Synopses & Reviews
The simple fact is that the utterance 'Brad Pitt' tends to prompt strong reactions—either reflecting hype, excitement, or revulsion concerning one or more of this actor's roles, or reflecting piqued interest in the various issues (be they political, intellectual, or social) that Pitt seems to stand for. In short, Brad Pitt is a productively perplexing subject.
Deconstructing Brad Pitt attends to these strong reactions, exploring what issues are raised and interrogated by the many manifestations of Brad Pitt. Several chapters look at how Pitt's roles challenge or perpetuate key myths prevalent throughout contemporary American culture; other chapters read Pitt's performances as allegories for dramas that are playing out in larger spheres, such as global capital, new media aesthetics, and celebrity humanitarianism. Still other chapters delineate the intersections of Pitt's celebrity status with his on-screen performances, arguing for expressions of self-awareness and meta-commentaries on celebrity culture and contemporary art practices.
Written in accessible prose and drawing from the expertise of a range of scholars and writers in different fields, Deconstructing Brad Pitt will unperplex the mysteries surrounding the star status and numerous roles of Brad Pitt.
Synopsis
The reactions evoked by images of and stories about Brad Pitt are many and wide-ranging: while one person might swoon or exclaim, another rolls his eyes or groans. How a single figure provokes such strong, often opposing emotions is a puzzle, one elegantly explored and perhaps even solved by _Deconstructing Brad Pitt.
Co-editors Christopher Schaberg and Robert Bennett have shaped a book that is not simply a multifaceted analysis of Brad Pitt as an actor and as a celebrity, but which is also a personal inquiry into how we are drawn to, turned on, or otherwise piqued by Pitt's performances and personae. Written in accessible prose and culled from the expertise of scholars across different fields, _Deconstructing Brad Pitt lingers on this iconic actor and elucidates his powerful influence on contemporary culture.
The editors will be donating a portion of their royalties to Pitt's Make It Right foundation.
About the Author
Christopher Schaberg is Associate Professor of English at Loyola University New Orleans, USA, and author of The Textual Life of Airports: Reading the Culture of Flight (2013).
Robert Bennett is Associate Professor of English at Montana State University-Bozeman, USA, and author of Deconstructing Post-WWII New York City: The Literature, Art, Jazz, and Architecture of an Emerging Global Capital (2003).
Table of Contents
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
FOREWORD
Robert Bennett, Montana State University-Bozeman, USA PREFACE
Christopher Schaberg, Loyola University New Orleans, USAINTRODUCTION
1. Making Montana
Ben Leubner, Montana State University-Bozeman, USA2. Romantic Hero
Elizabeth Abele, SUNY Nassau Community College, USA3. On Crashing
Christopher Schaberg, Loyola University New Orleans, USA4. Suburban Rage
Robert Bennett, Montana State University-Bozeman, USA5. Abyss of Simulation
Randy Laist, Goodwin College, USA6. Brangelina Blend
Michele White, Tulane University, USA 7. Art Muse Sarah
Juliet Lauro, Clemson University, USA 8. Oedipus Cop
Fran Pheasant-Kelly, University of Wolverhampton, UK9. Anger of Achilles
Rick Hudson, Bath Spa University, UK10. Becoming Brad
Bob Batchelor, Thiel College, USA
11. A Star is Born
Andy Horton, University of Oklahoma, USA 12. Brad Pitt for Mayor
Thomas Bayer, Tulane University, USA 13. Gay for Brad
Edmond Y. Chang, Drew University, USA CODA: FAILURE
Brian A. Sullivan, Loyola University New Orleans, USAPOSTSCRIPT? MADNESS
Robert Bennett, Montana State University-Bozeman, USA BIBLIOGRAPHY
CONTRIBUTORS
INDEX
Susan Clements, USAARTWORK
Nancy Bernardo, Rochester Institute of Technology, USA