Marilyn spent most of her life without a stable mother, and mental illness tended to run in her family. The first memory Marilyn had as a child, was being suffocated by her grandmother Della (Wolfe 107). Her grandmother’s mental instability led to her mother’s. “When Marilyn was seven her mother was admitted into a mental hospital and diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia" ("Monroe," Notable 1). As a little girl, Marilyn had to watch both her grandmother and mother act in a way that she could not understand.
However, she couldn’t completely get away from her past, getting involved with drugs, and having a mental breakdown. This leaded to her apparent downfall, and eventually her early death. Born Norma Jeane Mortensen on June 1, 1926 in Los Angeles, California. Her mother was Gladys Monroe Baker Mortensen. Gladys was a film cutter, who had her daughter unmarried, which at the time was seen as a not normal, and horrible thing.
15 April 2014. . Taraborell, Randy, I. “Madness of Marilyn.” Dailymail.co, n.p. 2009. Web.
An American Icon is someone whose works, life, and message withstand the test of time. In order to understand Marilyn Monroe’s impact as America’s sex symbol one must have an explanation of her background, an overview of her career as an actress, and an analysis of her critic’s reviews. Marilyn Monroe was born as Norma Jeane Mortensen on june 1, 1926 in Los Angeles, California (“Marilyn Monroe Biography” 1). Norma Jeane was born into unfortunate circumstances, because her mother struggled with mental illness and she never knew her father (Haas 2). Monroe's early childhood was full of "traumatic" experiences which could justify her dependence on psychoanalysis as an adult.
She was sexually assaulted and she got raped when she was 11 years old. She ended up marrying her boyfriend after she got out and grew up. She grew up as going to be a model and dreamt of being a actress. Her career was getting harder because she got married and it hit her acting career a little bit. They got divorced in 1946.
Psychologists say that Marilyn would be diagnosed with comorbid disorders. Her personality was shaped by her behavior, reported thoughts and feelings, and emotions. Her childhood events shaped her personality as an adult, which eventually led to her suicide (Wikipedia, 2014). Marilyn Monroe’s birth name was Norma Jeane Mortensen and was born in Los Angeles on June 1, 1926. Her mother, grandmother, and grandfather all had a history of mental disorders and her great grandfather committed suicide by hanging himself, while her uncle left to run errands and never came back (Spoto, 1993, p. 31, 55).
Marilyn Monroe may be seen as the greatest sex symbol in American history, but that’s not all she was. She had an extremely troubled life from the very beginning, but still managed to put on a brave face for the public eye. Marilyn was a great actress, a singer, as well as one of the most beautiful women alive. Through the tough events that occurred in her life it led her into a downward spiral, making her final few months dark. Marilyn left a legacy though, through many movies, and very public relationships, the nation got to see every side of her.
Although, (subordinating) there were other iconic people during the Twentieth century Marilyn Monroe is arguably one of the most famous women of that time because she changed many people’s lives. While doing some research on (subordinating) her I’ve come to realize that she did change many people’s lives. Marilyn wasn’t afraid to be herself and (coordinating) be who she really was. She showed women that they didn’t have to be afraid to be who they were and taught them that they were beautiful no matter what. In this paper, I will explain how (subordinating) Marilyn Monroe changed people’s lives and became one of the most recognized faces in the world.
The reason for my choice of Marilyn Monroe is that she is known as a successful actress, an icon and somewhat of a legend. She was talented, resplendent and motivated woman. Otherwise, she has a complex personality. She wanted to have a good family because she was lonely and did not know how it was to belong to a real family. Unfortunately, she could not find the true love and have a good family.
“Shortly after birth Norma Jeane (Marilyn Monroe) was sent 16 miles away to foster care” (Peterson online). From the time she was sent away to foster care Marilyn had believed “that her mother did not want her and that she always got in the way” (Woog 7). After years in foster care Marilyn went to live with her mother in 1933. (Woog 8). Throughout her life, Marilyn went through many marriages and many divorces.