What Makes Us So Fascinated By Celebrities and Famous People?

[e-v-elina]

i'm not sure if this goes here but anyway.. i'm writing this assignment and i really need to know:

what makes us so fascinated by celebrities/famous people?

just figured id ask you guys since this is a fashion related forum.

thanks i'm so excited to hear what you guys have to say!

 

[PlasticLetters]

escapism maybe? they embody a particular lifestyle, have money, get special treatment and are usually gorgeous. I think that we want to try and identify the quality that they have that makes them different from us, or see if we can get that quality ourselves, or identify something that we see in ourselves too so we can feel like them. Ultimately they symbolise a lifestyle that is glamorous and elusive (because it's mostly smoke and mirrors anyway). It's all very narcissistic - a lot to do with comparison with oneself and is also a distraction from reality.

 

[seanutbutter]

To distract ourselves from our own lives. It's easy and relatively guilt-free to laugh at a celebrity's personal issues.

 

[kissmesweet]

I guess, the celebrities' lives are so full of scandal and romance and adventure, unlike ours... We're bored, so we get into someone elses' lives. Like gossip, I suppose.

 

[MUXU]

they are SO famous, yet SO miserable.

i notice gossip columns and mags generally have more bad news about famous people than good news.

 

[MissMagAddict]

Go the Rumor Has It threads & you'll find the never ending fascination with celebs. Why not move this thread there & keep the celeb crap out of H&S

 

[ruthie]

I think it's because they seem intangible.

I hate the glorification of celebrities. :/

 

[notmanons]

To many people they epitomize perfection. They get lots of attention. And for some people, its so exciting to nose into other peoples lives because their own is so boring
A trashy celeb mag is a way to escape from our own crappy lives. For SOME people.

 

[papa_levante]

I think we idolize celebrities more than, say, doctors and police officers because their lives aren't the norm. We are fascinated by people who get special treatment (cutting lines, free anything, photo shoots/mag covers) and buy expensive things (mansions, designer gowns, fancy cars) because they have money and status in society just for being on a screen. Personally, I don't see why we aren't more interested in taking care of oursevles. We'd rather see a Bragelina bit rather than heart disease.

My mother and father say this to me a lot: "Why do you keep watching TV? The people on 'The Hills' aren't going to help you get an A on that math test."

It's true.

A doctor goes to at least 10 years of med school so that he/she can cure diseases and fight cancer. Yet, an actor could just be naturally talented and they would still make more than a doctor could in a year. It's sad where our values lie sometimes.

 

[strawberry daiquiri]

poor diet

 

[Dohertysgirl]

I have this love/hate relationship towards Lindsay Lohan. She irritates the sh*t out of me but at the same time I hate the fact that she was in rehab cos now she won't be that much fun anymore.

Also, in my world Leo is considered my boyfriend.

 

[leyla m.]

actually what attracts me to wanting to know more about them (gossip, pics, etc) is the fact they are SUPER NORMAL people. they are real people and i love seeing how real people actually live. its the voyeurism in me (and in most other people) that comes out.
but not any more than the same voyeursim when i watch big brother and other reality shows.

 

[MulletProof]

good question. I always ask that to myself. Unless they have a remarkably flawless wardrobe (charlotte gainsbourg, clemence poésy?), peculiar attitude or something to say (cate blanchett- and that only comes out in shows like charlie rose's ), I never understood the fascination.. most of them dress horrible, barely dominate their mother language and are physically unfortunate.. not to mention their performances on screen or stage are far from captivating.. when I see gossip on people like Paris Hilton or those from Laguna Beach, I feel like someone's telling me our local's stripper's house was painted blue the day before. I appreciate it as the start of a conversation but as a fascinating topic?.. .. I'd rather talk about the weather, traffic or something just as random...

 

[e-v-elina]

i think we live in a celebrity obsessed culture/world. i mean, they're everywhere, its hard not to "care".

and these people, what are they famous for? i think it's kinda sad that the key to success in hollywood is beauty. you don't have to be good at acting or whatever, if you're beautiful, you've got it all.

 

[papa_levante]

Well, we are obsessed with I don't agree with "it's hard not to care."

We have a choice and I think many of us have been "brain washed" via TV and the movies to think that a celebrity's life is far more suprior than our own. We don't have to care, but we are curious as to what a celebrity's problem is when they sink down to our level and get divorced, arrested, etc.

I think you can be good at acting, but it's also a plus to look beautiful. Naturally or not, you need to have the money to make it in a industry that emphasizes looks as well. And ordinary people forget that perfection cannot be attained through having the best make-up artists, stylists, and trainers.

 

[The_Ida]

It comes down to narcissism. We need to compare ourselves to a perfect image, identifying ourselves with this or that random celeb or model so we can feel better. Idolizing the unattainable is a big part of narcissism. We basicly live in a narcissistic society - everything has to involve oneself, otherwise it just isn't interesting. It's very obvious in the media. I'm pretty sure that Britney gets more press than the war in Iraq...we don't give a sh*t about people being killed everyday in a country far away as it's far more gratifying watching someone who used to seem perfect fall apart.

 

[Alejandro]

America doesn't have a royal family like most countries, so of course, celebs are our royal family to obsess about.

 

[VivaciousCohen]

It's really quite simple. Humans, by nature, are very curious. So it's fun to actually get to read about what they are up to and to see photos of what they are wearing as well. It's their vicarious lifestyle that is so interesting to see.

 

[wheneveriwakeup]

i think we live in a celebrity obsessed culture/world. i mean, they're everywhere, its hard not to "care".

You'd be surprised at the simplicity of such an undertaking!

Ostentatious displays of wealth and photographic archives of one's daily intake at Starbucks fail to stir excitement - passionate disgust even - in my mind. Those 'Hollywood' types are all so dire, imho - unnervingly white teeth, horribly contrived wardrobes, orange skin, faces that rival the elasticity of rubber, empty (yet many aspire to be lovely riddles) personalities and most importantly, talent the knows a very painful end. What is so enigmatic, interesting, remotely romantic, and boundlessly adventurous about it, rly? I will never quite grasp the concept, I suppose. Save a few rare and appreciated gems, one could find much more intriguing personalities and activities in the 'real, boring, crappy, sensationaless' world...

Alas, as with many instances in life, this is all quite subjective as Lindsay Lohan may inspire and evoke the praise another would be bestow upon, say, Cate Blanchett or Charlotte Gainsbourg... the beauty of choice!

 

[e-v-elina]

thanks for all the comments guys, i really appreciate all the "help"! due on my assignment is tomorrow so i hope everything goes well.

thanks again!