what the song means:

• Particle Man who is really representing condiments is doing the things that a condiment can. So naturally he is staining someone's clothes by falling off of a hot dog. Here is where the "is he a dot or is he a speck" come into play. It is really the person who just dribbled on themselves looking to see how BIG of a stain they just made. "When he's underwater, does he get wet" refers to the item of clothing getting washed. Will the stain come out? Or won't it?
• Triangle Man is introduced to create conflict in order to make the song more exciting. Since Triangle Man is a pyromaniac he is being used to represent evil (ie: Hell = Flames + Hot). So when Triangle Man wins against Particle Man the stain does NOT come out....
• The part with Universe Man who is really Mr. Ed is actually a synopsis of an episode that was unfortunately never aired. In this episode Wilbur buys Mr. Ed a watch but now that Mr. Ed can tell time he can see that he is not getting paid the $6.45 per hour that he was promised, thus putting him in a powerful position for negotiating a better contract.
• Finally we have the portion with Person Man, which turns out to be an almost literal translation of his origin! It seems that Joe Public was an ordinary citizen until his mother-in-law bashed him over the head with her teflon skillet. Joe suffered severe brain seizures and believed himself to be Person Man - Defender of Seafood. Working from his secret base (a converted dumpster in back of Frank's Cafe) Joe carried out a not-so-successful rampage against fishermen everywhere. Eventually his great failures led him to enter a deep depression. Ultimately Person Man was killed off by Hump Back. (Evil villian whose main weapon was a gun that spewed whale blubber onto his opponent who he would then light on fire. Here again, the reference to Triangle Man winning against Person Man). See Mega Fern Comics #4 - #17.

As to how all of these connect into a coherent story, we have no idea. We think the musical group which churned this out were writing it while under the influence of 5 bags of Oreo Cookies and a gallon of Gator Aide. But now you have it. No more endless nights wondering just what it really means.

Have any others that you are dying to be enlightened about? If so, please send your inquiry, in the form of a dirty limerick to:

DR. BANANA (sdc116@psu.edu)

Quoth Donovan J Truitt <djtst16+@pitt.edu>:

The song "Particle Man" is about how the government tries to supress the liberties of the people. Particle Man is the simplest and smallest of all things. He is surpressed by the "trangle of government" (executive-legisaltive-judical). Triangle Man fights and wins with everyone else but Universe Man. He is the collective power of the people. The message in this song is that the people can only win if they are united.

Quoth <TJami15126@aol.com>:

The Particle Man Theology

Particle Man, Particle Man,

Man, created from the dust of the earth (Genesis 1)

Doing the things a particle can,

Man, sinful by nature, pursues his own desires (Isaiah 53:6)

What's He like, it's not important

"What is man, that Thou art mindful of him?" (Psalms 8:4)

Particle Man

Is he a dot, or is he a speck

Utter insignifigance of man in comparison to God

When he's underwater does he get wet?

Man's punishment for sin, precursored by the flood (Genesis 7:21-23a)

Or does the water get him instead?

God delivers Noah by the Ark (Genesis 7:23b)

Nobody knows, Particle Man.

Christ comments on the judgement of God, and refers to Noah. "No man knows the day or the hour... for as it was in the days of Noah..." (Matthew 24:36)

Triangle Man, Triangle Man

The Godhead, (Trinity) Father, Son, Holy Ghost

Triangle Man hates Particle Man

God hates sin. God, being Holy, is separated from his creation by sin, and therefore hates it. (Psalm 66:18)

They have a fight, Triangle wins

God's justice is total and righteous. (Isaiah 3:14)

Triangle Man.

Universe Man, Universe Man

Jesus, for whom and by whom everything was created, in whom all things "hold together" (John 1:1-5)

Size of the entire universe man

Ibid

Usually kind to smaller man

Christ, redeemer and Savior, compassionate to sinners (Matthew 11:29)

Universe Man

He's got a watch with a minute hand

Christ took on the form of flesh, and became God "locked" in our time.... minute by minute.

A millineum hand

Christ pictured as the Prince of Peace, who will rule for 1,000 years (1 millineum) of peace (Revelation 20:1-6)

And an eon hand

7 ages of the church established by Christ (Revelation 1 through 3)

And when they meet it's a happy land

The rapture of the church (I Thessalonians 4:13-5:11)

Powerful man, Universe Man

ref: King of Kings, and Lord of Lords. Lion of Judah.

Person Man, Person Man

Antithesis of Christ, this would be Lucifer (Satan)

Hit on the head with a frying pan

"He shall crush your head, and you shall bruise his heel" (Genesis 3:15) This curse, given by God to the serpent in the Garden of Eden, is the first time that the promise of a messiah is given. The frying pan, being both lethal and hot, might suggest hell.

Who came up with Person Man?

The question of Satan's creation, as an angel originally, but now fallen after attempting rebellion in heaven (Isaiah 14:12-20)

Lives his life in a garbage can

The empitome of evil. Filth, trash, decay, foulness, and his consequences for destroying so many (Isaiah 14:19).

Person Man

Is he depressed, or is he a mess?

Does he totally worthless?

The fallen condition of man, and the depravity of Satan combined. (Romans Chapter 1)

Who came up with Person Man?

The only time in the song that a character is twice questioned.

Degraded Man, Person Man

Assent to the fallenness of Satan.

Triangle Man, Triangle Man

God

Triangle man hates Person Man

Diammetrical opposition of holiness and evil

They have a fight, Triangle wins

The power of righteousness will overcome the power of evil(Romans 8:37)

Triangle Man

God ends as ultimate victor.

The song, then, begins with God's creation and ends with the resolution of his own plan.

Quoth Matthew L. Schwartz <MLS66@columbia.edu>:

Particle man represents science, triangle man god and the trinity, universe man Nature, and person man represents man.

Then we have the first part, "Particle man, particle man, doing the things a particle can, what's he like, it's not important, particle man. Is he a dot, or is he a speck; when he's underwater, does he get wet, or does the water get him instead? Nobody knows particle man." This talks about, then, the inscrutability of scienetific truth. We then have "Triangle man, triangle man, triangle man hates particle man. They have a fight, triangle wins, triangle man." Here we have the conflict between religion and science, where the scientific mind often uses that knowledge to dispell religious "myth," a la creationism v. Darwinism. Of course, Triangle wins because God is supreme over science, which is a contrivance of man, and note that "what's he like, it's not important" indicates that knowledge of science is insignificiant; presumabley, knowledge of god is.

Next is "Universe man, universe man, size of the entire universe man. Usually kind to smaller man, universe man; he's got a watch with a minute hand, a millenium hand, and an eon hand, and when they meet it's a happy land. Powerful man, Universe man." This simply represents the significance of Nature and Time, both of which are ultimately powerful. I'll get back to that in a moment.

Then is "Person man, person man. Hit on the head with a frying pan, who came up with person man? Lives his life in a garbage can: person man. Is he depressed, or is he a mess? Does he feel totally worthless? Who came up with person man? Degraded man, person man." This is simply pointing out the relative insignificance of man in relation to everything else (God, Time, Nature, etc) and that his condition, unlike that of God, is weak and flawed--note that person man never wins he he gets into a fight. Following the question "who came up with person man?" is appropriately the answer "Triangle Man, triangle man."

Then "triangle man hates person man. They have a fight, triangle wins, triangle man." Why does triangle man hate person man? I don't think he hates him overall, but god, creating man with freewill, creates the tendancy within man to sin and so evil. It is sin and the wretchedness described by person man that god detests. Of course, god, in the end wins by meting of divine justice and condemning the sinner whom he hates."

I don't know why I bothered to type that, but it's nifty, don't you think?

An entirely different and more simplistic conception that I shan't explain in depth: Why are triangle, particle, universe, and person man different people? If triangle man is the trinity, then can't person man by the Son (Jesus), Universe man be the all-powerful Father, and particle man be the inscrutible Holy Spirit? That's why triangle man always wins--no one facet of the trinity can win out over the others, only by looking at it holistically do we realize its true power....

Quoth Pea Hicks <phix@adnc.com>:

Here's a brief version of my interpretation of Particle Man:

Particle Man=Nature (particle=basic unit of matter)

Triangle Man=Man's logical, rational thought (triangle=simplest polygon=a basic unit of rational thought) & the technology which results

Person Man=mankind in all its primitive awkwardness

Universe Man=God

Basically, man's technological developments first proceed to destroy nature and ultimately mankind itself while God stands by doing nothing about the situation.

Quoth Matthew Bartush <bartush@ix.netcom.com>:

The other night I was watching a PBS special about R. Buckminster Fuller (a 20th-century genius of science, design, mathematics, philosophy, etc.) and they played a clip from one of his lectures. At the end of the clip he said something regarding man fullfilling his role on earth and ascending to become "Universe Man." Dolt that I am, I probably would have missed it, but my wife started singing "Universe Man, Universe Man."

Strange how the wheels, once thought dormant, can begin to creep ever-so-slowly into motion again. I thought of a story I read regarding Bucky Fuller, about how he always had three watches set at three different times: One for the time zone he was in; One for the time zone into which he was heading; and One for the time zone he had just left. ("He's got a watch with a minute hand, a millenium hand, and an eon hand")

It was back! Yet another interpretation intent on gripping my mind! I recalled yet another Fuller quote: "Specialization is for insects." (Particle Man, Particle Man, doing the things a Particle can. What's he like? It's not important")

Then, much to my horror, I recalled the basis for much of Fuller's geometric design - the TRIANGLE! ("Triangle Man, Triangle Man, Triangle Man hates Particle Man. They have a fight, Triangle wins. Triangle Man")

Quoth Rob Siegel <robert.siegel@yale.edu>:

In short, the song talks about nuclear war. Allow me to explain:

Cast of characters:

Particle man: the molecule at the center of an atomic bomb. Who cares what kind. Can a something the size of a water molecule get wet? Does water get molecules instead? Nobody knows.

Triangle man: nuclear fallout. You know how those fallout shelter signs are made of several triangles? Triangle man hates particle man for keeping him trapped, and triangle man kills people.

Universe man: God. Needs no explanation.

Person man: that's us.

The story:

Act I: Triangle man and particle man have a fight. Triangle wins; a nuclear bomb has exploded.

Act II: Person man, which has turned its God-given home into a trash can, has earned the wrath of God. Universe man's watch shows that it's time to destroy humanity.

Act III: Triangle man and person man have a fight; triangle wins. It's a nuclear holocaust, the end of the human race as the gamma rays fry us all. It's the end of the world, and there's nothing but an accordion solo.

When a friend proposed this explanation, it sounded too right; when we went to a concert in the Apollo 18 tour, the band bathed themselves in a sickeningly bright bath of yellow neon lights. Looked like a nuclear explosion to me.

Quoth Zman (matt) Koz <ZmanKoz@aol.com>:

Walking home from scool one day, I found myself listening to particle man on my walkman. I was singing along with John when my mind wandered back to a math class I had had about a year before. We were talking about the pythagorean theorum: in a right triangle the length of the hypotenuse squared is equal to the sum of the squares of the remaining two sides, or something. Anyway, it wasn't the theorem that piqued my interest though, it was the discussion my math teacher pursued that followed: It seems that the theorem was most likely not actually found by Mr. Pythagoras, but, in fact, by one of his pupils. Pythagoras, having seen someone younger, smarter and probably ambitious, ended up killing the student and taking the theorem for his own.

This is what I figure to be the first part of "Particle Man":

Particle man, someone noone knows really or cares about=the student

Triangle man, big strong guy doesn't like andbeats up

Particle man=Pythagoras, a man known now for his triangle things, doesn't like his student's spunk and kills him.

Thinking I was on a roll I decided to look for more in the song. Universe man is the next part. Hmmm...AHA!!! My thoughts flowed to the video I had seen of the song on Tiny Toon Adventures so long ago. Universe man was portrayed as a huge fat man in space. Controlling time, it also showed the world revolving.

Part ][:

Universe man, a big guy who controls the motion of time=time itself, namely the passage of time (milleniums and eons) through the universe, into present day.

I just needed the last part of the song to be...well...really cool I guess. I looked everywhere I could think of before finally finding, what I think is, the right answer.

Parte the Thirde:

Person man, an average Joe, really, TODAY'S average man trying to fight the system, but the system=Triangle Man who always kicks Person Man's ass into th

Quoth Karen Angelli <kangelli@tiac.net>:

Regardless of what the Johns say, it is obvious that Particle Man is a retelling of the 19th century fable "Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions", by Edwin A. Abbott. Flatland is a parable of intolerance which takes place primarily in a two-dimensional universe which is populated by triangular shaped beings (triangle men). During the course of the story, a triangular protagonist meets a three-dimensional being (person man) who enlightens the triangle by demonstrating and explaining the existence of a third dimension. In order to illustrate the concept of a third dimension to the doubting triangle, who is restricted to a two-dimensional plane of existence, person man introduces him to a being who exists in a non-dimensional universe the size of a point (particle man) and to a race of beings who are confined to living in a one-dimensional line universe (line man, who was regrettable omitted from the song). By extension, the song lyrics build on the characters from the book, and extrapolate the same concept to include a new character, universe man. Just as two-dimensional triangle man cannot conceive of three-dimensional person man, three-dimensional person cannot conceive of four (or greater)-dimensional universe man which would be representative of a concept of God (Universe man . . . Usually kind to smaller man. ).

The story in Flatland follows triangle-man through his spiritual enlightenment and introduction to higher planes of existence and ultimate persecution. Upon learning about person man, who appears almost god-like to triangle man, triangle man embarks on a mission to spread the good news of the third-dimension. However, due to the subversive nature of the message to the ruling party of flatland, triangle man is ultimately imprisoned for blasphemy. The triangle society fears the spread of knowledge of the existence of third dimensions in the same way that some human societies attempt to squelch religious worship. Knowledge, or a concept of the divine, can make person man feel small, degraded and as though he were hit in the head with a frying pan. To overcome the feeling of insignificance, humanists attempt to supplant religious ideals of attempting to reach a higher good with a more attainable person based philosophy which celebrates our humanness. In other words, person man hates universe man (read God) and kills universe man (God is dead.). Similarly, in the book Flatland, the race of triangle men, (Triangle Man), fears knowledge of a higher power, namely person man. (triangle man hates person man). The enlightened triangle is persecuted his message of the existence of a person man and the higher plane of existence. In the end, the enlightened triangle's teachings are totally repressed, and the Word of person man is effectively killed. (they have a fight, triangle wins).

In that intolerance can breed contempt for the concept of the divine, it may similarly foster a lack of concern for the less fortunate in society (particle man). (What's he like? It's not important. . . . Triangle man hates particle man.) The Triangle Man of the song hates person man, and hates particle man. He is merely fat, dumb and happy living in his two-dimensional plane.

In closing, the entire lyric to particle man relates thematically, structurally, philosophically and literally with the book Flatland (at least in this mildly strained off-the-cuff interpretive reading). If Particle man was not actually based on Flatland, it should have been.