Book contents
- Ibsen in Context
- Ibsen in Context
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Contributors
- Preface
- Notes on the text
- Chronology
- Part I Life and Career
- Part II Culture and Society
- Part III Scandinavian Reception
- Chapter 13 The Ibsen Book
- Chapter 14 Publishing and Readerships
- Chapter 15 Criticism
- Chapter 16 Celebrity
- Part IV Internationalization
- Part V Afterlives
- Further Reading
- Index
Chapter 16 - Celebrity
from Part III - Scandinavian Reception
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 23 April 2021
- Ibsen in Context
- Ibsen in Context
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Contributors
- Preface
- Notes on the text
- Chronology
- Part I Life and Career
- Part II Culture and Society
- Part III Scandinavian Reception
- Chapter 13 The Ibsen Book
- Chapter 14 Publishing and Readerships
- Chapter 15 Criticism
- Chapter 16 Celebrity
- Part IV Internationalization
- Part V Afterlives
- Further Reading
- Index
Summary
From the late 1870s Ibsen’s international fame started growing. His plays triggered debates and controversies, and the press followed him closely. His work generated immense public interest, as did his person and personal life, and by 1890 he was firmly established as a European literary celebrity. Nineteenth-century celebrities were – like modern celebrities – first and foremost media personalities. Their fame was promoted and maintained by newspapers, periodicals and magazines and, importantly, by new visual techniques like lithography and photography. This chapter describes how an iconic Ibsen was constructed in cartes de visite and cabinet cards produced in European photo studios during the latter part of the nineteenth century. As Ibsen’s fame grew, his portrait photos, originally meant for promotional use, entered the public sphere and began a life of their own. Eventually, they became collectors’ items to be kept in elaborate albums. After sketching the construction of the icon, the chapter traces its circulation in popular visual culture around 1900. Within the emerging consumer culture, portraits of Ibsen – like those of other celebrities – were printed on postcards and trade cards and used to promote a range of luxury commodities.
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- Ibsen in Context , pp. 136 - 146Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2021
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