The Power of Cute PDF
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Advance Praise “The Power of Cute examines an acute yet virtually unnoticed part of contemporary society, the rise of cuteness. A joy to read, this book is terrifyingly brilliant and continuously sur- prising, filled with subtle insights and wonderful theorizing.” —Jeffrey C. Alexander, Yale University “From powerlessness to tyranny, and from the fluffy dog in the window to Kim Jong-il’s hairstyle, ‘the cute’ raises the abysmal issue of the world’s desire for meaninglessness. Com- forting and uncanny at the same time, cuteness incarnates nihilism as plenitude, infantilism as art, and desexualization as seduction. Simon May’s humorous and profound book explores the secret dimensions of a new religion, raising the question: Is cuteness an attribute of God?” —Catherine Malabou, Kingston University London “We think we have power over cute things—but maybe the boot is on the other foot, and cute things manipulate us. The Power of Cute considers the notion that when we find things or people cute, ambivalence is in the air: on the one hand, cute things are infantile and unthreatening, on the other hand, uncanny or unsettling. This intelligent and thought- provoking book breaks new ground.” —Simon Blackburn, author of Mirror, Mirror “In this highly readable and erudite book, Simon May devel- ops a theory of ‘the cute.’ May probes a range of cases, par- ticularly of artificial cuteness—Hello Kitty, Pokémon, E.T., Kewpie dolls—and gives searching reflections on what the ascendancy of cute might reflect about our broader societal values and present historical moment.” —Andrew Huddleston, Birkbeck, University of London The Power of Cute The Power of Cute Simon May PRINCETON UNIVERSITY PRESS Princeton and Oxford Copyright © 2019 by Simon May Published by Princeton University Press 41 William Street, Princeton, New Jersey 08540 6 Oxford Street, Woodstock, Oxfordshire OX20 1TR press.princeton.edu All Rights Reserved Library of Congress Control Number: 2018957590 ISBN 978- 0- 691- 18181- 3 British Library Cataloging- in- Publication Data is available Editorial: Sarah Caro, Hannah Paul, Charlie Allen Production Editorial: Terri O’Prey Text Design: Pamela Schnitter Jacket/Cover Design: Amanda Weiss Jacket/Cover Credit: Maneki- neko (Japanese “welcoming cat”) courtesy of Italika / iStock Production: Jacqueline Poirier Publicity: Caroline Priday and Julia Haav Copyeditor: Molan Goldstein This book has been composed in Cormorant Garamond and Gotham Printed on acid- free paper ∞ Printed in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 To Mimi, guru of Cute Contents List of iLLustrations ix Preface xi 1. Cute as a Weapon of Mass Seduction 1 2. Spooked in the Garden of Eden 19 3. Cute as an Uncertainty Principle 31 4. Mickey Mouse and the Cuteness Continuum 50 5. Kawaii: The New Japanese Imperium 59 6. The Cuteness of Kim Jong- il 92 7. Cute and the Uncanny 103 8. What’s Wrong with Cute Anthropomorphism? 110 9. Cute and the Monstrous: The Case of Donald Trump 128 10. Cute and the New Cult of the Child 137 11. Survival of the Cutest 151 vii
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