Gracie Woodson

Ms. Stalbird

English 1201

2/8/20

“Perfect” Music Video Essay

When listening to Perfect, by Ed Sheeran we hear the lyric “Well I found a woman,

stronger than anyone I know” and assume it is a is in contrast to their relationship and his

happiness however the words “stronger than anyone I know” goes with many different ways of

strong. We see in the cover video the wife if fighting an illness that follows the word “strong”.

Ed Sheeran’s music video for “perfect” portrays an uplifting and happy mood while the cover

video creates a somber and mournful mood.

The story is told through Ed Sheeran’s original music video is telling the story of him

finding the perfect girl. The claim in the original video does not change throughout the cover

video, which is that he met the girl of his dreams and thinks she is stronger than anyone else

which can be different for everyone. The reason the audience can know this is because of the

lyrics and how his emotions are constantly happy. The happiness and romantic mood is shown

through this video where it is showing them dancing, skiing, and smiling. This video is for

younger teens and kids because it is not sad and the main characters, Ed Sheeran and his partner

are young as well.

The story of the cover video is the story of a couple’s relationship that is going downhill

after the women are fighting a disease. The main claim of the two videos is the same, which it’s

claiming that he met the girl of his dreams and she is stronger than anyone else and much more.
The reasoning for this claim is shown through the lyrics. A main piece of evidence is the women

in a hospital with oxygen hooked up while the boy in the relationship is reminiscing the past

event that he enjoyed. This video uses pathos because any scene of a hospital can cause emotion.

His facial expressions show a look of discomfort while talking to a nurse but also looks back at

his marriage to appreciate the good times he had. The audience if this video is for an older age

because of the struggles and events the couple has been through helps relate to the older age. Life

experience and age can be more enjoyable for certain individuals.

While the lyrics are the same the music videos portray Contrary moods. Ed

Sheeran's original music video develops a happy and youthful Mood though the cover music

video Interprets a mood in melancholy. Ed's version starts off with a smile but turns into a

doubtful look. This girl and he are very bubbly and smiley throughout the rest of the video

which lets the audience know there is a happy mood. There is also a youthful mood as well

because the main characters are young and having the fun a young couple would do like driving

around and being at a bar as shown in the video. This mood is very different from the cover

video since they cover video has a mournful mood. Although the lyrics are the same the video

itself portrays the mood of sadness. One of the main characters in this video is at the hospital

going through an illness. Her husband is shown going to the nurse’s desk where his face changed

to the look of rejection. This video also shows the clips of times when they were young and

happy, for example when they were in school talking at their lockers and when they got married.

The lyrics are they saying however the moods are very different.

The cover video appeals to a bigger rhetorical appeal however they both demonstrate

pathos. The cover video is more relatable and creates emotion due to her illness which can draw

in emotion. Since the background of the video is retelling their story it can help cause a strong
appeal of emotion. Ed Sheeran’s original video appeals pathos as well, especially in the lyrics, “I

will not give you up this time”, shows he had regrets for the last time which can create emotions.

Although the music is not different throughout the videos the moods are. The original

video simulates a joyful mood as whole the cover is bitter. Both videos have emotional appeals

from the lyrics and certain video clips. The original video by Ed Sheeran values a happy

uplifting mood while the cover has a sad, love story mood as they reminisce about their past.

Works Cited :

Regmi, P. (2017). Perfect- ED SHEERAN (Music Video). [image] Available at:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_mx0dNHhQE [Accessed 9 Feb. 2020].

Sheeran, E. (2017). Ed Sheeran - Perfect (Official Music Video). [video] Available at:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Vv-BfVoq4g [Accessed 7 Feb. 2020].