_Deconstructing Brad Pitt

The reactions evoked by images of and stories about Brad Pitt are many and wide-ranging: while one person might swoon or exclaim, another rolls his eyes or groans. How a single figure provokes such strong, often opposing emotions is a puzzle, one elegantly explored and perhaps even solved by _Deconstructing Brad Pitt.

Co-editors Christopher Schaberg and Robert Bennett have shaped a book that is not simply a multifaceted analysis of Brad Pitt as an actor and as a celebrity, but which is also a personal inquiry into how we are drawn to, turned on, or otherwise piqued by Pitt's performances and personae. Written in accessible prose and culled from the expertise of scholars across different fields, _Deconstructing Brad Pitt lingers on this iconic actor and elucidates his powerful influence on contemporary culture.

The editors will be donating a portion of their royalties to Pitt's Make It Right foundation.

“With just the right mix of wit, self-awareness, and critical passion, the authors subject the curious case of brand Pitt--artist and star, boy toy and generational icon, Redford scion and Ninth Ward architect, Chanel shill and co-proprietor of the going concern known as Brangelina--to edifying and satisfying scrutiny.” – Eric Lott, City University of New York, The Graduate Center, USA

“In this exciting anthology, Schaberg and Bennett continue the work of DeAngelis, Negra, and Pomerance, once again demonstrating that an intensive study of a popular Hollywood film star will reveal not the margins, but the center of how American culture functions. The path charted by Richard Dyer 35 years ago has led to a flourishing of analyses of stardom, wonderfully executed here by Schaberg, Bennett, and their collaborators, who skillfully interrogate Brad Pitt's cinematic, popular, and political image. The first rule of Brad Pitt Studies is you MUST read and talk about _Deconstructing Brad Pitt!” – Walter Metz, Southern Illinois University, USA