Every day, the tragedies that happen to some average people do not make the news while the mundane things that happen to celebrities do. When tragic news is publicized, it is often sensationalized into a story that makes the victim into a kind of celebrity. The characters being presented by the media draw people in, but it seems to be that the real roots of the issue surrounding any given story tend to be lost on the public.
I have thought about this lately because of two stories I have read on the Internet in the past week. The stories of the death of actor Philip Seymour Hoffman due to heroin overdose, as well as the allegations against acclaimed director Woody Allen that he sexually molested his adopted daughter during her childhood both have one common theme: Both stories tell of tragedies befalling celebrities, and this sparks interest from the public that falls short of a real sense of the significance that the stories hold.
Both of the reactions to these stories seem to focus heavily on their main characters, as opposed to on the issues they deal with. The story about Woody Allen is actually an open letter written by his daughter herself, detailing the abuse he allegedly inflicted upon her as well as the psychological torture she has felt over the years seeing Woody Allen praised all over the media and Hollywood elite. The general response is an incredibly polarizing argument of did he or didn’t he do it? Those who feel touched by the saddening letter say he must have done it, and those who admire him say he was not found guilty in court, so he must not be guilty.
As much as Woody Allen’s daughter, Dylan Farrow, would probably appreciate people taking her seriously and standing with her against her father, I think that the other main points she made in the letter are more important than question of “did he or didn’t he?” I don’t personally feel like I could say one way or another if Woody Allen is a guilty man, because I know almost nothing about his character or the details of his family’s home life. What I can say is that I agree with something Farrow pointed out in her letter: His celebrity status has allowed him to keep a cult following despite the horrible allegations against him, and women who speak out about rape or sexual abuse are often more marginalized if the person whom they are accusing is very powerful.
How the questions raised by her letter apply to our own lives is much more important than how they apply to Woody Allen, because most of us do not know Allen.
The same can be said for the story about Phillip Seymour Hoffman. The reaction to this seems to be questions of, “How did he get back into drugs after being clean?” and tributes saying why he will be missed by Hollywood. It is much more important to ask how anyone relapses into drugs. The most outrageous thing I have seen is stories about how police in New York City are now on a hunt to arrest the dealer who supplied him. I guess it’s nice to hear a heroin dealer will be arrested, but does anyone realize the number of people using heroin in New York City? The same type of zealous attitude should be applied to tragedy befalling any citizen, not just Philip Seymour Hoffman.
I completely understand having a place in your heart for famous artists who are inspiring and deliver movies, music, or stories that become part of your life. However, focusing on them as if they are the only people who have issues lets people convince themselves of just that, and it is really important to remember how many regular people suffer from the same traumas.