Why we _____ Paris Hilton
Paris and Neo have something in common: Both are an inevitability. Neo is to the Matrix what Paris is to society. While Neo is the product of hidden programming flaws, Paris is the product of the intersection of corporate-based sexuality and Puritanical repression of sexuality. She is a Rorschach inkblot upon which we project our personal notions of sex and self-regard.
The perfect narcissist.
Above all else, Paris is the perfect narcissist. Current psychology holds that a narcissist is like a balloon: shiny and colorful with an ever-expanding ego but completely hollow on the inside. Therapy with a narcissist is painstaking and must be unfold slowly. A therapist that moves too quickly risks a rapid personality deflation. A rapid deflation results in a regression that manifests in infantile behavior. Depending upon the narcissist, this behavior can include excessive anger, prolonged depression, or—as illustrated by Paris—an autonomic fit of tears and crying out for mother.
Provocative but not erotic.
Sexual icons usually appear subsequent to that with which they are associated. Jenna Jameson is associated with pornography. Brad Pitt and George Clooney are associated with Hollywood and charitable endeavors. Because Paris is a narcissist, she cannot be and will never be associated with anything other than herself. Even in her "sex video," Paris seemingly auditions by posing for the camera and remains thoroughly detached from the sex itself.
Though professionally detached, porn stars like Jenna Jameson are able to fake interest well enough to be deemed by a (misguided) society as the professors of eroticism. Although Paris’ sexual displays are, without a doubt, provocative, they are so vapid, commonplace, and matter-of-fact that they are not remotely erotic.
The Rorschach Test
The marketplace is saturated with sex and advertising hinges upon pushing boundaries and transcending our daily monotony (see the Hostel series). An effective advertisement is a funny mirror reflection of society. Consider this: Physically-fit and half-naked men and women would not sell if physically-fit and half-naked was ordinary. Advertising and overeating has left us so disenchanted with our physical selves that many of us endlessly aspire to be young and glamorous and self-help sharks try to sell the notion that beauty can only come from within.
This is where Paris comes in. She is an advertisement unto herself. Normal advertisements sell tangible products. Howver, in Paris’ case there is no tangible product yet the transaction is our time for her fame. Because of the lack of association with anything tangible, we are able to project feelings of confusion and hostility onto Paris. (“Why is the news wasting my time covering this spoiled bitch?” is a question I have asked myself recently.)
The inevitability factor.
Unfortunately, Paris is our creation. Corporate-based sexuality coupled with our tendency to escape the Puritanical mundane has produced more than a few celebrities who are celebrated for their celebrity. Paris is simply the latest incarnation. Perhaps eventually our society will let go of this idealization much like an alcoholic lets go of his alcoholism. To overcome alcoholism, an alcoholic must have the inner force to abstain from the pleasant mental and physical effects of alcohol and must have outside support of friends and family to forgo the atmospheric pleasantries that encompass the bar scene milieu. Likewise, to overcome idealization, society must realize that beauty comes from two places: the inner knowledge and understanding of beauty and the outer affirmation.
The perfect narcissist.
Above all else, Paris is the perfect narcissist. Current psychology holds that a narcissist is like a balloon: shiny and colorful with an ever-expanding ego but completely hollow on the inside. Therapy with a narcissist is painstaking and must be unfold slowly. A therapist that moves too quickly risks a rapid personality deflation. A rapid deflation results in a regression that manifests in infantile behavior. Depending upon the narcissist, this behavior can include excessive anger, prolonged depression, or—as illustrated by Paris—an autonomic fit of tears and crying out for mother.
Provocative but not erotic.
Sexual icons usually appear subsequent to that with which they are associated. Jenna Jameson is associated with pornography. Brad Pitt and George Clooney are associated with Hollywood and charitable endeavors. Because Paris is a narcissist, she cannot be and will never be associated with anything other than herself. Even in her "sex video," Paris seemingly auditions by posing for the camera and remains thoroughly detached from the sex itself.
Though professionally detached, porn stars like Jenna Jameson are able to fake interest well enough to be deemed by a (misguided) society as the professors of eroticism. Although Paris’ sexual displays are, without a doubt, provocative, they are so vapid, commonplace, and matter-of-fact that they are not remotely erotic.
The Rorschach Test
The marketplace is saturated with sex and advertising hinges upon pushing boundaries and transcending our daily monotony (see the Hostel series). An effective advertisement is a funny mirror reflection of society. Consider this: Physically-fit and half-naked men and women would not sell if physically-fit and half-naked was ordinary. Advertising and overeating has left us so disenchanted with our physical selves that many of us endlessly aspire to be young and glamorous and self-help sharks try to sell the notion that beauty can only come from within.
This is where Paris comes in. She is an advertisement unto herself. Normal advertisements sell tangible products. Howver, in Paris’ case there is no tangible product yet the transaction is our time for her fame. Because of the lack of association with anything tangible, we are able to project feelings of confusion and hostility onto Paris. (“Why is the news wasting my time covering this spoiled bitch?” is a question I have asked myself recently.)
The inevitability factor.
Unfortunately, Paris is our creation. Corporate-based sexuality coupled with our tendency to escape the Puritanical mundane has produced more than a few celebrities who are celebrated for their celebrity. Paris is simply the latest incarnation. Perhaps eventually our society will let go of this idealization much like an alcoholic lets go of his alcoholism. To overcome alcoholism, an alcoholic must have the inner force to abstain from the pleasant mental and physical effects of alcohol and must have outside support of friends and family to forgo the atmospheric pleasantries that encompass the bar scene milieu. Likewise, to overcome idealization, society must realize that beauty comes from two places: the inner knowledge and understanding of beauty and the outer affirmation.
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