The video was slightly inspired by a short story "The Lottery" written by Shirley Jackson, indeed highly controversial, whose plot focuses on the ritual that a small town performs in which the 'victim' is stoned to death in order to ensure a good harvest.
The way it was reinvented in the video is that Manson is elected by a blindfolded girl who spun several times to point to the victim's trailer house, and so led to his final sentence.
However, it is remarkable that there are other likely influences on "Man That You Fear." Unconsciously (or intentionally) it evokes the Cross procession but Manson did not carry a cross;although it could have been included metaphorically.The place where he lives is also typical of what is known as the white trash culture.
There is a point in which Manson falls and is raised by his relatives and his pregnant girlfriend, so similar that when Mary lifts Jesus to continue his sentence.
The accusers may well represent the bourgeoisie, or the "The Beautiful People" evoked in the song. In fact there is a similar crowd in the film "El Topo" which also takes place in a desert town.
Ironically Manson extends his body in the pose of the crucified but we never see the moment he is stoned, in fact his girlfriend hesitates.
All this brings us back to the old biblical phrase, "He who is without sin cast the first stone ..." The effect of this video is to illustrate that a simulated death is only a genuine desire to be reborn into a new phase or to a higher plane of being. Alejandro Jodorowsky in movies such as "El Topo" or "Holy Mountain" pursued the same philosophy but with less orthodox methods. This likewise makes us think, it's no wonder "Man That You Fear" remains one of the best videos of Marilyn Manson of all time.
