"Preachers Daughter" by Ethel Cain | Teen Ink

"Preachers Daughter" by Ethel Cain

July 16, 2024
By puppydawgs GOLD, Hartland, Wisconsin
puppydawgs GOLD, Hartland, Wisconsin
10 articles 0 photos 0 comments

“Preachers Daughter” by Ethel Cain is a haunting and expressive album that puts together the hinds of love, loss, and self discovery. Hayden Anhedónia, the person behind Ethen Cain, created this persona to write about religious trauma she endured from her father being a Preacher when she was younger.


The story begins with Ethel's upbringing in a strict, religious household through the song “Family Tree (Intro). The song is short but it explained how she viewed her Father and how he viewed her. Her father was a part of the church and he did not agree to any of his child's actions. With the last line ‘"You know I raised you bеtter than this" "Then leavе me hanging so they all can laugh at me” it explains how the whole town has seen what she's been doing throughout her year and has been publicly humiliated.


The song continues with  “Family Tree” which is longer than the song that started the album. This song goes more in depth about the dark parts of her childhood in the beginning of the song then switches over to her adulthood where she has been confronted about the things she's done in her youth. The song ends up with Ethel trying to be forgiven for her sins.


The album continues with the theme of love and loss with songs like “Thoroughfare” “Hard Times” and “House in Nebraska”. Hard Time is a song about loss, the loss of innocence from her childhood and the idea of her father being a good guy. Despite “Hard Times” being about her father, the next song on the album “Thoroughfare” switches to a different type of love, the type of love that she wasn't looking for but ended up finding.


The album ends with the song “Strangers” which continues the story of the love she met in the song “Thoroughfare”. The man ended up taking her away from her family and convinced her that she's better off in the place she is than what she was in. The song expresses hints of manipulation, and in the end the man that she once thought was different from everyone else, especially her dad, turned out to be the worst.


In conclusion  "Preacher's Daughter" is a deeply personal and reflective journey that invites listeners to explore the complexities of faith, family, and self-acceptance through the eyes of Ethel Cain. It's a narrative that is both haunting and cathartic, resonating with those who have faced similar struggles and found strength in their own stories.


The author's comments:

its an essay about "Preachers Daughter" by ethel cain 


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