This is a time of year when mythology flourishes.
Indeed to have the fun we think we deserve, we actively encourage traditional myths that allow our children to enjoy the festivities to the full. In doing so, we create modern myths to suit the times. Some are less palatable than others.
Timely then, that the academic and critic Peter Conrad should explore, lampoon and ultimately debunk some of our most popular modern myths. On Saturday, in 21st Century Mythologies (BBC Radio 4) a handy omnibus pieced together a series of sketches broadcast recently, exposing the shallowness of much that is valued and respected in modern society. Taking a lead from French philosopher and semiotician Roland Barthes he picked at the scabs of what are, admittedly, easy targets, but ones that, nonetheless, receive acres of coverage in both the press and on social media. In other words, their fame lies in being talked about.
In his 1957 collection of essays, Mythologies, Barthes dealt with the subject of mystification and linguistics. Today we would call it marketing and branding and there can be few things, quite literally, as hollow at its core as the cronut. To the uninitiated, a cronut is a faddish, much sought after, croissant-doughnut hybrid with limited availability, selling for $5 a piece. People queue overnight outside fashionable delis to procure this deep fried, high fat food-portmanteau. With relish, Conrad questioned why it can be so modishly retro to queue for dough product, as if in a 1930s breadline.
In a devastating critique that dwelled on the theme of hollowness; the Kardashian sisters were presented as a family of talentless yet shameless self-publicists, who symbolise everything that is wrong with modern consumer society. They embody, he claimed, most of the cardinal sins: greed, wrath, pride, envy and lust. Gluttony he exempted them from on account of their miniscule, yet fashionable dietary habits, and they can never be accused of sloth as they do spend most of their waking hours obsessing about themselves.
A day earlier there was mythological talk when, as part of BBC6 Music's excellent Three Wise Women strand, Alison Goldfrapp curated an afternoon of music and documentary. La Chanson de Serge - The Serge Gainsbourg Story - was given a welcome airing. Presented by the late Malcolm McLaren, it portrayed Gainsbourg's life as an abject lesson in modern pop mythology. It's a story of existential outsider made national hero; despite his repeatedly scandalising the sensibilities of his country. With typical mirth McLaren wove a tale that neatly blurred the lines between fact and speculation; creating a myth of which Gainsbourg might have been proud. I wonder if we'll still be talking about the cronut in 30 years?
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article