I was at a small party yesterday when one of those awkward silences fell, and, because I am a red-blooded American, I said the only thing I could think of that was certain to reinvigorate the room.
"So, how 'bout that Charlie Sheen?" It worked.
If you have somehow missed the unbelievably entertaining rants actor Charlie Sheen has treated us all to in the past week, what can I say. Catch up.
Now, I would be lying like a dog if I said I hadn't joined in the fontrum, the schadenfreude, the joy at the wrongness of it all. Charlie is having a meltdown, and he's doing it on national, nay - global, television.
And yet, could there be a method to his delightfully public madness? I submit, for your consideration, the following evidence:
- He may have lost a sitcom which he apparently hated as much as the rest of us did, but Sheen has gained over 2 million followers and very, very large endorsement contract on Twitter.
- He has signed a contract for his own show (please God, please let it be a talk show) on Mark Cuban's HD Net channel.
- His name is in the mouth of every meta-show, every network, every studio in and out of Hollywood. Sure, it's followed by expletives, but if it's true that the only bad publicity is no publicity, then on some level the man really is winning.
But more to the point, what is it about Sheen's outrageous behavior that has captured the interest of, well, practically everyone? Anyone who has spent time with a person diagnosed with bipolar personality disorder (a.k.a. manic depression) will recognize Sheen's grandiose diatribes as par for the course during a manic phase. Delusions, paranoia, a general break from reality and insistence that he is the only one who knows what's really going on are far from unusual.
But what is so intriguing, so inviting, so entertaining is the unique situation Sheen is in due to his celebrity status, which has only increased during his wild episodes. Sheen has the resources and the outlet to literally say anything he thinks, to do anything he wants. And who among us can honestly say we have never wished we could do the same?
It is notoriously difficult to get a person in the middle of a manic episode to take medication, and for good reason. Mania feels good. It is exhilarating. It draws attention, as Sheen could clearly attest. Perhaps most importantly, mania is often characterized by a rise in both creativity and fearless self-expression. Indeed, many scholars have theorized a link between bipolar disorder and the expression of creative genius. Sheen may be in good company here. Without the creativity and bravado of people who suffered from bipolar disorder, we would arguably be deprived of masters like Edgar Allen Poe, Earnest Hemingway, and Vincent Van Gogh.
That's not necessarily to say that Sheen is a genius. He seems to be rather on the other end of the spectrum for now. But he is far from alone in reacting to the bipolar diagnosis with disdain and mistrust, saying "And then what? What's the cure? Medicine? Make me like them?" Many people taking mood-stabilizing medications express similar frustration. Medication may calm them, but it also dampens their creativity, their expressiveness, their sense of uniqueness. In order to be accepted, society demands that they tone down erratic behavior, increase their concern about how they are perceived by others, and generally pull it together enough to go with the flow. Perhaps it would be worthwhile to ask ourselves, are we medicating them to improve their quality of life, or our own? Do we want them to act more "normal" because it is in their best interest, or because they are making us uncomfortable?
And when it comes right down to it, who are we to insist that Sheen, or anyone else, change to meet our expectations of who and what they should be? Of course we must intervene when people represent a threat to themselves or others. But Sheen is no threat to us. You and I are just an audience. When it comes down to it, we don't really know what's going on behind the curtain. What we do know is that he is outrageous, provocative, controversial, and highly entertaining. And really, what more can we ask of a pop culture icon?
UPDATE: Why Chris Brown's panties are all in a wad over Sheengate
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