Friday, January 1, 2010

Fame


I really like this photographic technique. The way they separate young actress Demi Lovato from her fans is an example of 'one picture is worth a thousand words'. It says everything about the cult of celebrity that we are all caught up in to varying degrees. The light of her fame burns so much brighter than the 'ordinary' people around her. What a great visual metaphor. When I taught I would use random photographs to spark interest in creative writing and this is one I am definitely adding to my story ideas folder.

3 comments:

Robo said...

Either TLC or Discovery Channel had a show on about mall cops the other day, and the officers were working a Demi appearance/autograph signing. The only people crazier than her teen/pre-teen fans were the moms.

Chantelle said...

The cult of celebrity is one cult that I wish could be broken.

A recent poll showed that about half of Canadians felt that celebrities have no right to privacy. There is something very wrong with that kind of thinking, in my mind.

Sure, there are some people that exploit their celebrity status, but there are people out there who have become celebrities through no choice of their own.

A good friend of mine had touched many people's lives; she inspired many people to live a better life and to be a better, more caring person. She was honest and loving and gracious. People revered her and treated her as a kind of celebrity.

So when she was dying of breast cancer, all of these admirers felt that they had the right to know what was happening with her, to send her gifts when she'd asked that none be sent, to call when she'd asked them not to, to show up at their door when she wanted no visitors. These admirers felt they had the right to post private information about my friend because they loved her so much.

My friend felt stalked and overwhelmed by these "admirers" while she was dying. Even at her funeral, the cult these people created around my friend overshadowed the people who had genuinely loved her.

I don't know that there's any way to stop this kind of thinking in an age where people are always on and always connected. People are too blind to the consequences of their actions on someone else's life when they idolize them.

If only people who truly wanted nothing to do with their "fans" could walk away from the adoration, putting a clone or android in their place while going away to live the life they want.

Cal's Canadian Cave of Coolness said...

Hence the rumors about Elvis and Tupac doing that very thing you suggested, walking away. Reminds me of the movie 'Bubba Hotep' when Elvis switched places with a double and then walked away.

Adoration is unavoidable sometimes. Admiration for the entertainment or knowledge that a person has given you is expected. But that line is very thin and you have to stay on the correct side of it.

I half post Selena Gomez pics because I like the way she handles her life and career and the effort she puts into everything she does...being cute as a button doesn't hurt of course. I think she is a good role model.

The other reason is I like to agrivate people who want to call me an old perv after I did a positive post about one of her movies and I talked about the cool Disney shows in general. I post anti-bible and religion stuff too for the same reason. Thanks for your post Chantelle. I needed to be said.