Kylie Jenner: The Queen of Conspicuous Consumption {Nadine Watar: Post #1}

Stardom has always been defined, promoted and enhanced by lifestyle. Some stars know how to balance their careers and their private lives, where others struggle in finding the blurred lines that separate the two. Images seen on television or magazines had always tried to depict or promote a sense or version of The American Dream, that focused on the ideas of originality, success and consumption. (pg.35) Yet, throughout the years, this dream has expanded to form various branches of alternate fantasies. 

My weekend encounter was quite epic in some ways and awkward in others. I was at the grove with my cousins enjoying a simple well deserved meal and was heading towards my black G wagon, when two young girls approached us and started pointing and whispering. One of them then yelled out “that’s definitely Kylie! Look at her blue tips and her car!!” I hadn’t noticed the commotion until my cousin pointed out that the two girls thought I was Kylie Jenner! At first, it was a flattering and mesmerizing feeling to have been mistaken for someone so famous and popular and talked about, I mean, being compared to any star at first is a unique feeling in its own. Yet after reality smacked me twice I figured the sensation was steering towards a more negative light. Kylie Jenner had always been living in the shadows of her famed and notorious sisters, yet after a few pumps of Botox to the cheeks and lips and an Instagram page that looks like it has stolen images from Playboy, Kylie emerged from the dark and used both her quirky and oversexualized persona to gain fame and success, as well as a community of millennials who want to be just like her. Her fame and glory has only grown with the rebellious and too-mature-for-her-own-good lifestyle that embodies the idealistic notion and materials of consumption as a sense of living the dream! 

Furthermore, I’d personally say Kylie Jenner is both a key representative and victim of Dyer’s description of "conspicuous consumption". Stars in the early 1900s were glorified and famed for their achievements, journeys and struggles in working their way up to success and viewed as "idols of production". Unfortunately, in today’s society, the shift in lifestyle priorities that focus around the notion of materialism and selfishness has given birth to a number of stars who are known for what they have instead of how they got it. Dyer furthermore describes these "idols of consumption" as materialistic socialites who form somewhat of a hobby of showcasing and displaying their wealth for all the world to see, and, best of all, don't even have to work for it! (pg.38)

Kylie Jenner is mostly famous for what she has, attracting other girls, both young and old to reflect upon her and admire to be like her, looking upon her rebellious lifestyle, fashion statements and personal materials for inspiration and ultimate goals. Yet, unfortunately, she has no true star quality because she has no unique talent or career that outshines and gives her any true worth. So what does this mean and what really is a star quality these days? Both my encounter at the grove and Dyer’s main point proves that stars today are more recognized for who they are and how they live rather than what they’ve achieved through their talents. So why couldn’t I have been mistaken for a woman like Amal Clooney or a doctor who saves lives? The answer is simple…