Suchergebnisse

Charting the decline and recent resurgence of the landed gentry in British public life, The fall and rise of the English upper class explores how traditionalist worldviews, centred on kinship, inheritance, and the image of the house, have come to shape our politics and culture.

YouTube has witnessed the growth of a celebrity culture of its own. This article explores the celebritification of online video-bloggers in relation to their own discursive community. Focusing on the VlogBrothers (John and Hank Green) and their community 'Nerdfighters', this article demonstrates how their philosophy of "Imagining Others More Complexly" (IOMC) is used to debate 'celebrity' and its legitimacy. Their vision of celebrity is egalitarian and democratic, rooted in Western culture's 'expressive turn' (Taylor, 1989). It views each person as a unique individual and others as equal, legitimate subjects. Situating this discursive formation within the culture of web 2.0's neo-liberal developments, the article seeks to explore the contradictory origins and uses to which IOMC is directed. While utilised to promote a vision of vloggers beyond the gaze and mystification of 'celebrity', it is also drawn upon by celebrities to manage and control perception and preserve good public opinion amongst the community. The article concludes with a discussion of how this philosophy may conceive of 'celebrity' as a model of expressive individualism beyond its commercial uses. 'IOMC' may be considered a state of 'selfhood' which allows each person equal space to consummate a unique vision of themselves.

The Jack Wills brand claims to be Outfitters to the Gentry. This article argues that Jack Wills' marketing ethos institutes a means to achieve this promise. This promise is investigated as instituting a form of heraldry through its corporate program of Seasonnaires and monopolising the spaces and symbols of elite social standing for their branded products. Heraldry is concerned with making the symbols of the peers of the realm distinctive and within an exclusive set. I call this enterprise 'fiduciary' as the heralds are persons trusted to preserve the symbols' sanctity. Overall I claim that the Jack Wills brand seeks this through its corporate program. Imitation-heraldry is a means to create the value of the brand as 'fiduciary value', community trust in the products and its worth. The ethic and politics that accompany the brand-ethos is concerned with making the name 'Jack Wills' come to stand as an eponymous character that embodies the social actions and unity of the social group the brand outfits. Jack Wills institutes an ethical economy that allocates the branded goods to those within the Seasonnaire economy of distribution, an economy that centres upon upholding fiduciary value.

Intro -- BRIEF CONTENTS -- CONTENTS -- LIST OF FIGURES AND TABLES -- Figures -- Tables -- TOUR OF THE BOOK -- Key points -- On-page glossary -- SHiP boxes -- Sociological solutions boxes -- Suggestions for further reading -- References -- End-of-book glossary -- ABOUT THE SHiP AND SOCIOLOGICAL SOLUTIONS BOXES -- SHiP -- Social structure -- History -- individual -- Power -- Sociological solutions -- References -- ABOUT THE EDITORS -- ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTORS -- ABOUT THE COMPANION WEBSITE -- For lecturers: -- For students: -- ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS -- CHAPTER 1 ON BEING SOCIOLOGICAL -- Key points: -- Introduction -- Being sociological -- SHiP: Identity -- Sociology: You're already doing it -- Are you on welfare? Are you a criminal? Sociology versus common sense -- Sociology and hope -- SOCIOLOGICAL SOLUTIONS: STUDY SOCIOLOGY -- Conclusion and what next? -- Suggestions for further reading -- References -- CHAPTER 2 RESEARCHING -- Key points: -- Introduction -- SHiP: Structure -- Qualitative and quantitative research -- Words and numbers -- Cases and variables -- Inductive and deductive start-points -- Inductive and deductive research goals -- SOCIOLOGICAL SOLUTIONS: REGULATING, TAXING AND RESEARCHING -- Naturalistic or experimental disposition and skill set of the researcher -- Conclusion: Eat your veggies -- Suggestions for further reading -- References -- CHAPTER 3 GLOBALIZING -- Key points: -- Introduction -- Globalizing -- Cultural globalizing -- Homogenizing -- Westernizing -- Hybridizing -- Always-already global -- Historical global interconnection -- SHiP: History -- Academic outlook -- SOCIOLOGICAL SOLUTIONS: SOCIOLOGY AND LEGITIMATING A COLONIAL WORLD ORDER -- Anti-globalization -- Social anti-globalization -- Economic anti-globalization -- Conclusion -- Suggestions for further reading -- References -- CHAPTER 4 DIVIDING: INEQUALITIES.