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Devin Kilburn

Professor Dean Leonard

English 1201.512

14 February 2021

Comparing Rhetoric in Patience by Guns N’ Roses vs Chris Cornell

Although Chris Cornell’s version of “Patience” have the exact same words as the Guns
N’ Roses original from 31 years earlier, the meaning of these two songs can be interpreted
completely differently. In both versions, the singer frequently states “Said woman take it slow
and it'll work itself out fine, All we need is just a little patience.” The original video is based
around multiple women getting in the artists bed night after night, and the patience needed is
until the rock and roll lifestyle is over. Chris Cornell’s version of the video is more of a
memorial, leading the viewer to feel that the woman needs patience that even though he is dead,
they will be together again eventually. The two versions of “Patience” have a similar sound, but
the videos are able to show how different Pathos can create a different impression on the viewer
because in one the singer can be presumed dead, and in the other the singer is just too busy
sleeping around, but neither case can they be with the woman they love.

In 1989 when Guns N’ Roses released the original version of “Patience” many rock stars
were living a lifestyle of nightly partying and sleeping with many different women. The video
shows this because the entirety of the video takes place in a hotel. Part of the video is the bend
standing in a room playing the music, but the other part features Slash laying in bed. As he is
laying there a woman starts to undress on the other side of the bed before fading into a different
woman. This happens multiple times each scene to try and show the viewer the lifestyle he lives.
This leads the viewer to believe that the patience requested in the lyrics is the patience for him to
finish his crazy lifestyle before they can love each other and live happily ever after.

In 2020, 3 years after Chris Cornell’s suicide, his estate surprised the world and released
its own version of the song on what would have been his 56th birthday. The video starts with a
view of a city. As it pans out you see the autograph of Chris Cornell written on the glass of the
room the camera is in overlooking the city. It then shows a polaroid falling on a hardwood floor
of Chris and his wife about to kiss. After that more polaroid’s start to fall all over the place.
Some of them are of Chris alone, but the vast majority are him with his family. Around half way
through the video the camera looks up to the window again to see the words “A man only dies if
he is forgotten” written on it again, before aiming back at the floor to watch more pictures fall.
At the very end of the video the camera pans out to look at all of the pictures from the ceiling
and that is when the viewer can tell that all of the pictures were laid out in the shape of his
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autograph. The memorial feel of the video, and the fact that the song was released posthumously
changes the whole feel of the song and lyrics. This video leads you to believe that the singer is
saying that even though he is gone and they can’t be together, if she has patience they will be
together again. This version is slower and has an acoustic sound. It also leaves the viewer with a
more sad and somber feeling.

Both of the “Patience” videos have a very strong Pathos appeal but leave the viewer with
a very different feeling. The original Guns N’ Roses version leaves you with the impression that
the band loves to party and sleep around, while the Chris Cornell version leaves you with the
impression that he was from a loving family who meant the world to him, and they can’t wait to
be together again. The audience for the original version was anyone from teens to adults in the
late 80s when the song was released. I also think that because the song is lighter and unlike the
other songs by this artist that is can appeal to people who were not really fans of rock music. I
think the fans of the remake will include everyone who falls under the original umbrella. Chris
Cornell has been active in the rock music scene since the mid 80’s so many people who are fans
of Guns N’ Roses are also fans of some of Cornell’s bands throughout the years. Chris never
really stopped making successful music so fans of this would also include many younger people.
This can also be viewed as a memorial song, which would appeal to anyone who has ever lost
someone. It can also be viewed as a love song which appeals to anyone who is or has ever been
in love.

The music to both versions is quite similar, so if a viewer likes one version, they will
most likely enjoy the other one as well, but the 2 versions of “Patience”, by Guns N’ Roses and
Chris Cornell, are a perfect example of how different visual rhetoric can completely change how
a viewer feels about a song. Even with the exact same words and a very similar sound, you get a
carefree feeling from the original version and you get a more sad, memorial feeling from the
remake.

Works Cited
Cornell, Chris. Chris Cornell - Patience (Official Video). 20 July 2020. Chris Cornell. 14 February 2021.
<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=myZ32Pf-5PE>.

Guns N' Roses. Guns N' Roses - Patience. 8 October 2009. GunsNRosesVEVO. 14 February 2021.
<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ErvgV4P6Fzc>.