In recent years, the study of celebrity has developed and cohered into a flourishing field of social and cultural analysis. There is huge interest in topics such as the politics and logic of glamour; the role of the public-relations industry in manipulating television audiences; the relationship between fame and social control; and the economics of the so-called celebrity industry. And as interest in celebrity continues to explode, a variety of forerunners to its study—drawing on materials from a wide range of disciplines including sociology, cultural studies, history, psychology, organization studies, politics, film, and literary studies—have been rediscovered and reformulated. Among the lines of enquiry and critical tools that have been recuperated as pertinent to the study of celebrity are leadership, charisma, role models, heroes, role sets, ideology, manipulation, commodification, interpellation, narcissism, signification and individuality.
The sheer scale of the available research exploring the many implications of the phenomenon of celebrity—and the breadth and complexity of the canon on which celebrity studies draws—makes this new Major Work from Routledge especially timely. It answers the urgent need for a wide-ranging collection which provides easy access to the key items of scholarly literature, material that is often inaccessible or scattered throughout a variety of specialist journals and books. In four volumes, Celebrity brings together the best and most influential foundational and cutting-edge research on: the aetiology and basic concepts of celebrity (including charisma, narcissism, and commodification); theoretical and methodological approaches (e.g. Marxism, structuralism, semiotics, and cultural materialism); the mechanics of celebrity (such as the sociology and psychology of showmanship); and key controversies and current debates (e.g. the politics of stardom; the superstructure of celebrity; and the interpellation of celebrity news and the media).
Celebrity is supplemented with a full index, and includes a comprehensive introduction, newly written by the editor, which places the collected material in its historical and intellectual context. It is destined to be valued by scholars, students, and researchers as a vital research resource.
Celebrity: Critical Concepts in Sociology
Edited by Chris Rojek
VOLUME I: ORIGINS AND HISTORICAL COUNTERPOINTS
Contents
Acknowledgements
Introduction
Part 1: Ancient Roots and Controversies
1. P. Brown, ‘The Saint as Exemplar in Late Antiquity’, Representations, 1983, 2, 1–28.
2. P. Brandon, ‘The Portrait of Christ: Its Origin and Evolution’, History Today, 1971, 21, 473–81.
Part 2: Modernity and Celebrity
3. H. Parker, ‘The Formation of Napoleon’s Personality’, French Historical Studies, 1971–2, 7, 6–26.
4. T. Mole, ‘Lord Byron and the End of Fame’, International Journal of Cultural Studies, 2008, 11, 3, 343–61.
5. L. Langbauer, ‘The Celebrity Economy of Victorian Studies’, Victorian Studies, 1993, 36, 4, 466–72.
6. L. Berlanstein, ‘Historicizing and Gendering Celebrity Culture; Famous Women in 19th-Century France’, Journal of Women’s History, 2004, 16, 4, 65–91.
7. E. Barry, ‘From Epitaph to Obituary: Death and Celebrity in 18th-Century British Culture’, International Review of Cultural Studies, 2008, 11, 3, 259–75.
8. L. Butterfield, ‘B. Franklin’s Epitaph’, New Colophon, 1950, 3, 9–39.
9. T. McPherson, ‘Picturing Tragedy: Mrs Siddons as the Tragic Muse Revisited’, Eighteenth-Century Studies, 1973–4, 33, 3, 401–30.
10. N. Dames, ‘Brushes with Fame: Thackeray and the Work of Celebrity’, Nineteenth-Century Literature, 2001, 56, 1, 23–51.
11. R. Salmon, ‘Signs of Intimacy: The Literary Celebrity in the "Age of Interviewing"’, Victorian Literature and Culture, 1977, 25, 1, 159–77.
12. Q. Anderson, ‘John Dewey’s American Democrat’, Daedulus, 1979, 108, 5, 145–59.
13. J. Richards, ‘Spreading the Gospel of Self Help: G. A. Henty, and Samuel Smiles’, Journal of Popular Culture, 1982, 16, 2, 52–65.
14. R. Allen, ‘B. F. Keith and the Origins of American Vaudeville’, Theatre Survey, 1980, 21, 105–15.
15. J. Gottlieb, ‘The Marketing of Megalomania: Celebrity, Consumption and the Development of Political Technology in the British Union of Fascists’, Journal of Contemporary History, 2006, 41, 1, 35–55.
16. M. Featherstone, ‘The Heroic Life and Everyday Life’, Theory, Culture & Society, 1992, 9, 159–82.
17. T. McFarland, ‘The Originality Paradox’, New Literary History, 5, 3, 1973–4, 447–76.
18. V. Chakraborty, ‘Leadership in East and West: A Few Examples’, Journal of Human Values, 2003, 9, 1, 29–52.
VOLUME II: BASIC CONCEPTS AND KEY DEBATES
Contents
Acknowledgements
Part 3: Basic Concepts
19. S. Turner, ‘Charisma Re-Considered’, Journal of Classical Sociology, 2003, 3, 5–26.
20. S. Kracauer, ‘The Mass Ornament’, New German Critique, 1975, 2, 5, 67–76.
21. D. Horton and R. Wohl, ‘Mass Communications and Para-Social Interaction: Observations on Intimacy at a Distance’, Journal of Psychiatry, 1956, 19, 3, 215–29.
22. S. Asch, ‘Opinions and Social Pressures’, Scientific American, 1955, 193, 31–5.
23. S. Lukes, ‘Political Ritual and Social Integration’, Sociology, 1975, 9, 289–308.
24. A. Garry, ‘Narcissism and Vanity’, Social Theory and Practice, 1982, 8, 2, 145–53.
25. A. Tolson, ‘Being Yourself: The Pursuit of Authentic Celebrity’, Discourse Studies, 2001, 3, 443–57.
26. E. Sternberg, ‘Phantasmagoric Labor: The New Economics of Self Presentation’, Futures, 1998, 30, 1, 3–21.
Part 4: Key Debates
27. J. Rose, ‘The Cult of Celebrity’, New Formations, 1999, 26, 9–20.
28. T. Gitlin, ‘The Culture of Celebrity’, Dissent, Summer 1998, 81–3.
29. J. Gamson, ‘The Assembly Line of Greatness’, Critical Studies in Mass Communication, 1992, 9, 1–24.
30. F. Bonner et al., ‘Celebrity and the Media’, Australian Journal of Communication, 1999, 27, 1, 55–70.
31. R. Penfold, ‘The Star’s Image, Victimization and Celebrity Culture’, Punishment & Society, 2004, 6, 3, 289–302.
32. Y. Engle and T. Kasser, ‘Why Do Adolescent Girls Idolize Male Celebrities?’, Journal of Adolescent Research, 2005, 20, 2, 263–83.
33. B. P. Fraser et al., ‘Media Celebrities and Social Influence: Identification with Elvis Presley’, Mass Communications and Society, 2002, 1, 2, 183–206.
34. P. Cushman, ‘Why the Self is Empty: Toward a Historically Situated Psychology’, American Psychologist, 1995, 45, 5, 599–611.
35. L. McCutcheon et al., ‘Conceptualization and Measurement of Celebrity Worship’, British Journal of Psychology, 2003, 93, 67–87.
36. B. King, ‘Stardom, Celebrity and the Para-Confession’, Social Semiotics, 2008, 18, 2, 115–32.
37. B. Creed, ‘The Cyberstar: Digital Pleaseures and the End of the Unconscious’, Screen, 2000, 41, 1, 79–86.
38. J. Baudrillard, ‘The Masses: the Implosion of the Social in the Media’, New Literary History, 1985, 16, 3, 577–89.
39. D. Kellner, ‘TV, Ideology and Emancipatory Popular Culture’, Socialist Review, 1979, 45, 13–53.
40. E. Levy, ‘The Democratic Elite: America’s Movie Stars’, Qualitative Sociology, 1989, 12, 1, 29–54.
41. B. G. Rader, ‘Compensatory Sports Heroes: Ruth, Grange and Dempsey’, Journal of Popular Culture, 1983, 16, 4, 11–22.
42. P. Adler and P. Adler, ‘The Gloried Self’, Social Psychology Quarterly, 1989, 52, 4, 299–310.
VOLUME III: THE INTERDISCIPLINARY MATRIX
Contents
Acknowledgements
Part 5: History
43. P. Roberts, ‘The Kingdom’s Two Bodies: Corporeal Rhetoric and Royal Authority During the Religious Wars’, French History, 2007, 21, 2, 147–64.
44. J. T. Campbell, ‘Print the Legend: John Wayne and Postwar American Culture’, Reviews in American History, 2000, 28, 3, 465–77.
Part 6: Anthropology
45. C. Yano, ‘Charisma’s Realm: Fandom in Japan’, Ethnology, 1997, 36, 4, 335–49.
46. I. M. Lewis, ‘Spirit Possession and Deprivation Cults’, Man, 1966, 1, 307–29.
Part 7: Sociology
47. E. Shils, ‘Charisma, Order and Status’, American Sociological Review, 1965, 30, 199–213.
48. G. McCann, ‘Biographical Boundaries: Sociology and Marilyn Monroe’, Theory, Culture & Society, 1985, 4, 4, 619–32.
Part 8: Psychology
49. J. Maltby et al., ‘Extreme Celebrity Worship, Fantasy Proneness and Disassociation: Developing the Measurement and Understanding of Celebrity Worship within a Clinical Personality Context’, Personality and Individual Differences, 2006, 40, 273–83.
50. J. Maltby et al., ‘The Shalt Worship No Other Gods – Unless they are Celebrities: The Relationship between Celebrity Worship and Religious Orientation ’, Personality and Individual Differences, 2002, 32, 1157–72.
Part 9: Political Science
51. J. Street, ‘Celebrity Politicians: Popular Culture and Political Representation’, British Journal of Politics and International Relations, 2004, 6, 4, 435–52.
52. G. Meyer, ‘Frank Sinatra: The Popular Front and an American Icon’, Science & Society, 2002, 66, 3, 311–35.
Part 10: Cultural Studies
53. J. McGuigan, ‘British Identity and "the People’s Princess", Sociological Review, 2000, 48, 1, 1–18.
54. G. Turner, ‘The Mass Production of Celebrity: "Celetoids, Reality TV and the "Demotic Turn"’, International Journal of Cultural Studies, 2006, 9, 2, 153–65.
Part 11: Economics
55. S. Rosen, ‘The Economics of Superstars’, American Economic Review, 1981, 68, 845–58.
56. J. Agrawal and W. A. Kamakura, ‘The Economic Worth of Celebrity Endorsers: An Event Study Analysis’, Journal of Marketing, 1995, 59, 356–62.
Part 12: Media and Communication Studies
57. S. Boon and C. Lomore, ‘Admirer-Celebrity Relationships Among Young Adults: Explaining Perceptions of Celebrity Influence on Identity ’, Human Communications Research, 2001, 27, 3, 432–65.
Part 13: Film Studies
58. M. Basil, ‘Identification as a Mediator in Celebrity Effects’, Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media, 1967, 4, 4, 478–96.
59. R. Dyer, ‘Don’t Look Now’, Screen, 1982, 23, 3–4, 61–73.
Part 14: Legal Studies
60. R. H. Coase, ‘Payola in Radio and Television Broadcasting’, Journal of Law and Economics, 1979, 22, 269–328.
61. M. Jacoby and D. Zimmerman, ‘Foreclosing on Fame: Exploring the Unchartered Boundaries of the Right of Publicity’, NYU Law Review, 2002, 77, 1322–68.
VOLUME IV: GENRES AND COUNTER-GENRES
Contents
Acknowledgements
Part 15: Sport
62. E. Cashmore, ‘Tiger Woods and the New Racial Order’, Current Sociology, 2007, 16, 4, 11–22.
63. D. Andrews et al., ‘Jordanscapes: A Preliminary Analysis of A Global Popular’, Sociology of Sport Journal, 1996, 13, 428–57.
Part 16: Film
64. B. Austin, ‘Portrait of a Cult Film Audience: The Rocky Horror Picture Show’, Journal of Communications, 1981, 31, 43–54.
Part 17: Television
65. R. Silverstone, ‘Television, Ontological Security and the Transitional Object’, Media, Culture & Society, 1993, 15, 573-598.
66. J. Fiske, ‘Television: Polysemy and Popularity’, Critical Studies in Mass Communications, 1986, 3, 391–408.
Part 18: Popular Music
67. J. Stratton, ‘What Is Popular Music?’, Sociological Review, 1983, 31, 2, 293–309.
68. D. Hesmondhalgh, ‘Flexibility, Post-Fordism and the Music Industries’, Media, Culture & Society, 1996, 18, 3, 469–88.
Part 19: Audiences
69. M. G. Real, ‘Super Bowl: Mythic Spectacle’, Journal of Communications, 1975, 25, 1, 31–43.
70. M. Hills, ‘Off Guard, Unkempt, Unready? Deconstructing Contemporary Celebrity in heat Magazine’, Continuum: Journal of Media and Cultural Studies, 2005, 19, 1, 21–38.
Part 20: Counter Genres
71. C. Jenks and J. Lorentzen, ‘The Kray Fascination’, Theory, Culture & Society, 1997, 14, 3, 87–107.
72. J. Frow, ‘Is Elvis God?Cult, Culture, Questions of Method’, International Journal of Cultural Studies, 1998, 1, 2, 197–210.
73. P. Dietz et al., ‘Threatening and Otherwise: Inappropriate Letters to Hollywood Celebrities’, Journal of Forensic Sciences, 1991, 36, 1, 185–209.
74. M. Wykes, ‘Constructing Crime: Culture, Stalking, Celebrity and Cyber’, Crime, Media and Culture, 2007, 3, 2, 158–74.
75. L. Schlesinger, ‘Celebrity Stalking, Homicide and Suicide’, International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 2006, 50, 1, 39–46.
76. N. Couldry and T. Markham, ‘Celebrity Culture and Public Connection’, International Journal of Cultural Studies, 2007, 10, 4, 403–21.
77. A. M. Rubin et al., ‘Loneliness, Para-Social Interaction and Local Television News Viewing’, Human Communication Research, 1985, 2, 36–53.
78. E. Bronfen, ‘Fault Lines: Catastrophe and Celebrity Culture’, European Studies, 2001, 16, 117–39.
79. S. Stack, ‘Celebrities and Suicide: A Taxonomy and Analysis’, American Sociological Review, 1987, 40, 401–12.
80. M. Jamison, ‘Mood Disorders and Patterns of Creativity in British Writers and Artists’, Psychiatry, 1989, 52, 125–34.
Index
Biography
Chris Rojek is Professor of Sociology and Culture at Brunel University, West London. His book, Celebrity (2001) is generally regarded to be a leading contribution to the field and is widely cited. He has also published a full-length case study of celebrity, Frank Sinatra (2004) which he describes as ‘cultural biography’, i.e. the career of the celebrity is used to analyse the character of the culture. He is currently writing Contemporary Idols for Reaktion. He is fully conversant with the literature and is frequently invited to speak at conferences and symposia on celebrity.
In addition to the question of celebrity, he has published books on Leisure, Tourism, Cultural Studies, Stuart Hall and ‘Brit-Myth’ (with a wide range of British academic publishers in the social sciences: Routledge, Palgrave Macmillan, Polity, Sage, and Reaktion). He is the author of over 45 refereed articles and has also edited and co-edited books on Sport and Leisure, Jean Baudrillard, and Lyotard.
