The Documentary that Shocked Us From the Perspective of One Person
In the past few months, the Me Too Movement has somewhat died down. This past week, the documentary “Leaving Neverland”, the documentary about two men who claim that Michael Jackson sexually abused them as children, surfaced, and controversy and debate has erupted. Wesley Morris who published the article February 28, 2019, accurately sums up the documentary whilst giving his own opinions on the topic of grooming and sexual abuse for male victims his article “Michael Jackson “Cast” a Spell. “Leaving Neverland” Breaks It”. His main point is, after something like the Me Too Movement, that we must separate the art from the artist and believe the accusers. Morris begins the article by discussing how most of America viewed Michael Jackson as this “God-like” figure, an icon, but the documentary caused him to only see Jackson as a pedophile. Morris then goes into detail about the film, describing what moments made him feel disturbed, everything from the photos showing the age gap between a 30 year-old man and a 10 year-old child, to a very graphic descriptions of what Wade Robson and James Safechuck were forced to do as children. The author ends with the question, “where does the cancellation begin?” Michael Jackson was such a huge influence on music today, do we stop listening to the music or do we just go on and separate the art from the artist? The author brings up this concept in reference to not only himself, but the other fans who are struggling to believe Wade and James for their claims.
Let’s Stop Seeing Icons As More Than Human
In the Me Too Movement, many people have been shocked by who has been accused of what. This has been especially the case in this Michael Jackson documentary, people are having trouble seeing Jackson, their idol in such an evil light. Wesley Morris provoked feelings of sadness and anger towards someone who should no longer be seen as an icon. While doing this, he still accurately describes the documentary and the allegations. Through the uses of logos and pathos, the writer accomplishes to get his main point across to his audience because he uses specific language to provoke emotions and information that can be confirmed.
Wesley Morris’ Use of Pathos is Powerful
Something that really stood out to me in this article is the way Wesley Morris describes how the masses viewed Michael Jackson. Right off the bat, he starts with pathos, elegantly he describes the star power that Jackson had and how we are mesmerized by it, almost like a spell. In the first paragraph he begins with, “We ate it up. Just the odyssey of his nose from bulb to nub seemed somehow like a people’s journey…Michael Jackson won our awe, our pity, our bewilderment, our identification, our belief that he was a metaphor, an allegory, a beacon, a caveat — for, of, about America.” Wesley Morris, without trying to make fans feel too bad, is basically saying we’re delusional and it’s time to erase these illusions because it is all just a magic trick. The language he uses makes Michael Jackson sound magical, it specifically describes how his audiences see him. In the third paragraph, he says, “you run out of hooks to hang things on,” for Morris that was Jackson’s alleged pedophilia. Seeing these allegations breaks the spell, it’s time to stop seeing him as an idol and more of a human. The part of the article that sort of broke me was the frustration Morris feels in describing the incident with Jackson, Safechuck, and the ring. It’s a part that provoked anger in me because it shows how many people turned these stories of a grown man and a child into something innocent. Some may see this as intimidating but this is needed Morris angrily shames some by stating, “if you partook in the steady diet of fluffy news stories about Jackson and some little boy…and thought mostly that they were cute or banal and that Jackson just related to kids as kids…then perhaps you’ll find Safechuck’s memory of the ring particularly shattering.” These words should make the reader feel shameful for being on Jackson’s side, make them feel guilty if they haven’t been able to believe the victims because Morris once again uses specific language, such as “diet of fluffy news stories”. In other words, the world should feel guilting for believing the media that showed Jackson as some sweet big kid.
The Need for Logos
A majority of this article is written with pathos, but Morris also uses logos. The use of logos is useful because even just descriptions of the documentary are disturbing enough to sway the reader. Morris describes one scene, “I’ve seen Wade Robson, a doll-faced Michael Jackson impersonator from Brisbane, Australia, say he was 7 when Michael began abusing him, describing a grim scenario in which he was naked on all fours at the edge of the bed, poised — trapped — between his idol, who was masturbating to him, and a cutout of Peter Pan.” This is accurate information said by Wade Robson in the film. Morris brings up information that any viewer can confirm Robson actually spoke about. In other parts of the article Morris uses this technique of highlighting certain parts, in order to share the importance of the film to the audience.
Wesley Morris is able to make his point clear and wants to sway the reader through pathos and logos. The only thing missing in the article was the author’s ethos. I would have liked to read more about how Morris was a fan, I feel like it was the only thing unclear in the article.
Bibliography
Morris, Wesley. “Michael Jackson Cast a Spell. ‘Leaving Neverland’ Breaks It.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 28 Feb. 2019, www.nytimes.com/2019/02/28/arts/television/michael-jackson-leaving-neverland.html?module=inline.
