{"id":11639,"date":"2018-03-28T01:01:25","date_gmt":"2018-03-27T17:01:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/jacksonwu\/?p=11639"},"modified":"2018-03-29T15:17:07","modified_gmt":"2018-03-29T07:17:07","slug":"greatest-showman-shame","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/jacksonwu\/2018\/03\/28\/greatest-showman-shame\/","title":{"rendered":"What The Greatest Showman teaches us about shame"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

I watched The Greatest Showman<\/a> twice in one week. It is one of the most extraordinary movies I\u2019ve seen in a while (though Wonder<\/a> deserves mention as well). The second time I saw it, I was overwhelmed by the way honor and shame shape the entire narrative.<\/p>\n

The Greatest Show of Shame<\/strong><\/span><\/h1>\n

While I\u2019ll try to limit spoilers, I make no promises.<\/p>\n

The Greatest Showman loosely tells the story of P.T. Barnum (played by Hugh Jackman), the founder of history\u2019s most famous circus show. The movie certainly whitewashes the real man of history. As some have said, he essentially \u201ccreating pop culture\u201d by reinventing promotions and marketing as we know it.\"\"<\/p>\n

If you read of his business exploits, you will likely call his life the greatest show of shamelessness on earth. For him, even bad press was good press. He delighted in public applause. According to the NY Times<\/a>, \u201cIn ill health in 1891, he persuaded a New York newspaper, The Evening Sun, to publish his obituary while he was still alive so he could read it; he died days later at the age of 81.\u201d<\/p>\n

He grew up the son of an inn-keeper and tailor. The movie depicts Barnum\u2019s ambition to rise from the dregs of society; in the quest make something of himself, he uses social \u201coddities\u201d (called \u201cfreaks\u201d by the general public) in various capacities. With sufficient creative liberty, the movie beautifully juxtaposes Barnum\u2019s search for fame and success with the emergence of outcasts to stage performers.<\/p>\n

When Barnum attains the public acclaim he has long desired, he runs the risk of losing his way. Will he then be ashamed of those who are social outcasts and lack the status he now enjoys? He must choose whether he will protect his fame<\/a> or embrace the shame that his performers endure daily.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is Me\u201d<\/strong><\/span><\/h1>\n

At a key point in the story, we hear the movie\u2019s \u201canthem song,\u201d called \u201cThis is Me\u201d. The lyrics and a video are included below.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

I am not a stranger to the dark
\n\u201cHide away\u201d, they say
\n\u201c\u2018Cause we don\u2019t want your broken parts\u201d
\nI\u2019ve learned to be ashamed of all my scars
\n\u201cRun away\u201d, they say
\n\u201cNo one\u2019ll love you as you are\u201d<\/p>\n

But I won\u2019t let them break me down to dust
\nI know that there\u2019s a place for us
\nFor we are glorious<\/p>\n

When the sharpest words wanna cut me down
\nI\u2019m gonna send a flood, gonna drown them out
\nI am brave, I am bruised
\nI am who I\u2019m meant to be, this is me
\nLook out \u2018cause here I come
\nAnd I\u2019m marching on to the beat I drum
\nI\u2019m not scared to be seen
\nI make no apologies, this is me<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The song is a tour through the experience of shame and liberation from it.<\/p>\n