Tuesday, November 26, 2013

Response to "Spoiled" by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan

The book, “Spoiled” by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan’s discusses the covered life of the celebrity. It goes in depth, diving into the exclusive life of VIP treatment. As I was reading this book a lot of questions came up. One in particular got me thinking, it was the reality of how this sheltered celebrity life is presented. Through tabloids, insider networks and invading paparazzi shots, celebrity life is shown in a golden goblet looked upon with spotlights. In society we strive for this uncovered luxury of fame. But we do not truly understand how this real fame is until we obtain it, which there after we all but have to wonder why it is that we so desired it. In simpler words, the book “Spoiled” is a true example of the hardships of fame that are not advertised to the general public, how this fame can destroy everything, including the celebrity who it is focused on.
            Molly, stumbles into the spotlight of the paradox of fame. Her life is completely open as she says, “it’s like there is always an open ear just ready to grab at your latest slip-up” and completely closed, forced behind gates, mansion walls and tinted windows. Fame is a complicated thing especially for someone thrown into the spotlight like Molly. Fame in fact is a complex idea for everyone to understand especially the way media presents it. This book really got me to realize that celebrity media networks show fame as something priceless and amazing, something with no faults at all. When really it is something that can rip down those unlucky few who have plunged into the waters of glamour. Fame is something that spoils a person to the point where they become immune to what’s going on around them. For example, Brooke is so shielded from the world she doesn’t understand the balances in the world and what makes a person good. This is showing how fame can make people petty and unaware, only wanting to gain even if that means others losing. While Molly, on the other hand, deals with the other aspect of fame. Having every inch of her life investigated and reported worldwide to a crowd, who just want to know some gossip, not even vaguely caring about who the celebrity is. Celebrities are shown in every aspect of their faults, while they themselves are sheltered in luxurious bubble not daring to put a toe on the line, or even care about the world around them.

            Our celebrity idols live in a life behind closed doors, while explicit pieces of their life are displayed to us. The public, so eager and excited to snatch up those pieces of information, despite the obvious lies and heartbreak wound up in these stories. We are much like celebrities, we take the information that is preached to us and believe it. We are part of the problem, when stars have their privacy invaded just for us to get the perfect shot. It makes both parties more blind. The more we urn for information the more celebrities have to shelter themselves, the more they do, the more unaware they become. It is a never-ending cycle that has to stop. The most I have gathered from this book is how much the sheltered world of the rich and famous is really, the glamour and special treatment is not always virtuous thing. It takes the essence of humanity, we can not live in harmony,  if the members of society do not respect division as something of impurity, than we can be as one. We can never be equal.

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