The easiest critical approach to this hip-hop piece involves the biographical factors affecting the writer, Marshall Mathers, also known as Eminem. Since his first album, The Slim Shady LP, was released in 1999, Eminem has had to deal with how people have reacted to his lyrics. This is not even the real problem for Mathers though; it is the thousands of fans that worship and obsess over the very same words. There have been dozens of reported cases of teenager suicide and drug abuse that has been blamed on his lyrics. In "Stan," Mathers tells a story about a crazed fan that tries to be exactly like the "Eminem" character that is portrayed in the lyrics. The fan, named Stan, does not stop at bleaching his hair blonde but even goes as far as to kill his pregnant wife because that was a topic of an earlier Eminem song. The song represents an extreme example of what has occurred in real life. .
Another fascinating analysis of "Stan" is its unique narrative structure. The lyrics to the song itself are actually a story rather than a collection of random social comments like many other rap pieces. The first stanza of lyrics introduces a relatively calm however devoted fan of Eminem's named Stan. The story continues into a second stanzay where the tone of the piece slightly intensifies as Stan becomes angry. The narration builds and builds until in the third stanza where Stan is in a murderous outrage. The rising action reaches its peak here at the end of the song at the thrilling climax where Stan drives off a bridge with his pregnant wife handcuffed in the trunk. This is an extremely effective narrative structure where the listener is thoroughly interested and then is just completely blown away in the finale. .
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