While William Thackeray’s Vanity Fair is a satire, a humoristic account of the vanities of the different characters in the fictitious society of Vanity Fair, it is also a social criticism of early nineteenth century British society. The essay examines Thackeray’s social critique, which is sometimes explicitly expressed and sometimes more implicit. His criticism is aimed both at the new commodity culture where everything is reducible to money—even people and human relations—and at the class system of the up-and-coming middle classes and the established gentry and aristocracy. When Thackeray sends Becky Sharpe off in a vain pursuit of wealth and social status, he also uses her to expose the vanities of the other characters in Vanity Fair. Their vanities derive from the prevailing commodity culture and are mainly connected to wealth and social status. The essay discusses Becky’s progress from a sociological perspective through the theories of Pierre Bourdieu. His concepts of field, habitus, capital and distinction deal with the power structure in society and what distinguishes different social classes.  Here his theories are used to demonstrate how the different characters in Vanity Fair engage in competition for social status, by using their different forms of capital, and the essay emphasizes the convertibility of these kinds of capital. Bourdieu’s theories contribute to the understanding of how Becky who comes from nowhere, manages to climb to very top rung of the social ladder, but they also demonstrate that her chameleon-like ability to fit in everywhere is an exception to Bourdieu’s general model.

The purpose of this study was to analyze the cover images of Vanity Fair magazine from the years 1983 to 2008. The study attempted to determine if Vanity Fair’s covers have become more focused on celebrities over time and also analyzed how Vanity Fair defines a celebrity. The study used grounded theory from a case study perspective. An additional research question was to determine the number of politically-based cover images versus the number of celebrity-based cover images. This research used content analysis methodology. Both open and axial coding were used. Results were entered into Microsoft Excel and analyzed for statistical significance. / Department of Journalism

Thesis (S.T.M.)--Concordia Seminary, 1999. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 138-144). Includes additional title p. and some bibliographical references in Chinese.

REBOUÇAS, Gabriela Vieira. Ser vaidoso na medida: estudo da relação entre as práticas corporais estéticas e as masculinidades dos clientes dos Salões de beleza Presidente e D’Flávio. 2016. 131f. – Dissertação (Mestrado) – Universidade Federal do Ceará, Programa de Pós-graduação em Sociologia, Fortaleza (CE), 2016. / Submitted by Márcia Araújo (marcia_m_bezerra@yahoo.com.br) on 2016-07-06T15:04:59Z No. of bitstreams: 1 2016_dis_gvrebouças.pdf: 2528617 bytes, checksum: 2d20ca7b07335ea65aff5b14bfeca7d9 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Márcia Araújo (marcia_m_bezerra@yahoo.com.br) on 2016-07-06T16:40:45Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 2016_dis_gvrebouças.pdf: 2528617 bytes, checksum: 2d20ca7b07335ea65aff5b14bfeca7d9 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-07-06T16:40:45Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 2016_dis_gvrebouças.pdf: 2528617 bytes, checksum: 2d20ca7b07335ea65aff5b14bfeca7d9 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016 / This Master’s thesis, entitled “The right amount of vanity: a study of the relation between practices of body aesthetics and the masculinities of customers at the hair salons Presidente and D’Flávio”, refers to the theme of masculine vanity in the city of Fortaleza, Brazil. The aim of this research is to understand the connection between the practices of body aesthetics carried out by eleven customers in the hair salon Presidente, located downtown, and the salon for men’s haircuts D’Flávio, in Aldeota neighborhood, and their masculinities, considering the body’s relevance in these constructions. In their quest for good looks, customers acquire habits and forge a relation between body, masculinity and sociability. The methodological approach of the research therefore deals with body practices, addressing the body as a discourse (COURTINE, 2013) that is set through techniques of the body (MAUSS, 2003), which lead to adaptations in regards to three aspects: the sociological, the psychological and the biological. However, in spite of the frequency in which interlocutors repeat these practices, they reaffirm they have “the right amount of vanity”, arguing they care about the appearance of their body aesthetics because of work, aging, health, hygiene or because of women’s demands, thus giving purpose to their actions rather than plain “vanity for vanity”. According to them, “the right amount of vanity” means a position between negligence and exaggeration with appearance, which are perceived as negative attitudes since negligence is prejudicial in proximity, contact and trust in both social and intimate relations, whereas exaggeration is connected to futility, destruction of the self and trespassing the “boundaries” of masculinity. The research, therefore, approaches the importance given to care with good looks and appearance in contemporary society in relation to the native belief of “the right amount of vanity”, also including the question of hegemonic masculinity (KIMMEL, 1998) as a reference. / Esta dissertação de mestrado cujo título “Ser vaidoso na medida”: estudo da relação entre as práticas corporais estéticas e as masculinidades dos clientes dos Salões de beleza Presidente e D'Flávio.” se refere ao tema da vaidade masculina na capital cearense. O objetivo deste estudo é compreender a relação entre as práticas corporais estéticas de onze clientes frequentadores do salão de beleza unissex Presidente, situado no bairro Centro, e do salão de beleza masculina D`Flávio, situado no bairro Aldeota, com suas masculinidades em razão do corpo ser relevante nestas construções. Sob a relação entre corpo, masculinidade e sociabilidade estabelecida pela busca frequente por parte dos clientes pela boa aparência e pelas relações que se vinculam a partir destes hábitos, os procedimentos teórico - metodológicos trabalham com as práticas corporais remetendo à questão do corpo como discurso (COURTINE, 2013) por meio das técnicas corporais (MAUSS, 2003), as quais são condutas que conduzem às adaptações do corpo por causa de três aspectos dos indivíduos, o sociológico, psicológico e biológico. Apesar destas práticas recorrentes, os inter locutores desta pesquisa ressaltam nas suas falas serem “vaidosos na medida”, justificando que cuidam da aparência estética do corpo por causa do trabalho, do envelhecimento, da saúde, higiene e exigência das mulheres como forma de dá uma utilidade para as suas ações que não seja simplesmente a “vaidade pela vaidade”. Para eles, ser “vaidoso na medida” significa estar numa posição entre o desleixo e o exagero vistos como atitudes negativas, pois o desleixo prejudica na aproximação, no contato e na confiança nas relações sociais e íntimas, e o exagero está relacionado à futilidade, descaracterização de si e a ultrapassar os “limites” da masculinidade. E, por isso, a problemática da pesquisa discute a importância dos cuidados com a aparência na sociedade contemporânea relacionada à denominação nativa de ser “vaidoso na medida”, incluindo a questão da referência da masculinidade hegemônica (KIMMEL,1998).

This essay uses corpus linguistic methods to study aspects of the novel Vanity Fair by W M Thackeray. The aim is to study the way Thackeray chose to describe his two female protagonists, Rebecca Sharp and Amelia Sedley. This is accomplished by a closer study of keywords in Vanity Fair, created by using a reference corpus consisting of thirteen novels by Victorian authors. These keywords are used to define semantic fields related to the novel. Keywords from the semantic field closest to the protagonists are studied in context. In addition, adjectives that collocate with the names of the protagonists are analyzed to compare the characterization of each woman. The study indicates that Thackeray has used fewer adjectives to describe Amelia than Rebecca, but that he has used these more frequently, which may cause readers to form a stronger mental picture of Amelia’s character sooner than they do for Rebecca’s.

Cette thèse propose un parcours historique de l’évolution du motif de la bulle, depuis ses prolégomènes antiques et baroques jusqu’à la modernité, et une réflexion sur son expression et ses significations littéraires, plus particulièrement poétiques, à travers l’étude de quelques œuvres représentatives. De la formation de ses fascinants éclats irisés à son éclatement, la bulle permet de s’interroger sur le rapport du sujet à la fragile beauté du monde qui l’entoure. Le motif évolue, cependant, en fonction des périodes et des auteurs, selon la valeur que l’on accorde à cette beauté éphémère, oscillant entre exemplum moralisateur et idéal esthétique, entre la figuration de la Vanité de toute chose et celle d’un éclat fulgurant de présence. L’étude de ce fragile motif conduit à aborder des questions de poétique plus vastes, comme celles du détail et de l’éphémère. La bulle, isolée en tant que détail, amène à reconsidérer, dans le système sémiotique de l’œuvre littéraire, la charge de sens liée aux motifs ténus qui pourraient paraître insignifiants. L’éphémère, quant à lui, avec diverses implications culturelles, demande d’interroger des notions postulant un rapport subjectif de l’individu à sa perception du monde et du temps. Ce motif singulier engage également une thématique spatiale : la bulle, soufflée ou émergeant d’un liquide, prend dans l’espace une forme qui se caractérise par sa sphéricité et qui évoque métaphoriquement la création, divine ou littéraire. À partir de ce recensement des différentes implications culturelles du motif, dans ses constantes et ses évolutions, on étudie l’usage qu’en font quelques auteurs et textes exemplaires : Grégoire de Nysse, Erasme, Crashaw, Le Cardinal de Bernis, Chénier, Vigny, Hugo, Musset, Gautier, Baudelaire, Claudel, Tzara, Reverdy, Ponge, Jaccottet et Bonnefoy. / This thesis offers a historical journey through the evolution of the leitmotiv of the bubble, from the prolegomena of the antiquity and baroque eras to modern literature, as well as a reflection on its expression and its literary meanings, and more particularly in poetry, through the study of a few exemplary poems. From the formation of its fascinating iridescent reflections to its bursting, the leitmotiv of the bubble leads us to ponder the relationship between the subject and the fragile beauty of the world around him. The leitmotiv evolves, however, depending on the value the periods and the authors grant to this ephemeral beauty, oscillating between moralising exemplum and aesthetic ideal, between the representation of the Vanity of all things, and that of a transient flash of being. The study of this fragile leitmotiv brings us to consider more encompassing poetic questions: that of the details and of the ephemeral. The bubble, isolated as a detail, leads us to reconsider, within the semiotic system of a literary piece, the meaning tied to fine leitmotivs that could first appear insignificant. With its diverse cultural implications, the ephemeral makes us question the notions that postulate a subjective relationship between the individual and his perception of the world and of time. This singular leitmotiv also involves a spatial thematic: the bubble, blown or emerging from a liquid, takes upon a characteristic spherical shape, which metaphorically evokes creation, whether divine or literary. From this inventory of the various cultural implications of the leitmotiv, and considering its composing elements and its evolutions, we will study how it is employed through exemplary texts by a few authors such as : Gregory of Nyssa, Desiderius Erasmus, Crashaw, The Cardinal de Bernis, Chénier, Vigny, Hugo, Musset, Gautier, Baudelaire, Claudel, Tzara, Reverdy, Ponge, Bonnefoy and Jaccottet.

Ce travail consiste à comprendre le phénomène de l'ennui. L'ennui sera perçu comme un élément indissociable de la condition humaine. L'homme est un être qui s'ennuie, parce qu'il est doté d'une conscience, et que cette conscience l'inscrit dans un rapport particulier au temps. Mais nous constatons, en Occident, et à partir de l'époque moderne, que l'homme s'attache par toutes ses activités à fuir l'ennui. Tromper l'ennui c'est tromper sa condition, c'est, en tant qu'homme, se tromper soi-même. Toute la question est de comprendre comment cela est possible. Partant du divertissement comme moyen général de tromper l'ennui, nous irons jusqu'à la possibilité de ne pas tromper l'ennui, ce faisant nous serons amenés à étudier un aspect de la pathologie humaine à travers l'affection mélancolique. L'ennui doit être trompé, et cela pose une difficulté : comment un être conscient peut-il se tromper lui-même ? Mais l'ennui qui ne serait pas trompé mènerait l'homme vers un état pathologique. Pourquoi l'homme doit-il alors tromper l'ennui ? Notre travail se scinde en trois parties. Il s'agira d'abord de comprendre pourquoi l'homme trompe l'ennui. Il s'agira ensuite de comprendre comment il peut s'y prendre pour cela. Enfin nous envisagerons des possibilités pour ne pas tromper l'ennui. Notre étude s'attache à comprendre l'enjeu d'un ennui fondamental, et à travers lui, la condition humaine avec ses contradictions et ses questions / The aim of that work is to understand the boredom phenomenon. The boredom is here understood as an indivisible aspect of the human condition. A human being is a person who get bored because he has a conscience, and that conscience place himself in a particular relation with the time. But we see that from the modern age in the occident that human being strives through all its activities to escape boredom. Cheating boredom is cheating his condition, it is, as a human being, to cheat to yourself. The question is to understand how this is possible. Starting from the entertainment as a general way to run rings around boredom, we will get to the possibility of not cheating boredom, in doing so we will go through a facet of the human pathology through the melancholic affliction. Boredom shall be cheated and here comes a complication : how a conscious human being can cheat himself? But boredom that would not be overcame would leads man to a pathological condition. Why then shall human being run rings around boredom? Our work is divided into three chapters. First part will consider the reason why human being cheat boredom. The next step is to understand how he can do so. Finally we will consider opportunities for not cheating boredom. Our study aims to understand the concern of a fundamental boredom, and through hit the human condition with its contradictions and questions.

This bachelor’s thesis presents a study mainly focused on players’ motivations of purchasing cosmetics items in Path of Exile, a free-to-play, action role-playing game. A “Theory of Consumption” is used in this paper as the theoretical framework. This study is conducted by running nine interviews and one survey, where 33 sets of results are collected in total. It was found that there were two main motivations for purchasing cosmetic items in that game. The dominant one is “conditional” motivation which is to support the game or game company, while the second one is “emotional” motivation which is to bring certain feelings within the game experience. However, the study found that one non-cosmetic item in Path of Exile was also purchased very frequently when it comes to the microtransactions of this game, so a “functional” motivation will also be mentioned in this paper. This study could be helpful for game designers wanting to figure out a good monetization strategy which does not alienate, but welcome players, especially in free-to-play games. / Denna kandidatuppsats presenterar en studie huvudsakligen fokuserad på spelarnas motivationer till köp av kosmetiska objekt i Path of Exile, ett ‘free-to-play’ actionrollspel. En “Konsumtionsteori” används i denna uppsats som dess teoretiska grund. Denna studie genomfördes genom nio intervjuer och en enkät där totalt 33 olika svar samlades in. Undersökningen visade att det fanns två huvudsakliga skäl till köp av kosmetiska objekt i spelet. Det dominerande skälet visades vara “villkorligt baserad” där spelare vill visa support åt spelet eller spelföretaget, medan nästa skäl visades vara “känslomässigt baserad” där spelarnas känslor höjs genom köp som förgyller spelupplevnaden. Studien visade även att den enda icke kosmetiska varan i Path of Exile köptes mycket ofta i relation till andra mikrotransaktioner i spelet, så ett “funktionellt baserat” skäl kommer även presenteras i uppsatsen. Denna studie kan bli hjälpsam åt speldesigners som vill lista ut en god monetäriseringsstrategi som inte fjärmar, utan välkomnar spelare, särskilt inom ‘free-to-play’ spel.

Size information is vital in many consumer contexts, but currently, no central framework or conceptual model exists for a thorough understanding of the underlying process of how consumers interpret size information and form size judgments. Thus, the purpose of this three-paper dissertation is to introduce such a framework, discuss future research directions based on that framework, and pursue a few of these directions in the second and third papers, both of which focus on a vanity sizing context. The resulting work and findings illustrate the process through which consumers go in forming size judgments and collectively present both scholars and practitioners with a common basis for future study and implementation of findings in contexts in which size information is salient.

Cette thèse vise à mettre en lumière, dans les Essais de Montaigne, un aspect peu connu du débat sur la constance à la fin du 16ème s. Alors que la vertu de constance devient un enjeu philosophique et moral d’importance, servant à la fois des idéaux stoïciens, chrétiens et civils, nous constatons une insistance des Essais à souligner le phénomène contraire, l’inconstance. Il s’agit dans un premier temps de montrer le dialogue que construit Montaigne face à la vertu de constance, puis d’établir le statut argumentatif de l’inconstance dans les Essais. Dans le but de situer le débat constance - inconstance, nous nous rapportons d’abord aux écoles de philosophies hellénistiques que pillent les Essais. Le scepticisme de Montaigne s’en trouve déstabilisé, le stoïcisme à la fois débattu et repoussé, l’épicurisme instrumentalisé. L’inconstance prend un visage universel qui rend présomptueuse et même dangereuse toute aspiration à la constance. Nous montrons ensuite la prise en charge méthodologique de l’inconstance dans les Essais, à travers le Distingo. Nous constatons alors que l’inconstance a le statut d’une condition pré éthique poussant les Essais à déconsidérer toute entreprise humaine dans la sphère publique. Mais les Essais n’encouragent pas simplement à se laisser porter par la fortune ou la coutume. Dans la sphère privée, Ils construisent plusieurs règles éthiques hétérodoxes : non repentir, diversion, vanité, expérience…qui reposent sur le possible (selon qu’on peut) et contribuent à redéfinir la grandeur d’âme, en présentant un nouvel ordre ou une nouvelle conformité de l’action, ce que nous appellerons « l’éthique de l’inconstance » ou « éthique de l’indirection » . / This thesis aims to emphasize in Montaigne’s Essays a little known aspect concerning the debate of constancy towards the end of the 16th. c. While the virtue of constancy becomes a philosophical issue of importance, favouring at the same time the stoic, Christian and civil ideals, we observe in Montaigne’s Essays, an insistence to underline a contradictory phenomenon; inconstancy. First, it is essential to demonstrate the dialogue that builds Montaigne’s work concerning the virtue of constancy, to finally establish the proper argumentation on inconstancy. With the intent to situate this debate concerning the virtue of constancy, we will refer primarily to the Hellenistic philosophies plundered by the Essays. We will present in the first part the origin and in the second part, the transfer of the debate. Montaigne’s scepticism happens to be destabilized, his stoicism is at the same time debated and rejected, his Epicureanism becoming a tool determining their truth. The second section of the thesis demonstrates that methodology of the Essays takes over the notion of inconstancy, notably through the “Distingo”, and its effects on the historical knowledge relating to prudential activities. We claim that the nature of the essay is to correct this error and thus give the right place to human inconstancy. We acknowledge the fact that inconstancy has a status of a pre-ethic condition which pushes the Essays to disrepute any human enterprise in the public sphere. However, this denial cast upon the public sphere does not lead us to reject any kind of ethical reflection. In the private sphere, the Essays construct ethical regulations: non repentance, diversion, vanity, experience...These aspects are all grounded in the ethical mode of the possible, (« Selon qu’on peut ») and at the same time contribute in redefining the magnitude of the soul by presenting a new order or a new conformity of action. We name the project ethic of inconstancy or ethic of indirection