Michael+Jackson

=Michael Jackson= Cassie Wehr

Biography
Michael Joseph Jackson was born on August 29, 1958 in Gary, Indiana. His parents were Joe and Katherine Jackson. Jackson had five brothers, Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon and Randy and three sisters including, Janet, Latoya and Rebbie. By 1964, Joe had formed a band with his five sons, “The Jackson 5.” Joe was very strict in rehearsals with his children and they were often the subjects of brutal physical and emotional abuse. The group would open for acts such as James Brown and finally Gladys Knight introduced them to Berry Gordon of Motown. Soon after, the Jackson 5 recorded Motown hits such as “I Want You Back”, “ABC”, and “Never can Say Goodbye.” In 1976 the Jackson 5 switched from Motown to Epic Records in search of more musical freedom. Since Motown owned the licensing of the brand, Jackson 5, the group recalled themselves “The Jacksons.” As a group the Jackson 5 made a total of six albums. Michael also made his first film debut, playing the scarecrow, in “The Wiz.” On the set of “The Wiz” Michael met Quincy Jones of whom he later collaborate on his first solo album “Off the Wall” which produced four Number 1 singles in the United States. In 1982, his Thriller album became the best selling album of all time. It produced seven number one singles and sold over 50 million copies. In 1984 Michael won eight Grammys for his work on projects, Thriller and E.T. storybook. Starting in the 1970’s Michael had plastic surgery, most notably for his nose and his skin color began to change color due to an illness referred to as vitiligo, where skin pigmentation is destroyed. In 1984, Michael was seriously injured while shooting a commercial for Pepsi. One of the special effects malfunctioned and set his hair on fire. Michael Jackson married twice and his first wife was none other than Elvis Presley’s daughter, Lisa Marie Presley to whom he married in 1993 for 2 years. His second wife was Debbie Rowe and they divorced in 1999 Michael had three children, Paris, Prince and Prince II. In 1993 and 2005 was charged with sexually molesting boys but was later acquitted. Michael Jackson died on June 25, 2009 due to drug- related cardiac arrest. (Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia and jackson)

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Michael Jackson’s personality can be analyzed using the Big 5 Trait Approach.“The trait approach to personality that is supported by a great deal of research and suggests that personality can be captured in five dimensions: Extroversion, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, Neuroticism, and Openness” (Friedman). Michael Jackson is low on the extroversion scale. “The personality dimension that includes enthusiasm, dominance, and sociability; people low on this dimension are considered introverted” (Friedman). He does not want his information publicized for the whole world to see and read about. In his interview with Oprah, Michael was quiet and reserved. For example, when Oprah asked Michael if he was a virgin, he responded with that he considered himself a gentleman, implying that he viewed not disclosing personal and sexual facts about himself as respectful and gentleman-like. He was not talkative and enthusiastic about sharing personal information about his sex life with the world (Interivew with Oprah Part 4).

Michael is high in agreeableness. “The personality dimension that includes friendliness, cooperation, and warmth; people low in this dimension are cold, quarrelsome, and unkind” (Friedman). He is a very friendly person especially with children. In an interview with Oprah, he mentioned that he liked animals and children because of their purity. They don’t judge you, they don’t want anything from you and they just want to be your friend. He also had developed deep friendships with celebrities including, Diana Ross, Elizabeth Taylor and Macaulay Caulkin.

While Michael strived for perfection in his music he is low on the conscientiousness scale. “The personality dimension that includes dependability, cautiousness, organization, and responsibility; people low in this dimension are impulsive, careless, disorderly, and undependable” (Friedman). He acts more on impulse then on cautiousness. Especially in his dancing, in an interview with Oprah Winfrey, Oprah pointed out that he grabs his genitals when performing. Michael claimed that known of it was planned in the performance. Sometimes he got caught up in the emotions behind the music. He also acted on impulsivity when he dangled of his sons over a hotel room balcony when he was an infant. Dangling your son out of a hotel is not considered responsible behavior. (Interview with Oprah: Part 4).

Michael is high on the neuroticism scale. “The personality dimension that includes nervousness, tension, and anxiety; people low in this dimension are emotionally stable, calm and contented” (Friedman). His family and his childhood upbringing did not have an emotionally stable effect on Michael. Growing up he experienced a tremendous amount of tension and anxiety from his father. His father would emotionally and physically beat him. Joe Jackson would call him ugly, and Jackson would vomit just at the sight of his own father (Interview with Oprah Part 3).

Jackson is very high on the openness scale. “The personality dimension that includes imagination, wit, originality, and creativity; people low on this dimension are shallow, plain and simple” (Friedman). Jackson was musically gifted, having been declared the “King of Pop” by Elizabeth Taylor. (Interview with Oprah Part 2) In 1982, he produced the best-selling album of all time Thriller. He is extremely imaginative as he wants to “bring out the child in everyone.” He built the Neverland Ranch which is equipped with candy, magic shows, carnival rides, and film. Jackson worked with the Make a Wish Foundation to bring terminally-ill children every three weeks and he would entertain them with his child-like and glow. Jackson loved giving back to the world, and also worked with the Heal the World Foundation. Within this foundation, the goals for Heal LA section were for the immunization of children, having a mentoring big sister/ big brother program and an education on drug abuse (Interview with Oprah Part 5).

Michael Jackson’s identity was also shaped by his need for achievement which is “the need to succeed on tasks that are set out by society” (Friedman). Jackson rose to the top of music industry after being declared the “King of Pop.” His Thriller album remains the best selling album of all time and became an icon of the pop music industry. It remained number one on the charts for 33 weeks. Michael did not display awards around his house as he never wanted to stop working and there was always something new to accomplish. In his eyes, “great music is immortal.” He believed that he could accomplish anything that he set his mind to and that “no star was ever too far out of reach.” By gaining success in the music industry and charities by his need for achievement, he was trying to satisfy his need for affiliation as well. Michael was trying to compensate for the lack of childhood friendships in his youth by trying to gain the approval of the children who visited his ranch. (Jackson)

Michael Jackson's personality can be analyzed using the Neo- Analytyc and Ego Aspects of Personality. Despised Self is “Karen Horney’s concept of the part of personality consisting of perceptions of our inferiority and shortcomings, often based on others’ negative evaluations of us and our resulting helplessness” (Friedman). Michael’s father exposed his children to repeated physical and emotional abuse. He would refer to Michael as ugly and would make fun of his nose and facial blemishes (Interview with Oprah Part 3). The abuse motivated Michael to undergo various plastic surgeries, altering his body image and most notoriously his nose. He was striving for “perfection striving”, which according to Adler, “is an attempt to reach fictional goals by eliminating his or her perceived flaws” (Friedman).

Basic Anxiety is “a child’s fear of being alone, helpless and insecure. It arises from problems in the child’s relations with his or her parents, such as lack of warmth, stability, respect or involvement” (Friedman). Michael Jackson strived to make his father proud of him and didn’t want there to be any hostile exchanges between them. In an Oprah interview where he admits that his father used to abuse him but still wishes to gain approval from a parent just as a little child would, he is quoted as saying, “Sorry Joseph, please don’t be mad at me.” In a way, being high on the neurotic scale, Jackson always tried to make others happy, instead of himself, whether it was trying to make his father happy or the rest of the world entertained. He was in the first of the three approaches in which Horney names “Moving Toward People.” By starting a family Jackson was seeking to gain the love and warmth that he never experienced from his own father (Interview with Oprah Part 3).

Michael Jackson was caught in the Identity vs. Role Confusion as many child stars are. Michael was trying to establish himself as a solo artist and break away from the Jackson 5 mold in which he gained fame and notoriety from. He never had the opportunity to be a kid. He was denied simple childhood experiences like going to the park, going to the movies and having sleepovers with your friends (Interview with Oprah Part 2). This leads to an “identity crisis” in which one is “uncertain about one’s abilities, associations, and future goals” (Friedman). Jackson being unsure about who he was an individual was not able to develop intimate relationships with others. He had two failed marriages of which neither lasted for more than a couple of years. His relationships were based on companionship rather than intimacy. (Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia)

According to Adler’s Inferiority Complex and the Importance of Society, Michael addressed three critical social issues in his life. The first task he faced was occupational, which involves “pursuing a career that makes one feel worthwhile” (Friedman). From Michael’s early days performing in the Jackson 5, it was evident that he would have a successful solo music career. He used his fame to give back to world, and especially to children’s charities. Michael struggled with societal tasks, “creating social networks and friendships” (Friedman). He started performing in the Jackson 5 when he was five years old and had been in the public eye until his death. Instead he formed friendships with other child celebrities of who could relate to his societal task struggles, including Brooke Shields (Michael Jackson Memorial) The last tasks were love tasks, where people are “finding a suitable life-partner” (Friedman). His difficulties in establishing societal tasks affected his ability to successfully accomplish the love tasks. Michael had two failed marriages that could better be described as friendships rather than romantic relationships.

Discussion
Michael Jackson was an international icon for the pop music industry. His personality can be best described using the Neo- Analytic and Ego Aspects of Personality and the Trait and Skill Aspects of Personality. From the time Jackson was 5 years old, he was a figure in the public eye. He never had a normal childhood and was unable to partake in experiences that most children take for granted, like going to the park and the movies with friends. As Jackson states, he had to “create a world behind the gates.” Michael was also nicknamed The Gloved One, Wacko Jacko, King of Pop, and MJ. (internet movie datebase). Michael’s signature dance became the moonwalk that debuted in 1983 on an ABC special of Motown 25: Yesterday, Today and Forever during a performance of Billie Jean. Michael was often proclaimed as a “modern-day Peter Pan” as the boy who never grew up. He loved the purity and selflessness of children of how they don’t expect anything from you, they just want to be your friend. Michael accomplished a successful career even though suffering from constant physical and emotional abuse as a child but managed to make a profound impact on the music industry as the "King of Pop. (Michael Jackson Interviews with Oprah).