Eminem Biography Research Paper
Emaan Uppal
Mr. Schuttinger
English 9
April 18, 2013
Eminem: Personal Life versus Career When you hear the name Eminem, you picture a skinny, tattoo-covered white guy rapping about drugs, rape, and violence; he has created this image for himself, and tends to hide away the other parts of himself. His alter ego, Slim Shady, is the complete and utter worst possible version of himself – he is completely uncensored and always speaks his mind. The artist behind the music is Marshall Mathers, whose life was not so easy, especially growing up. He had a troubled childhood and an equally troubled adulthood. The frequent changes in his life heavily impacted his work and the style of his music. Marshall Bruce Mathers III was born on October 17, 1972 in Kansas City, Missouri. His mother, Debbie Nelson, was only 15 at the time. On the topic of his seventy-three hour-long birth, she claimed, “his medical care was so poor that she nearly died in the process” (Lane 11). Debbie had married an older man, Marshall Mathers Jr., who ended up leaving six months after the baby was born, which explains many of the heated lyrics that Eminem has written concerning his father. Debbie was on the verge of being completely broke, so their family of two had to relocate many times over the course of Eminem’s childhood. Because of this, he was often lonely as a child, did not have many friends, and was bullied. In addition to this, his mother, who was undoubtedly unprepared for parenthood, often beat and abused him. It is rumored Eminem’s mother was a victim of Munchausen syndrome by proxy, which is a medical term for when a mother purposely worsens the condition of her child to gain pity for herself. Eminem’s father remained absent throughout his childhood and teenage years; the young Eminem would write letters to his father in the hopes of contacting him, but these were always returned unanswered. Because of this endless neglect as a child, Marshall carried much of his resentment
Mr. Schuttinger
English 9
April 18, 2013
Eminem: Personal Life versus Career When you hear the name Eminem, you picture a skinny, tattoo-covered white guy rapping about drugs, rape, and violence; he has created this image for himself, and tends to hide away the other parts of himself. His alter ego, Slim Shady, is the complete and utter worst possible version of himself – he is completely uncensored and always speaks his mind. The artist behind the music is Marshall Mathers, whose life was not so easy, especially growing up. He had a troubled childhood and an equally troubled adulthood. The frequent changes in his life heavily impacted his work and the style of his music. Marshall Bruce Mathers III was born on October 17, 1972 in Kansas City, Missouri. His mother, Debbie Nelson, was only 15 at the time. On the topic of his seventy-three hour-long birth, she claimed, “his medical care was so poor that she nearly died in the process” (Lane 11). Debbie had married an older man, Marshall Mathers Jr., who ended up leaving six months after the baby was born, which explains many of the heated lyrics that Eminem has written concerning his father. Debbie was on the verge of being completely broke, so their family of two had to relocate many times over the course of Eminem’s childhood. Because of this, he was often lonely as a child, did not have many friends, and was bullied. In addition to this, his mother, who was undoubtedly unprepared for parenthood, often beat and abused him. It is rumored Eminem’s mother was a victim of Munchausen syndrome by proxy, which is a medical term for when a mother purposely worsens the condition of her child to gain pity for herself. Eminem’s father remained absent throughout his childhood and teenage years; the young Eminem would write letters to his father in the hopes of contacting him, but these were always returned unanswered. Because of this endless neglect as a child, Marshall carried much of his resentment
Cited: "About Eminem." MTV. Web. 26 Mar 2013. . Lane, Stephanie. Eminem. Farmington Hills: Lucent Books, 2004. 9-87, 96-97. Print. M. L. Elrick. “Eminem’s Dirty Secrets.” Salon.com. Web. 26 March 2013. . Reece, Rod. "Eminem - Biography." IMDb. Web. 26 Mar 2013. .