An Analysis of the Concepts of Fame as a Psychological Self-Destruction Essay

For many people fame has lead to physical and psychological self-destruction. The physical aspect of the self-destruction is usually brought upon by drug andor alcohol abuse. The psychological destruction is not so easily accompanied with a reason. The result, however, is commonly a drastic change in both personality and social behavior. Combining information from several studies and articles, this paper discusses the possible reasons and results of the psychological destructiveness of fame.Fame is, as described by The Random House College Dictionary(1982), "widespread reputation, especially of a favorable character," and also gives the synonym, "celebrity." In a study done by Mark Schaller(1997) three famous people were investigated. One of these people was Kurt Cobain, the lead singer and writer for a popular band called Nirvana. Another person was Cole Porter. Porter was one of the most famous songwriters in the United States in the early twentieth century. The third person was the fiction writer, John Cheever. Cheever obtained the Pulitzer Prize in 1978.The reason Schaller chose these three people is that they all had self- destructive tendencies in the forms of drugs and alcohol and also had psychological problems sometime during their period of fame. Each of the three were also writers which was a vital part of Schaller's study. Schaller wanted to show that fame increased the self-consciousness in each of these people. To do this he analyzed the songs and stories written by these authors and found an increase in the amount of first-person singular pronouns from before to after their achievement of fame.According to Phillip L. Ackerman(1997) defining personality would take up a whole chapter in a book. Some would say that a personality includes such things as temperament, attitudes, interests, needs, physiology, morphology, and aptitudes. In order to keep it simple Ackerman labels personality with temperament, needs and attitudes.Social Behavior is simply how one chooses to act in a community or environment one is in or how to respond to the actions...

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Character Analysis of Basil Hallward in The Picture of Dorian Gray, a Novel by Oscar Wilde Essay

The main character in The Picture of Dorian Gray, Dorian, is a man too easily influenced by his surroundings. He is quoted as saying, Basil Hallward is what I think I am Lord Henry is what the world thinks me Dorian is what I would like to bein other ages, perhaps (Wilde). This comparison falls in line with the moral of the story because Dorian is stuck with eternal youth and beauty even though he has a wicked soul. This causes different views of him by people who observe his daily life. Dorian is a sponge throughout the novel that absorbs everything and allows it to shape his personality, morals, and actions. Dorian Gray takes influence from Lord Henry, Basil Hallward, and the culture of society during which the novel was written. Lord Henry is the epitome of a wealthy, hedonistic gentleman seeking only pleasure, with little regard to cost or consequence. Lord Henry Wotton outwardly propounds hedonism, but it is his extreme egotism that drives him to manipulate both Basil Hallward a
Read more

Religious Symbolism in The Blessed Damozel, a Poem by Dante Gabriel Rossetti Essay

Dante Gabriel Rossettis poem The Blessed Damozel is full of religious symbolism. There is talk of saints, and the poem itself takes place in heaven. But underneath the religious symbolism is a deep sensuality, that makes one wonder if the white rose of Marys gift referred to in line nine is the gift of Mary the Virgin, or the somewhat less virginal Mary Magdalene. While the Damozel is in heaven, her appearance in heaven, her behaviors in life, and what happens when she and her lover are reunited suggest some less than virginal dealings, yet the damozel is blessed and resides in heaven. Rossetti was the child of liberals kicked out of Italy a heavily catholic country for their extreme political views. While Rossetti himself was not political, he may have espoused similar views regarding politics and religion as his parents. In the poem The Blessed Damozel, Rossetti was given the chance to essentially create his own heaven. Most everything he wrote seems to show that Rossetti espoused
Read more

An Analysis of the Character of Chichikov in the Poem, Dead Souls by Nikolai Gogol Essay

Dead Souls takes place in the Russia of the late 1800s, where, unlike in America, one must be born into a prosperous family in order to have opportunities. The main character, Chichikov, is clever enough to develop a scheme in which he can rise from being a petty clerk to a respected landowner. In order to do this, Chichikov moves into a new town, pretending to already be a landowner, and begins a quest to buy the names of dead serfs who have not yet been officially reported dead. Each person that Chichkov presents this offer to has a different reaction, starting with the shy and introverted Manilov. Though he does not understand Chichikov's need for the names of these dead serfs, Manilov is a character that is so desperate for company that it does not take any effort to trick him into selling his dead souls cheaply. However, as Chichikov continues his journey, he starts to deal with more clever landowners who become suspicious of his scheme. Chichikov finds that the townsmen know
Read more