THE DEATH OF "THE DEATH OF..." (PLEASE!)

Roland Barthes, dead author

If you wish to make a name for yourself as a would-be intellectual, write an essay, an article, or a book with the title "The Death of X". ("The End of..." works well too.) Argue that X, which once was a vital, living cultural phenomenon is now virtually defunct. Sometimes the authors of these tracts (all of whom tend to be alive when they write them, despite the first item listed below) regret the passing of X, sometimes one suspects wishful thinking on their part. Here is a random listing...

The Death of the Author

The Death of the Novel

The Death of the Book

The Death of Ideology

The Death of Communism

The Death of Capitalism

The Death of Sex (subtitled ...and the Birth of Romance)

The End of Gay and the Death of Heterosexuality

The Death of God

The Death of Feminism

The Death of Democracy

.... and on and on it goes. None of these things need actually be dead, dying, or even feeling a little unwell. The important thing is people will be curious enough to read the article/book and then want to earnestly discuss it with others in an effort to appear up-to-date with the latest death-cults. If the originator of the death-cult is someone like Roland Barthes, the defining phrase will be tossed off by the intelligentsia as if it's an established fact, not a tenuous conceit. If it's more like Bert Archer, a few interviews in bar rags and a few invitations to present one's case on local talk shows should suffice for the standard Warholian quantum of notoriety.