Perhaps in some ways celebrities are what has replaced aristocrats in a largely republican world (in the non-American sense of the word “republican”). But celebrity is more cleverly dishonest than is aristocracy. Aristocrats claim superiority as a function of birth. This claim is now easy to see through. But celebrities claim superiority as a function of earned worthiness. What confounds the rejection of the power of celebrity is that from time to time, unlike in aristocracy, a given celebrity may well have earned some measure of his or her exalted regard. Aristocrats, conversely, are always aristocrats only because of birth, no matter how worthy some amongst them may be. Aristocracy can be rejected as nonsense across the board, for no aristocrat is superior by right of birth. The needed annihilation of celebrity as such is handicapped by the occasional truth of this or that celebrity’s perceived earned superiority.
One can therefor reject aristocracy untainted by one’s own personal envy, self-loathing, or other dubious motive. To reject celebrity in the same sweeping manner is much more difficult if one is wary of one’s motivations.
This is all the more tragic since the motivations of a given individual hostile to the idea of celebrity as such are not relevant to the overall need to annihilate the deceit and injustice of celebrity. But we doubt ourselves and hesitate. And for some, becoming a celebrity may be a genuine (if unlikely to be fulfilled) hope. The same is not true of aristocracy since it is decided at birth whether one will ever be a member.
What I have said here about celebrity is also similar with regard to plutocracy under capitalism.
Could this be the secret of Donald Trump’s power? the persistence of his fan base and the incredible leniency shown him despite whatever he does? There are many business people who are not celebrities. There are many celebrities who are not business people or even particularly rich. But Trump is a businessman, and a celebrity. Nobody in the culture is more thoroughly both than he, and nobody more thoroughly combines the most odious capacities of both: the imperious sense of entitlement, of being the special case that the worst celebrities display; the parasitical nature of capitalists at their worst, who produce nothing of value and are instead vampires of money.
The combination of capitalist and celebrity makes for the most dangerous sort of spiritual vampire.