The Charlie Sheen effect and America’s obsession with unhinged celebrities – The Sophian
Charlie Sheen’s most current state of meltdown – it does not do his almost constant state of meltdown justice to define it in the singular – was most strongly exemplified during his recent and outrageous interview on The Alex Jones Radio Show. The entire interview was a parade of Sheen’s blatant absurdity and state of insanity. About his famous “goddesses,” his two live-in girlfriends – at least one of whom is a former porn star, though she is not currently a “goddess” – Sheen exclaimed: “The goddesses?…Let me just say this about the goddesses: I don’t believe the term is good enough…But when you’re bound by these terrestrial descriptions, you must use the best choice available, right?” Sheen ended the interview with a disturbing message: “I’m done…It’s on…I ain’t hidin’. And if you’re a part of my family, I will love you violently. If you infiltrate and try to hurt my family, I will murder you violently.”
Oh boy. Terrestrial descriptions and threats of violent murder? Clearly these are not the thoughts of a man who is all together mentally – to say the least. Yet America is fascinated with his every word, and as a result he has started his very own nationwide “tour.” Though the exact definition of this tour remains unclear, the attention has encouraged him all the more to speak out about his outrageous ideas and “values.”
In the Psychology Today article, “Seeing by Starlight: Celebrity Obsession,” author Carlin Flora addresses the mentality of celebrity obsession: “Celebrities are fascinating because they live in a parallel universe…The real celebrity spinmeister is our own mind, which tricks us into believing the stars are…our social intimates. Celebrity culture plays to all of our innate tendencies.” We absorb information about celebrities, developing favorites for whom we root to succeed and hoping for failure for those that we do not like.
Charlie Sheen is obviously unwell. Though he currently claims sobriety, years of drug abuse can only have further addled his personality. His absolute delusion, as exemplified by his claims to special powers and overall disintegration in the public eye, is fully apparent. Yet our celebrity-infused culture is interested in him now more than ever.
A large part of human nature is a subconscious fascination with other humans’ pain, mortality and general misfortune; this explains why cars slow down to get a good look at horrible car accidents on the highway, why the Jackass series has enjoyed such fame and why the American public is currently captivated by Charlie Sheen. The only thing more interesting than a successful celebrity is a successful celebrity going through hardship or embroiled in controversy. On the apparent American “glee” at Sheen’s breakdown, John Doyle of The Globe and Mail nicely sums up a few theories he has encountered: “It’s suggested that some people – mainly men – live vicariously through watching Sheen party on and on…It’s suggested that seeing celebrities screwing up makes us feel deliciously superior to them. It has also been suggested that keeping tabs on Charlie Sheen gives us all something to talk about at a time when people enjoy very little in the way of a shared experience.”