The meaning of "One" could not be clearer: It's a horrific, harrowing portrayal of a quadriplegic veteran who lost not only his limbs, but his face and all of his senses except touch, in a landmine accident. He has returned to the womb, tethered to machines and trapped like a disembodied consciousnesses awaiting a death that won't come.
I cannot live, I cannot die / Trapped in myself, body my holding cell
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
Before he passed away, as reported by Loudersound, Burton had suggested to Hetfield that he read the 1939 Dalton Trumbo novel Johnny Got His Gun. At the time, Hetfield had been toying with the idea of writing a song about "just being a brain and nothing else." The Trumbo novel features all-American hero Joe Bonham, who suffers the loss of his limbs and senses after stepping on a landmine in World War I, in the same way as the protagonist of "One." Afterwards, in a hospital, Bonham is only able to control the movement of his head, which he uses to repeatedly tap out the message "Please kill me" in Morse code.
The novel played a huge role in helping to solidify "One," as Ulrich states in the Loudersound interview. It also served as a way to honor Burton's memory, and we can assume, perhaps lead to some sense of closure.
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