The Performativity of Value: On the Citability of Cultural Commodities

298 Pages·2014·3.561 MB·English

by  Steve Sherlock

The Performativity of Value

The Performativity of Value
On the Citability of Cultural Commodities
Steve Sherlock
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Sherlock,Steve,1958-
Theperformativityofvalue:onthecitabilityofculturalcommodities/SteveSherlock.
p.cm.
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
ISBN978-0-7391-6861-5(cloth)—ISBN978-0-7391-6862-2(electronic)
1.Value.2.Groupidentity.3.Commercialproducts.I.Title.
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Contents
Acknowledgments vii
I:TowardaPoststructuralistTheoryofValue:Developmentof
theTheoreticalApproach 1
1 Introduction 3
2 ReportedSpeechandCitationality 27
II:ThePerformativityofValue:Descriptionofthe
ContemporaryU.S.CulturalEconomy 57
3 CitationalPracticesandthePerformativityofSubculturalValues 59
4 CitationalPracticesandthePerformativityofExchangeValue 103
5 TheMarketingofCitationalResources 157
III:TowardaPoststructuralistCritiqueoftheCommodification
ofLanguageintheU.S.CulturalEconomy 201
6 ThePromiseofValue 203
WorksCited 267
Index 277
AbouttheAuthor 289

v

Acknowledgments
I would like to thank Lexington Press for publishing this book. I would
particularly like to thank Jana Hodges-Kluck, my editor at Lexington Press,
forherexpertiseandtimespentonthisproject,andherpatienceinbringingit
topublication.Iwouldliketothankmyproductioneditor,CatherineMudge,
aswellasalltheothersassociatedwithLexingtonPresswhoworkedonthis
project.Ialsothanktheanonymousreviewersofthismanuscriptforcontrib-
utingtheirtimeandhelpfulinsights.
IwouldalsoliketoacknowledgefundingbytheNationalEndowmentof
the Humanities for two summer seminars which contributed to my develop-
ment as a scholar. The first was conducted in 1995 by Dr. Samuel Weber at
UCLA, entitled “From the Work of Art to the Serializing of the Media:
CommunicationandSignificationinWalterBenjaminandOtherTheorists.”
Thesecondwasconductedin2001byDr.AlexGelleyatUC-Irvine,entitled
“WalterBenjamin’sArcadesProject:CommodityFetishismandtheAesthet-
ics of the City.” I would like to thank both Dr. Weber and Dr. Gelley for
these seminars, both of which contributed to my understanding of critical
social theory and poststructuralism. I would also like to thank the graduate
facultyatNotreDameduringmyformativeyearsoflearningsocialtheory—
especiallyDr.FabioDasilvaandDr.FredDallmayr.
I would like to thank theadministration atSaginawValleyState Univer-
sity for sabbatical support for this project. I also thank the administration,
university faculty, my department colleagues, and the support staff at Sagi-
nawValleyfortheirhelpandfriendshipovermycareerattheuniversity.
Finally,Iwouldliketothankallofmyfamilymembersfortheirongoing
support and assistance, and I would especially like to thank my love, Mi-
chele,forherconsiderationandencouragementwhileIwrotethisbook.

vii

I
Toward a Poststructuralist Theory of
Value: Development of the Theoretical
Approach