Fame Labyrinth

The Monster of Perception

Sep 01, 2024

Term 1 starts now! Each bi-monthly syllabus includes a reading list and course schedule, outlining the essays, author interviews, and Lit Girl features to come.

Course Description

In this course, we will explore the dark underbelly of the oft glittering façade of fame. You’ll meet women who clawed their way to the top and those who had their spotlight thrust upon them. Beneath the riches and success lies a raw and pulsating hunger that may ultimately consume them all. But fame doesn’t just touch those on stage; its talons can reach through screens and tempt even you to feed the monster. We are all complicit in this perception deception.

Fame Labyrinth will be divided into five modules: Baddies Recognize Baddies, Climbing Cringe Mountain, Too Big To Hang Out, Para-Socialite, and Live Fast Die Young.

This course will dissect the extremes we reach to be seen, adored, and immortalized—from sacrificing privacy to enduring the brutal, often bizarre rituals of self-promotion. Over the coming weeks, we will dissect the phenomenon of fame as both a coveted prize and a monstrous burden.

Course Objectives

By the end of this course, students will be able to:

Identify and articulate the traits that distinguish a lifelong star from a fleeting sensation.
Analyze the bizarre methods and strategies used to achieve and maintain relevance, and evaluate their effectiveness.
Recognize the signs of parasocial fandom toward public figures and understand the psychological risks associated with obsessive attachments.
Determine whether fame can be sustained by maintaining the role of the monster rather than becoming its next victim. Is an artist destined for self-destruction?

Texts and Materials

Literature

Adegoke, Yomi. The List. 4th Estate, 2023.

Babitz, Eve. Slow Days, Fast Company. NYR Books, 1977.

Banta, Isabel. Honey. Celadon Books, 2024.

Bouland, Barbara. The Force of Such Beauty. Dutton, 2022.

Collins, Suzanne. The Hunger Games. Scholastic Press, 2008.

Dederer, Claire. Monsters. Knopf, 2023.

Didion, Joan. Play it As It Lays. Farrar Straus & Giroux, 1970.

Fox, Julia. Down the Drain. Simon & Schuster, 2023.

Hariri-Kia, Iman. The Most Famous Girl in the World. Sourcebooks, 2024.

Lee, Robinne. The Idea of You. St. Martin’s Press, 2017.

Lyon, Rachel. Fruit of the Dead. Scribner Books, 2024.

Petter, Olivia. Gold Rush. 4th Estate, 2024.

Romanoff, Alexandra. Big Fan. 831 Stories, 2024.

Susann, Jacqueline. Valley of the Dolls. Bernard Geis Associates, 1966.

Essay

Ditum, Sarah. Toxic: Women, Fame and the Noughties. Fleet, 2023.

Montell, Amanda. The Age of Magical Overthinking: Notes on Modern Irrationality. Chapter 1: "Are You Our Mother, Taylor Swift? A Note on the Halo Effect." Atria Books, 2024.

Smith, Raven. "What Is It About an It Girl?" Vogue Magazine, 2023.

Tiffany, Kaitlyn. Everything I Need I Get From You: How Fangirls Created the Internet As We Know It. MCD x FSG Originals, 2022.

Pressler, Jessica. "How Anna Delvey Tricked New York’s Party People." The Cut, 2022.

Dayani, Claudia. "The Price of Stardom: How Fame Can Lead to the Ultimate Downfall." USC Annenberg Media, 26 Jan. 2016.

Film

Not Okay. Searchlight Pictures, 2022.

MAXXXINE. A24, 2024.

The Bling Ring. A24, 2023.

Inventing Anna. Netflix, 2022.

Ingrid Goes West. Neon, 2017.

Hannah Montana: The Movie. Disney, 2009.

The Hunger Games. Lionsgate, 2012.

Music & Podcasts

Eilish, Billie. NDA, Darkroom, 2021

Labrinth. Formula, Sony, 2019.

Marina and the Diamonds. Primadonna, Atlantic, 2012

Rodrigo, Olivia. Making the Bed, Universal, 2023

Rogers, Matt, host; Yang, Bowen, host. “Climbing Cringe Mountain.” Las Culturistas, Spotify, July 24, 2024.

Spears, Britney. Circus, Zumba Recording, 2008

Spears, Britney. Lucky, Jive, 2000

Styles, Harry. Carolina, Columbia, 2017

Swift, Taylor. Peace. Folklore, Republic Records, 2020.

Art

That car photo of Paris Hilton, Britney Spears, and Lindsay Lohan, Bauer-Griffin, 2006.

Misc.

Roan, Chappell. Instagram, 2024.

Course Schedule

9.8 - Week One: Baddies Recognize Baddies

Readings:

Babitz, Eve. Slow Days, Fast Company. NYR Books, 1977.
Fox, Julia. Down the Drain. Simon & Schuster, 2023.
Smith, Raven. "What Is It About an It Girl?" Vogue Magazine, 2023.

Supplementary Materials:

Marina and the Diamonds. Primadonna, Atlantic, 2012.

9.22 - Week Two: Climbing Cringe Mountain

Readings:

Banta, Isabel. Honey. Celadon Books, 2024.

Supplementary Materials:

Not Okay. Searchlight Pictures, 2023.
Rogers, Matt, host; Yang, Bowen, host. “Climbing Cringe Mountain.” Las Culturistas, Spotify, July 24, 2024.

***GUEST LECTURER: Isabel Banta***

10.6 - Week Three: Too Big to Hang Out

Readings:

Lee, Robinne. The Idea of You. St. Martin’s Press, 2017.
Lyon, Rachel. Fruit of the Dead. Scribner Books, 2024.
Petter, Olivia. Gold Rush. 4th Estate, 2024.
Romanoff, Alexandra. Big Fan. 831 Stories, 2024.
Ditum, Sarah. Toxic: Women, Fame and the Noughties. Fleet, 2023.

Supplementary Materials:

Swift, Taylor. Peace. Folklore, Republic Records, 2020.
Hannah Montana: The Movie. Disney, 2009.

10.20 - Week Four: Para-Socialite

Readings:

Adegoke, Yomi. The List. 4th Estate, 2023.
Dederer, Claire. Monsters. Knopf, 2023.
Montell, Amanda. The Age of Magical Overthinking: Notes on Modern Irrationality. Chapter 1: "Are You Our Mother, Taylor Swift? A Note on the Halo Effect." Atria Books, 2024.
Hariri-Kia, Iman. The Most Famous Girl in the World. Sourcebooks, 2024.
Tiffany, Kaitlyn. Everything I Need I Get From You: How Fangirls Created the Internet As We Know It. MCD x FSG, 2022.
Pressler, Jessica. "How Anna Delvey Tricked New York’s Party People." The Cut, 2022.

Supplementary Materials:

Roan, Chappell. Instagram, 2024.

***GUEST LECTURER: Iman Hariri-Kia***

11.3 – Week Five: Live Fast, Die Young

Readings:

Bouland, Barbara. The Force of Such Beauty. Dutton, 2022.
Collins, Suzanne. The Hunger Games. Scholastic Press, 2008.
Didion, Joan. Play it As It Lays. Farrar Straus & Giroux, 1970.
Susann, Jacqueline. Valley of the Dolls. Bernard Geis Associates, 1966.
Dayani, Claudia. "The Price of Stardom: How Fame Can Lead to the Ultimate Downfall." USC Annenberg Media, 26 Jan. 2016.