djcates81 February 27th, 2004 03:02AM  

This song is about a man who goes to war for democracy and ends up hitting a land mine which blows his arms and legs off,as well as taking away his ability to speak, hear, and see. he lies in bed and holds his breath wanting to die.

anonymous January 3rd, 2006 03:16PM  

Alright, this song is based off of the book, "Johnnie got a gun" or something like that. The song is in fact about a guy who stepped on a landmine and thus has lost his sight, speach, hearing, arms, and legs. He has absolutely no way of communicating. Who wants to live this way? This is what the song is about. He wants to die because he doesn't want to go on anymore this way but he cannot communicate that to anyone. You guys should check out the video. It will help you understand. I contains actual video from the movie "Johnnie Got His Gun". Craziness!

anonymous June 27th, 2006 11:37PM  

It is based on the book johnny got his gun, I've seen an interview with lars where he says they based on the book since they had to read it in english class or some shit like that. as a matter of fact, the band bought the rights to the movie version of the book shortly after and justice for all was released, that's why you will never see it on dvd here in the states.

anonymous December 8th, 2006 10:13PM  

Obviously about a soldier stepping on a land mine and losing his arms, legs, sight, hearing, and speech. As shown by the lyrics:
"Landmine, has taken my sight, taken my speech, taken my hearing, taken my arms, taken my legs, taken my soul, left me with life in hell."
He is incapable of keeping himself alive and must rely on machines.:
"Tied to machines that make me be."
The over all theme is that he does not want to live like this and wants to die, as he can't communicate with anyone he prays to God the only being that he can communicate with.:
"Hold my breath as I wish for death, Oh God help me!"

anonymous April 21st, 2007 03:56PM  

I must confess I haven't seen the movie, or read the book. But straight from the video, I see it's about the sadism of society; they sent a boy to war who the hell knows for what, and returned after stepping over a landmine without hearing, seeing, speaking... He constantly suffers pain, he wants to die... To rest. But society (represented by doctors) don't even notice (or don't want to notice) that he wants to quit the pain... In that situation, his life. But no, is more important to investigate with that poor suffering body, that let him rest in peace.. as if there wasn't a soul inside! I think, it's a call for attention... please, hear the souls, take care of other human beings, forget of your pride for a while...and return to basics, what makes a human being into people is feelings.. The capacity to hear, feel, understand other human beings, and in that video, this is left away just for the pride of the doctors. Don't know if this is what Met got in mind while writing that awesome peace of music, but made me feel that.
Call me mad, comment, write more, contact me if you want, but please let me read what you think. Cheers to everyone.

anonymous July 25th, 2007 11:48PM  

The video openly depicts the father in the movie stating that he would give his son for democracy. There is a real reason for that clip of the movie to be on the video. That reason perhaps could be that the band understands that most of the fighting that the common man dies for is in vain. (Do you really believe that we live in a democracy?) Also that war is horror and not glorious and the ramifications are not just physical but a metaphor for the metal scars that go to the soldiers and family.

anonymous August 12th, 2007 03:45AM  

Who ever the hell said ''how can he tap kill me if he has no limbs'' he nods sos please kill me in morse code with his head. I'm only 11 years old and I even know that.

anonymous September 10th, 2007 11:13PM  

This song is about his son he lost in war and about all the other people that have suffered from war, and how it can make you a "vegetable" which is a very big topic today (right to die) supreme court just ruled on the chick that they were keeping alive for no reason.

This song is about a soldier fighting in a war and a mortar blows off in his face. He can't hear, see, smell, taste and he doesn't have arms or legs. He comes out of a coma in a hospital. During the time he is in the hospital he reflects on his life and things his father told him. Eventually the doctors get worried because he's having spasms all the time, but he doesn't seem to be dying. They call in the general and he can't figure it out either but the soldier with the general recognizes it. "Its Morse code," he says. The general asks what he is saying and the soldier looks for a minute and then says, "He is saying K-I-L-L- M-E over and over again.

The lyrics are based on the novel Johnny Got His Gun by Dalton Trumbo, which is about World War I. A specific passage that inspired the song is: "How could a man lose as much of himself as I have and still live? When a man buys a lottery ticket you never expect him to win because it's a million to one shot. But if he does win, you'll believe it because one in a million still leaves one. If I'd read about a guy like me in the paper I wouldn't believe it, because it's a million to one. But a million to ONE always leaves one. I'd never expect it to happen to me because the odds of it happening are a million to one. But a million to one always leaves one. One.

anonymous October 6th, 2007 09:36PM  

This song is about the book Johnny Got His Gun - Lars says so himself..they didn't learn about it after the fact - I read the book and ANYONE who has read the book and heard the song will agree here - James sings lines that are IN THE BOOK - like word for word in the book (some minor changes so it flows with the music) READ THE BOOK! so being that ONE is about JOHNNY GOT HIS GUN - then the song IS about how evil war is - people do come back like that...read the book - and I defy anyone who is not moved by it

anonymous November 14th, 2007 04:50AM  

This song by Metallica is about a soldier fighting in the war for his beliefs and for his country. His ready to go fight in the war when a landmine blows up in his face. The helicopers come and he is in a coma and has lost his arms, legs and he can't hear, see, smell or taste. He wakes up from this coma in hospital and during all that time he kept thinking about everything his father told him. The doctors started getting worried because his having these spasms and they thought he would've died by now but he hasn't. They call the general to help figure it out but he doesn't know either but the soldier that was with the general recognizes it and told them that it's a morse code. They ask what he is saying and he tells him that the soldier in the coma is saying "KILL ME" over and over again.

In the verses of the song it explains the soliers injuries and pain that he is going through. Towards the end he starts fading away and thinking his useless because he can't do anything. He wants to die because he can't handle it anymore and he just thinks he can't go on but he eventually tells someone through morse code that he wants to die and wants them to kill him.

anonymous January 15th, 2008 06:28PM  

While this song is evidently about a man suffering horrific war injuries such that he is begging to be killed Metallica have used this idea from a novel/movie I've no idea myself actually, to compare the feelings brought on by these events with their own struggles both with drug & alcohol addiction & the consequences these addictions entail.

anonymous September 19th, 2008 11:18PM  

While the song lyrics mention a land mine, the character in "Johnny Got His Gun" is actually hit by a mortar shell. In the book, he mentions that a shard of metal from the shell must have hit him so perfectly that it just "scooped out his face" without hitting his jugular vein. In the movie, the doctors mention that he was found in the fetal position, probably "protecting his genitals." They go on to say that he was hit by two shells.
I have read that Metallica came up with the idea for "One" before seeing the film, but they must have been influenced by the film...the song is just too similar not to be.
The surgeons in the movie say they want to keep Joe Bonham alive so they can learn from him, and they never consider the ethical implications because they believe Joe will be "as unthinking, as unfeeling as the dead until the day that he joins them." Once they learn that he can think and communicate, they choose not to grant his wish for death because he is too valuable. The realization that he has been suffering silently for years is horrifying, but military protocol prevents them from "pulling the plug." It's very dark story, but the triumphs that Joe Bonham makes in communication and timekeeping are hopeful. Sadly, all sense of hope is eventually crushed.
That's my two cents. Somebody shut me up.
Cheers!

anonymous November 12th, 2008 03:35PM  

Johnny Got His Gun is an obscure old movie about a land mine victim stuck within a useless body,missing all limbs,and all or most senses.A true living hell that he desparately wishes to communicate his will to be released from,but cannot.Up to this point Metallica had strongly protested videos saying they were for commercial bands,the video for "One" was their first in a long series of compromises."And Justice For All" was was a great album though.Speaking of compromises,check out Mike Inez's message to them written on his bass during Alice in Chains Unplugged on MTV.Metallica was in the audience.Good news is Metallica seem to be regaining that spark they had back around the "Garage Days" time period.

kronikTokah January 24th, 2009 02:29PM  

This song is based on the book Johnny Got His Gun and no it is not a true story, it is just that a 'story' The author Dalton Trumbo tells the story to show what the horrors of war can do on one single person yeah he was fighting for justice freedom and democracy but in the end all of that meant nothing as it explains what kind of hell it would be if you were laying there trapped inside of your own mind for the rest of your dying days

Kwizzel90210 February 8th, 2009 08:51PM  

The song is simply about a soldier who unwillingly (lack of a better term) went to fight in a war, and stepped on a landmine. "Landmines has taken my sight Taken my speech Taken my hearing Taken my arms Taken my legs Taken my soul" When he lays in his hospital bed, he wishes to die, because he is nothing but a vegetable without any senses.

segpatrol94 April 9th, 2009 01:34AM  

One is about a vegetable who is is like that due to war. He stepped on a land mine and lived but just wants to die.

anonymous April 19th, 2009 05:04PM  

He lost all his limbs, and he's kept alive with tubes and respirators and stuff, and he's a prisoner in his own body... like sleeping 24/7, all he can do is think.. 'oh please god, wake me'he only wants to die, but he can't tell anybody, and the doctors don't know.. They try to help him, but he the help is unwanted

masterkin June 8th, 2009 08:13PM  

Draco is right it basically a bet to see how close they could come with little info. Look James meaning to one.

randomguy June 16th, 2009 02:03AM  

anyone who didnt figure out its about war the first time they heard it is RETARDED. one of the best songs ever by the way.

jchristopher July 7th, 2009 04:54AM  

Rhetoric is the art of speaking and writing to emphasize persuasion effectively. The rhetorical analysis focuses on diction, audience, writer’s stance, purpose of the text, and topic. Metallica’s song writers James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich wrote the lyrics to One for their album …And Justice for All inspired by the movie Johnny Got His Gun. The words used in the lyrics describe absolute horror as Hetfield sings them with a strong deep hardcore diction. The song develops an audience that continues to buy tickets that sell shows out at every event since Metallica wrote the song in 1988. The purpose of the song which going to war means fighting and dying for democracy, but suffering for medical science is not the life the soldier wanted to live. The song based on an analysis of audience interpretations, research, and personal thought describes a soldier that was fighting a war and is wounded in battle, then is forced to “live” in pursuit of medical science against normal humane practice focusing Metallica’s anti-war efforts.