Philosophy of Fame and Celebrity

Fame and celebrity plays a powerful role in today’s societies. For example, celebrity influence has been claimed to have played a major role in helping Donald Trump become president of the United States. Similarly, the #metoo campaign has exposed the widespread misuse of the power of fame. The importance of celebrity power has sparked growth in celebrity studies, involving contributions from a diverse range of academic disciplines, such as sociology (Rojek 2001), cultural studies (Dyer 1979), history (Braudy 1986) and politics (Marshall 1997). Nevertheless, philosophy is a discipline that has, as yet, contributed surprisingly little to the debate. This two-day workshop aims to make a first step towards addressing the philosophical issues regarding the nature and value of fame, drawing on the interdisciplinary nature of the field.

Potential topics may include:

• the ethics of fame
• the politics of fame
• the aesthetics of fame
• the moral psychology of fame
• phenomenology of fame
• fame and virtue
• fame and oppression
• fame and the internet
• fandom
• online celebrity

Confirmed Speakers: Professor Michael Brady, Professor Sophie-Grace Chappell and Dr. Vanessa Wills.

Your abstract should be 500 words and prepared for blind review. Please submit the abstract as a PDF document to [email protected] and include your name, departmental affiliation, email address, and the title of your paper in the body of the email. The submission deadline for abstracts is 14 September 2020. Successful applicants will be informed by 1 October 2020.

We have a number of reserved presentation slots and travel bursaries for postgraduate students. Please indicate in your submission if you are a postgraduate student and would like to apply for one of these.

We are also planning an edited volume on online celebrity, to be submitted in 2021. Research on this topic is especially of interest, and further details are available on request.

Please contact workshop organisers with any questions:

Alfred Archer ([email protected])

Catherine Robb ([email protected])

Matthew Dennis ([email protected]).