(2) Marilyn’s mom was Gladys Monroe Baker Mortenson. (6) When Marilyn was born her mom was sent to an institution for mental health on behalf of her being diagnosed with paranoia schizophrenia. (6) Marilyn says “I knew I belonged to the public and to the world, not because I was talented or even beautiful, but because had never belonged to anything or anyone else.”(8) This quote reflects on how she was treated and also how she felt when she was in foster care. When Marilyn was a child she felt unwanted, she would try to replace her mother and father through marriages and attaching herself to her foster families. (9) When Marilyn was young she was molested by her mother’s new husband.
Monroe's early childhood was full of "traumatic" experiences which could justify her dependence on psychoanalysis as an adult. It is rumored that Monroe's earliest memory was of her mother attempting to smother her with a pillow. Growing up, Monroe spent much of her time in foster care and in an orphanage (“Marilyn Monroe Biography” 2). Monroe was deeply affected by the lack of stability in her childhood. Monroe never felt she belonged anywhere and she was sexually assaulted as a young girl (“Biography” 1).
Gladys was a film cutter, who had her daughter unmarried, which at the time was seen as a not normal, and horrible thing. Marilyn Monroe had to face a difficult childhood to become the sex symbol she is known today. She never knew her father, and her mother, Gladys had psychotic issues, and was sent to live in a mental hospital. Marilyn said that earliest memories of her mother was her trying to suffocate her with a pillow. This caused her to live most of her life in a foster home, or an orphanage.
pag.) She got her start in the movies at the age of three and soon progressed to super stardom. (Biography for Shirley Temple n. pag.) Fans loved her as she was bright, bouncy and cheerful in her films and they ultimately bought millions of dollars worth of products that had her likene... ... middle of paper ... ...hy for Shirley Temple n.
She had been dealing with her mental health while trying to maintain her career and it ended up in a tragedy. Marilyn was dismissed from working for Fox because of her change in personality, due to her ill mental health, which likely aided in her untimely death (Wills). Despite this Monroe left her family a way to be cared for, “In her will, Monroe set up a trust to care for her mother until she died. She left money to her half-sister who Monroe didn't even know existed until she was 12” (“Monroe’s Legacy”). She was a skilled actress and a kind woman, even if she was marketed as a purely sexual star.
She never knew father and her mother tried to kill her when she was in was in her crib and by smothering her with a pillow. She spent most of her life in a foster care. In 1937 a family friend and her husband took care of her for many year because they took her. At 7 year old Marilyn Monroe went back to the orphanage at 7 years old. She was sexually assaulted and she got raped when she was 11 years old.
If we look at the celebrities today, we can find many imitators of Marilyn Monroe: Madonna, Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan, and even Lady Gaga. They do this not only because of marketing and media needs, but also because people today still “worship” the image Monroe created. A half-century has passed since Marilyn Monroe's death, so why is she still relevant today? As time has passed, Marilyn Monroe's image is becoming even more meaningful and valuable. Think about the image she has created, the main point I want to study is: how does a woman who passed away at thirty-six years old, after starring in only a handful of movies, has such on the impact on women, especially young women, in the 21st century?
Madonna took women and sex through a quantum leap and her unique style and flair has been imprinted on pop culture forever. Besides creating major trends in music she was responsible for many fashion statements throughout the eighties and nineties (Gandee 307). Up until 1982, female sexuality was largely a suggestion of cleavage and tight-fitting jeans, then Madonna showed up in 1983 wearing her Victoria's Secrets on the outside, and all hell broke loose. Madonna Ciccone was born in 1958 near Motown, to an engineer father and homemaker mother, the eldest of eight children. The one thing baby Madonna wanted more than anything was to become famous.
They were models for black success to many African Americans. (Simon & Schuster) Diana Ross finally left the group in 1969 when she decided to become a solo artist and act in films.... ... middle of paper ... ...983 and it rose to success slowly. Her second album “Like a Virgin, which hit No. 1 on the Billboard Chart and went platinum within a month.” (Madonna) She had her first tour called The Virgin Tour and had 17 songs consecutively be in the Top 10 on the Billboard Chart. She married her first husband Sean Penn which lasted a short time because of domestic abuse issues.
Marilyn left a legacy though, through many movies, and very public relationships, the nation got to see every side of her. Her beauty made her a goddess, but her faults made her human. Norma Jean Baker was born to Gladys Baker and an unknown father, in 1926 in Los Angeles, California (“Biography” 1). Not even two weeks after she was born she was put in a foster home when her mother was institutionalized because she was mentally ill, and consequently she couldn't take care of her daughter (Henriksen). Soon after going through numerous orphanages and foster homes she was adopted by Grace McKee, which was her mother’s best friend (Biography par.