According to Jeffrey Jerome Cohen, author of the article, Monster Culture (Seven Theses) that which is most misunderstood in our society is labeled monstrous, something deadly that we all should fear. He discusses how society paints an image of an individual based upon whether or not they meet the status quo. There are some special individuals who exemplify what it means to be different. They defy the norms. They don’t follow the rulebook set aside by society before they were even thought into existence.No one else met such a standard then no other than the King of Pop himself, Michael Jackson.
Often misunderstood by mainstream society and unaffectionately labeled as “wacko jacko”, between the allegations of child sexual abuse, the facial disfiguration and eccentric obsession over animals, Michael Jackson presented the public with the perfect storm for creating a monster. Culturally, as a Black man, Michael Jackson defied the norm. Prior to his vitiligo disease, The African-American community understands this idea of monsters and the monstrous. Continually demonized by the media, the scores of Black men personally relate to being ostracized in the news media, and racially profiled. And yet Jackson was publicly ridiculed for both not being black “enough” or, at the onset of his Vitiligo diagnosis, white “enough’. Therefore, Michael Jackson challenged how people viewed Black men in particular, as he was the matriarch of a humble inner-city Black family from Indiana.
According to Cohen, there are seven theories that defines the monster’s role in society and each represent why the creation of the monster exists. Essentially, the idea of a monster “ask us to reevaluate our cultural assumptions about race, gender, sexuality, our perception of difference, our tolerance toward its expression” (Cohen, 20). When an individual or event defies what is considered “normal” by society standards, the status quo decides that this freedom of conformation should be discouraged, and thus, their image is tarnished in order to discourage anyone else from stepping against the norm.
The seven theories range from a series of characteristics including: the monster is always a cultural body, it always escapes, is the harbinger of category crisis, dwells at the gates of difference, polices the borders of the possible; fear of the monster equates really with desire, and the monster stands at the threshold of becoming what it desires (Cohen, 4-20). Out of the seven theories, it is the sixth theory that best illustrates how society characterized Michael Jackson during his lifetime. This theory stresses that ‘fear of the monster is really a kind of desire’ which Cohen describes on how the “monster is continually linked to forbidden practices, in order to normalize and to enforce. The monster also attracts. The same creatures who terrify and interdict can evoke potent escapist fantasies;..” (Cohen, 16-17).
Michael Jackson represents Cohen’s sixth theory perfectly because the entertainer was demonized out of both the public’s fear and desire. Although many people would have loved to have traded lives with Michael, or at the very least, inherited at least an ounce of his talent, they loathed his fearlessness and ability to challenge race and gender roles. First, there were the rumors that he was gay and when that didn’t destroy him, the smear campaign to label him a sex offender began. Through this public roasting of such a forbidden practice as pedophilia, Michael was continually linked. Ultimately, it would be this rumor that would tarnish his career. And yet, there were still the myriad of people who still believed and understood the mystical Michael, the one who made us believe we could fly and become anything we wanted to be. His soft-spoken voice, love of children and animals, and stoic work ethic were qualities that many adults longed to explore, but for fear against being similarly labeled, could only live a life such as his in their fantasies.
Our monster culture is rooted in fear. The Black man is already culturally feared by many. And yet Michael Jackson represented a threat on many sides. Not seen as “black enough or white enough”, the entertainer was dragged through the media frenzy when a young boy falsely accused Michael of having molested him - allegations which was later publicly refuted by the boy and his family, and yet not in enough time to ultimately save him from his untimely demise.
In conclusion, Jeffrey Cohen presents seven theories to define how and why we develop “monsters” in our society. As a society we demonize those that go against the status quo not only because of fear, but because of a secret envy that exists within. It takes a certain courage to go against societal norms, thus the majority seeks to discourage this by making an example out of the individual - hence, the creation of this person as an outcast or the “monster.” Though each of these seven theories of what makes a monster can apply to the late Michael Jackson, it is the sixth theory that accurately describes how society placed a “forbidden” pedaphilic label to the performer, while at the same time, longing to have the courage to live life as he did, boldly and childlike. Cohen introduces us to the ideas of why we demonize those we don’t understand. The harsh labeling is a way of the vast majority to keep those who are different in their “place.”
Works Cited
Cohen, Jeffrey Jerome, ed. Monster theory [electronic resource]: reading culture. U of Minnesota Press, 1996.
