Eminem Research Paper

Marshall Bruce Mathers III, better known by his stage name “Eminem” (Eminem), is an American hip hop artist whose controversial lyrics and outlandish music style brought him great fame beginning in the late 1990’s and into the mid-2000’s. He is widely considered
4one of the greatest rappers of all-time based both on his lyrical and musical ability as well as his ability to create very popular, commercially successful songs and albums. In fact, he is the most recognized hip hop artist in history in terms of accolades such as the Grammy Awards, of which he has won fifteen. Eminem’s rise to fame was filled with controversy, however. His lyrics have contained elements of extreme homophobia, expressed a hatred for women and political figures, and
Thus, it seems fair to assert that Eminem has not found a proper balance at this current stage of his development, under Erikson’s model. C. Describing Marshall “Eminem” Mathers Using the Big Five Factor Theory While I believe Erikson’s model does the best job of describing the behaviors and personality of Eminem, it is also useful to look at Eminem through the lens of the so- called “Big Five Factor Theory”. In terms of “Extraversion,” it seems from Eminem’s childhood and adolescent years that he was, as the textbook describes, quite low- scoring. Although introverted and quiet to the outside world, his mind was constantly racing with thoughts of rap lyrics and rhyme patterns and this was probably due to a higher level of “Neuroticism” mixed with a high level of “Conscientiousness,” at least as it regarded his music career (because as noted above, he was a very poor student). On the factors of “Agreeableness,” and “Openness,” I believe Eminem to be low- scoring and high-scoring, respectively. From his awkward and somewhat dysfunctional relationship with his mother, along with his being the victim of bullying and discrimination from his peers, it was very likely that Eminem would develop a suspicious and irritable personality, making him a low-scorer in terms of “Agreeableness.” Further, the anger displayed in his lyrics suggests a somewhat ruthless personality as well. In terms of “Openness,” it’s quite clear from his musical talent and success, along with his vulnerable and very introspective lyrics, that Eminem is a very high-scorer in this factor of the Big Five model. He is incredibly creative, imaginative, and his different types of musical sound suggest that he also prefers variety in his professional life at the very least. D. Critically Evaluating the Different Theories as Applied to Eminem I find Erikson’s model to do