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Sylvester Stallone: A Psychological Case Study
Part 1: Introduction and Biography
Michael Sylvester Stallone was born into an impoverished family in an area known as
Hell’s Kitchen, New York, on July 6, 1946. How does a child with the odds seemingly against
him since birth, grow up to forge an empire by creating two characters “Rocky” and “Rambo”?
These are two of the most well-known, strongest characters in the entertainment industry
beginning in the 1970’s and continuing on today. “Rocky” and “Rambo” come from the mind of
a man who once was an abused, isolated, lonely child. Let’s explore the socio-emotional, socio-
cultural and evolutionary forces that drove him to overcome the obstacles in his way and become
the successful screenwriter, actor, producer, father and husband he is today.
Mr. Stallone was the first born son of an Italian immigrant, Frank, whose occupation was
a hairdresser, and Jacqueline, a chorus girl. There were complications during his birth at a charity
hospital in New York, which led to the use of forceps. Unfortunately, the forceps severed a facial
nerve which resulted in a droopy eye and lip on one side of his face. This injury was also the
cause of a speech impediment. All of these things put together resulted in much teasing, bullying
and abuse by not only his peers, but also emotional and physical abuse at home by his own
father. The result of this mistreatment was that Sylvester spent most of his time alone as a child.
Stallone is quoted as telling the New York Times, “I was sickly and even had rickets. My
personality was abhorrent to other children, so I enjoyed my own company and did a lot of
fantasizing”. (Newsmakers, December 16, 1994.) He turned to comic books for comfort and
entertainment. He would imagine himself inside the comic books as the larger than life hero who
is able to save the damsel, the world, or whoever or whatever the evil being was attempting to
destroy. Another quote from Sylvester discussing his isolated childhood is: “At a very, very,
early age, I was drawn toward these kind of mythic characters, nothing entrenched in reality at
all. I just loved the idea. I’d have fantasies that if something goes wrong in school today, I can
run in and save something.” (The New York Times, February 23, 2016.)
He spent some of his early years in foster care due to his parents’ difficult relationship,
his parents divorced when he was 11. He lived with his father in New York and Washington,
D.C. until he was 15. During this time he was in and out of schools being labeled as a troubled
youth. At the age of 15, Sylvester determined he could not endure the physical and emotional
abuse by his father any longer. He moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to live with his mother
and step-father. The move did not solve his schooling issues and he continued to struggle with
his studies. According to a story in Sports Illustrated, Stallone said: “I don’t want to sound like I
am crying in my soup, but I was segregated emotionally. I was an anathema, a total
disappointment to my parents, coaches and girlfriends.” (Newsmakers, December 16, 1994.)
He began working out in order to build a body that was strong and resembled the heroes
of his comic books and fantasies. There is a line in Rocky that was actually a comment that
Sylvester’s father had made to him; “You weren’t born with much of a brain, so you’d better
develop your body.” (Newsmakers, December 16, 1994.) He did eventually attend a special high
school for teen-agers that had problems in the regular school system. It was during this time that
the efforts he had put forth building his body began to pay off for him. He was introduced to
playing sports and found he was better at sports than he was at schoolwork.
Due to his troubled school years and the not very impressive grades he attained, he had
difficulty getting into college. Eventually he was able to obtain a scholarship to The American
College of Switzerland. While there he elected to study drama and was able to earn a lead role in
the play “Death of a Salesman”. It was in this role that he received a standing ovation and at that
point decided this is what he was good at and that he was going to be an actor. He dropped out of
college just shy of graduation determined to succeed in theater.
He worked multiple odd jobs to pay the bills while he continued writing screenplays and
getting small acting roles. He met Sasha Czak at one of these jobs and they married and moved
to California so he could work on selling his screenplays. During this time he also diligently
worked on improving his speech in order to enhance his odds for gaining roles as an actor. He
would tape himself reading novels and play them back to pinpoint the areas of speech he needed
to continue to work on.
His big break came while watching a boxing match on television between Muhammad
Ali and Chuck Wepner, “The Greatest” vs. a virtual unknown. He was so inspired by the spirit
and personal dignity displayed by the underdog that he used him for the model of Rocky Balboa.
Hollywood was interested in the story, however, they wanted a big name star to portray Rocky.
Sylvester stood his ground, even though he was penniless with a pregnant wife, he would not sell
the screen play until producers agreed to allow him to play the hero in the story. The story that
his life had been preparing him for since birth. This was the beginning of the riches, in the rags to
riches story of Sylvester Stallone.
This paper will attempt to explore the influences in his life using examples in three
psychological theories. I will be analyzing his life using the socio-cultural theory, which is how a
person’s surroundings impact their life; socio-emotional theory, how social experiences, whether
positive or negative, affect individuals; and the evolutionary theory, which is described as
emotions exist because they serve an adaptive role (fight or flight).
Part 2: Summary of Theoretical Perspectives
Sociocultural theory grew from the work of seminal psychologist Lev Vygotsky, who
believed that parents, caregivers, peers and the culture at large were responsible for the
development of higher order functions. According to Vygotsky: "Every function in the child's
cultural development appears twice: first, on the social level, and later, on the individual level;
first, between people (interpsychological) and then inside the child (intrapsychological). This
applies equally to voluntary attention, to logical memory, and to the formation of concepts. All
the higher functions originate as actual relationships between individuals. (Cherry, K. 2016)
Sylvester Stallone was born into poverty in the 1940’s. This impacted his life in many
ways from birth on. He was born in a charity hospital and due to complications at birth suffered
injuries that impacted him from that day on. According to an article titled “BULLETT TO THE
HEAD / 30 JAN 2013) he was delivered “by a rough-handed medical intern”. One could
surmise that this injury may have been avoided had he been delivered by an experienced and
paid for obstetrician.
The culture in the home he grew up in was abusive and neglectful, with very little adult
supervision or praise. His parents had a tumultuous relationship and Sylvester was placed in
foster homes in his earliest years. “The immediate emotional effects of abuse and neglect—
isolation, fear, and an inability to trust—can translate into lifelong psychological consequences,
including low self-esteem, depression, and relationship difficulties.” (Child Welfare Information
Gateway, 2013.) The effects of the abuse and neglect manifested in Sylvester having difficulty
creating relationships. He spent the majority of his childhood isolated and alone. Unable to make
friends and choosing to fight to keep his self-esteem intact. As an adult he had multiple
relationships and married and divorced twice before marrying his current wife.
Another cultural aspect in Sylvester’s life was that he was raised in a poor, desperate area
of New York, known as Hell’s Kitchen. He and his brother had to learn to fight to survive in the
dangerous neighborhood where they were often left alone while their parents worked long hours.
Again, resulting in mistrust and difficulty creating relationships in his life.
Erik Erikson was an ego psychologist who developed one of the most popular and
influential theories of development. While his theory was influenced by psychoanalyst Sigmund
Freud's work, Erikson's theory centered on psychosocial development rather than psychosexual
development. Our sense of personal identity is shaped by our experiences and interactions with
others, and it is this identity that helps guide our actions, beliefs, and behaviors and we grow and
develop throughout life. According to Erik Erikson there are eight stages of social development
from birth to old age. (Cherry, K. 2016.)
As a result of his droopy eye, lip and speech impediment, Sylvester was bullied, teased
and abused as a child. He did not excel academically either, which was another conflict
according to Erikson. The basic conflict for ages six to eleven years is industry vs. inferiority. It
is important for a child to learn to cope with new social and academic demands. Success leads to
a sense of competence, while failure results in feelings of inferiority. (Cherry, K. 2016.)
To cope with the isolation and loneliness he felt he imagined himself as a super hero.
Often donning a superhero costume under his school clothes to aid in getting him through
another tortuous day.
The adolescence stage, from ages twelve to eighteen years is a time where a child
struggles with identity vs. role confusion within social relationships. Teens need to develop a
sense of self and personal identity. Success leads to an ability to stay true to yourself, while
failure leads to role confusion and a weak sense of self. It was at the age of fifteen that Sylvester
began working out to build his body to reflect a body of superhero status. This was also when he
moved in with his mother and step-father which resulted in attendance at a new school. With his
stronger body he was able to participate in sports and learned that he was actually good at this.
Needless to say this had a positive impact on his social life and his identity in the world.
Another stage in Erickson’s theory of development is young adulthood, which includes
the ages of nineteen to forty years old. The conflict in this stage is intimacy vs. isolation. Young
adults need to form intimate, loving relationships with other people. Success leads to strong
relationships, while failure results in loneliness and isolation. It was at this stage in Sylvester’s
life that he went to college and found his niche as an actor while studying drama. He also met
and married his first wife with whom he had two sons, they later divorced. He was married and
divorced again, before marrying his current wife of 19 years.
According to the evolutionary theory of emotion, our emotions exist because they serve
an adaptive role. Emotions motivate people to respond quickly to stimuli in the environment,
which helps improve the chances of success and survival. Feelings of fear compel people to
either fight or flee the source of danger. (Cherry, K. 2016)
Sylvester learned to adapt his actions and emotions at an early age. For example; when he
was picked on and bullied at grammar school, he stopped attempting to fit in and make friends
and went to the safe place in his mind filled with super heroes and bold action. He befriended
himself and created a world in his mind that took him away from the painful emotions that arose
when at school.
As he moved into his teen years, he began body building as a new way to defend himself
from the taunting and abuse by schoolmates. He could now fight back and this allowed him to
build self-respect.
He continued to work on himself and search for the talent or skill he had that would allow
him to feel successful. We all innately crave the need to find our niche and be successful in life.
Part 3: Theories and Behavior Outcomes
Sylvester never forgot the cultural environment of his younger years. He has spent many
years of his life trying to prove he is somebody. According to UXL Biographies (2011), Stallone
told Sport Illustrated that Rocky was about “pride, reputation, and not being another bum from
the neighborhood.”
His relationship with his father was not good due to the environment he was raised in.
Being both physically and emotionally abused as a child by his father was not something that
could be easily overcome. Sylvester told “Sports Illustrated: “I wouldn’t say I was abused, but I
was never praised”. (UXL Biographies, 2011.)
Being shuffled between foster care and his parents also made it difficult to trust or have a
feeling of safety as a child. This continued into adulthood where it was difficult for him to stay
with one woman. He had multiple affairs while married to his first wife prior to divorcing. He
had no positive relationships to mirror or learn from.
The socio-emotional aspect is closely tied in with the socio-cultural aspect in Sylvester’s
world. Not only was he raised in a poverty stricken area, he also had anomalies that made others
tease and bully him. Because of this he did not have many friends and used his imagination to
cope. The belief of good vs. evil never left him. This was evident in his Rambo movies. Stallone
told Cosmopolitan: “My intention was just to have an evil opponent to play against.” (UXL
Biographies, 2011)
Because he was kicked out of multiple schools it was even more difficult to forge
friendships or relationships with his peers. He would not be in a school long enough to even start
to get emotionally close to anyone.
Finally as he grew to adulthood he did find activities that he was good at and received
praise for. He began to have positive feelings about his life, and himself, which helped him to
continue to fight for the life he wanted. Because of this stage he wrote his screenplays, one of
which would bring him to his big break and change his life forever.
With his basic needs as a child barely being met, the innate traits that are in all of us due
to evolution did present. When he was very young, rather than stand his ground and attempt to
make friends with the children that bullied him at school, we can assume he chose the “flight”
option by hiding out at home with comic books and his imagination. This served him well in the
end as he was able to use his imagination to create characters that would remain in the public eye
for years to come.
Since he did not receive a lot of praise, love or positive attention he acted out by fighting
and received negative attention for his bad behavior. No matter that much of this was due to
instincts to defend himself when being attacked by others. Again, this led to him building his
body into a strong, reliable tool that he used in many ways. Including acting in the movies as
Rocky and Rambo. Had he not been as large a physical presence he would not have fit either
role.
The basic drive to succeed is what did not allow Sylvester to stop when he was told no.
Many people would have given up years before he did, becoming depressed and blaming failure
on his life circumstances. This evolutionary drive pushed him to continue to work towards his
goals.
Part 4: Criticism of Biases and Ethical Concerns
While researching many biographical articles on Sylvester Stallone I noted there were
many different viewpoints regarding the successes vs. failures. People have different beliefs and
viewpoints and tend to relate the story based upon these biases and limitations.
In many of the articles they mention that he was in and out of schools and was not a good
student. This could be interpreted by the reader that Sylvester was not intelligent. One article
started out putting that misconception to rest at the beginning. Stating in part: It’s too easy to
surmise that the man might not be a mental giant. But such assumptions could not be farther
from the truth. During an interview the Bagger was repeatedly struck by Mr. Stallone’s wry self-
awareness and verbal dexterity. (The New York Times, February 23, 2016) This is just one
example of how biographies can include basic facts about a person’s life, but also how they can
be skewed during the presentation depending upon the writer’s view.
In the general sense, a biographical study is considered an exhaustive account of a life
experience; however, just as some studies are limited to single aspects of a phenomenon, the
focus of a biographical study can be much narrower. (Biddix, Dr. J.P.) The article I referenced
above concentrated mainly on Sylvester’s intelligence based on an interview by the writer. Many
of the other articles I reviewed for this paper included the factual data related to his life to
illustrate how his early life influenced him in becoming the success he is today.
Part 5: Conclusion
Reviewing this analysis of Sylvester Stallone I am comfortable in surmising that the
psychology of life had an impact in forming the man he is today and will continue to be. The
socio-cultural, socio-emotional and basic evolutionary theories were evident in the forming of
Sylvester Stallone the man.
Had he reacted differently to the circumstances of his life, he would have been a different
person and may not have ever used the imagination that continued to grow and live within him
throughout his formative years. Through the characters he created he was able to move beyond
his terrible childhood and live the life of the heroic underdog. Even if this was a temporary
escape from reality it was able to bring him the respect and attention he craved since his lonely
days as a young boy, wearing his super hero costume to school under his clothing.
Because of his basic need to survive he learned to fight and honed his boxing skills so he
was able to star in the movie “Rocky”. This earned him many nominations for a variety of
awards in the entertainment industry. He also received the Boxing Writers Association of
America award for Lifetime Cinematic Achievement in Boxing for these films.
He admits to having a need to continue to work and keep moving. He has said he feels he
has not accomplished enough and continues to look for the next project or opportunity to
continue to prove his value.
How does a young man with the odds seemingly against him since birth become a box
office phenomenon? I think Sylvester said it best while being inducted into the International
Boxing Hall of Fame, on June 30, 2011. “Sometimes I write things that may seem a little
sentimental, but I truly believe it’s not how hard you can hit—it’s how hard you can get hit and
keep moving forward because that’s really what makes the difference in your life.”
(Newsmakers, December 16, 1994) Updated October 13, 2014
ABOUT SYLVESTER ST ALWWW.CHILDWELFARE.GOV/PUBPDFS/.PDFLONE
References
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