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Brayden Fox

Ms. Tyler

ENG 1201

October 4th, 2020

“Hurt; Nine Inch Nails and Johnny Cash”

Depression effects millions of people, and there are several reasons as of why these

people are depressed. Although there are several reasons why, we as a society normally ignore

the why, and instead just focus on the current situation that the person is depression. For

example, when you look at these lyrics; “I hurt myself today/ To see if I still feel/ I focus on

the pain/ The only thing that's real” we all recognize that the author is physically hurting

themselves to feel the pain believing that this is the only thing that is real. With context to the

lyrics, the listeners learn that both versions of the song Hurt do look at depression, but with

different causes. In 1994, Trent Reznor and Nine Inch Nails originally released the song, and

in 2002, Johnny Cash creates his own version of the song. Although both songs are almost

identical with the exception of one word, the listeners see that both songs are looking at the

person’s depression and seeing that there are different causes. Nine Inch Nails’ version

focuses on a person with depression towards their own future, while Johnny Cash version

focuses on his depression towards his guilt about his past.

Nine Inch Nails’ version was included in their third album, The Downward Spiral,

which focuses on the protagonist’s fight with depression, questioning his life and where it’s

going, and eventually committing suicide[ CITATION Nin20 \l 1033 ]. The person is not

about anyone directly, but it is relatable to several young people that are questioning their
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own lives and seeing no future for themselves. Johnny Cash sung this song in 2002, which has

the significance of the fact that Cash eventually passes away the next year in 2003. For

Johnny Cash this song is not looking forward about his life, but instead looking back at his

life and feeling guilty about the things he has done.

Going back to the first four lines of the song, where the artist explains how they hurt

themselves to feel the pain. When Trent wrote this verse, the protagonist feels a strong

amount of mental and emotional pain, and this self-harm covers this mental and emotional

pain with physical pain. The self-harm is the protagonist’s answer to solving their internal

pain[ CITATION Con201 \l 1033 ]. Johnny Cash does have Internal pain but does not try to

numb this pain with self-harm, but instead the reason Cash hurts himself is because numbness.

At this time of life, Cash does not feel anything, and does self-harm to prove to himself that

he can still feel[CITATION Con20 \l 1033 ].

In the one alteration of the two versions, Trent sings “I wear this crown of shit/ upon

my liar’s chair” while Cash sings “I wear this crown of thorns/ upon my liar’s chair”.

Although the change is settle, it helps change the song enough to help Cash voice his main

idea. For Trent, this is explaining how the protagonist is trying to bring himself up, and tell

himself that he is better than what he thinks he is, but instead, comes to “realization” with

themselves about the fact that they are lying to themselves and they are truly what they know

themselves to be. Johnny Cash on the other hand, is fighting with what people see himself as

versus how he sees himself. Followers of Cash see him as a legend of several genres, and only

see the success that he has had with his music. Behind the curtains Cash saw his life as

troubled, as he was drug addicted at one point and caused the fallout of his marriage with
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Vivian Cash. The listeners get hints at this regret in the music video when pictures of Cash

and his first wife flash through the montage of flashbacks.

On top of the lyrics telling a difference between the two versions, the music videos of

each artist’s version help tell the story even better. In Nine Inch Nail’s version, the viewers

see a lot of darkness, with flashes of animals either dead or dying, and with Trent singing with

an all-black background. The protagonist is thinking about the future, and the only future he

sees for himself is death. Since some believe that after death there is absolute emptiness, the

blackout reflects the emptiness, which is complimented with the death being

flashed[ CITATION Nin09 \l 1033 ]. For Johnny Cash, he is sitting in his home, at the kitchen

table at a somewhat throne like chair with expensive dishes and silverware. While Cash is

singing, the viewers see flashbacks from his life and career. The surroundings of him in the

music video express the wealth he has amassed for himself, and the flashbacks show how he

feels regret towards his past[ CITATION Cas19 \l 1033 ].

Both of this songs appeal to Pathos, or emotions. Compared to Ethos or Logos, Pathos

is the best option to represent song in both versions. The content of these songs focus on the

feelings and emotions of the protagonist or singer of the song, meaning it would best represent

Pathos.

The two versions of the song Hurt reflect on a person fighting depression. In Nine Inch

Nails’ original version focused on the protagonist’s fight with depression and their view

towards the future. The protagonist sees no future for themselves and considers suicide. For

Johnny Cash, his depression comes from reflecting on his past and the regrets and guilt he

feels. The Nine Inch Nails depression is focused on the person’s future, and Johnny Cash’s

version focused on his depression towards his past.

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Works Cited
Cash, J. (2019, September 3). Johnny Cash - Hurt (Official Music Video). Retrieved from
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8AHCfZTRGiI
Contributors of Genius. (2020, October 4). Hurt by Johnny Cash. Retrieved from Genius:
https://genius.com/Johnny-cash-hurt-lyrics
Contributors of Genius. (2020, October 4). Hurt by Nine Inch Nails. Retrieved from Genius:
https://genius.com/Nine-inch-nails-hurt-lyrics
Nine Inch Nails. (2009, September 9). Nine Inch Nails Hurt official video. Retrieved from
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PbHz9p7Z4OU
Nine Inch Nails. (2020, October 4). Discography. Retrieved from Nine Inch Nails:
https://www.nin.com/discography/