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Paris Hilton has had enough of being a caricature

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'Past the magazine-cover perfection she presents to the world, there's a hell of a lot of trauma'

Paris Hilton has been famous for as long as I can remember. First just the atmospheric fame of extreme wealth, later as a party girl, later still as a reality TV star. She always seemed a cipher for whatever was disapproved of at the time, so people poured scorn on her for being a “celebutante”, famous for being famous, and later held her up as the height of 2000s vacuity. Granted, the '00s were pretty vacuous, but there seemed to be a top note of misogyny to all this. Surely, party men were vacuous, too – but “party men”, as a genre, didn’t even exist.

Likewise, Hilton’s sex tape, by today’s lights, was a clear example of exploitation. But the whole business was so shrouded in mystery - indeed, her business was mysterious: what was a paparazzi shot, sneaked without her knowledge, and what had she deliberately set up? What was real, in her air-headed reality TV persona, and what was she amplifying for comic effect? Which parties was she paid to attend, and which was she at to authentically see her authentic friends, and was there even a Rizla of difference between the two? So the rumours that perhaps she’d had a hand in the tape’s release, for publicity purposes, seemed just as likely as anything else.

You’d have had to be a really close Paris-watcher to parse these fine distinctions, and none of them seemed to matter that much, since she seemed to be having a blast, either way. At the start of her fame, it was fashionable to disapprove of consumerism and vapidity, while at the same time feverishly following it. More recently, privilege has taken their place, and Paris Hilton embodied that too, with all the same caveats, that she was simultaneously derided for it and obsessed-over. I hadn’t really processed her as a human being, because of all these swirling, shape-shifting caricatures, and I definitely hadn’t processed her life story as in any way sad, or for there to be any genuine troubles underneath the insistent, jaunty flashing of those incredibly white teeth.

In fact, there’s a hell of a lot of awful trauma in her past: grooming by a teacher, drugging and likely sexual assault by an acquaintance, kidnapping - sanctioned by her parents - to one of those “therapeutic” boarding schools like '60s borstals without the oversight. It’s still quite hard to match this past with the magazine-cover perfection she presents to the world, but perception turns like an oil tanker. Speaking to Paris, it seems she’s had enough of being a caricature.

Zoe Williams

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Email Template Skip to main content The Guardian   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌   ‌ Inside Saturday Powered by readers, open to all. Support us   How we wrote Featured Image Credit: Mary Rozzi / The Guardian Features 'PAST THE MAGAZINE-COVER PERFECTION SHE PRESENTS TO THE WORLD, THERE'S A HELL OF A LOT OF TRAUMA' Paris Hilton has been famous for as long as I can remember. First just the atmospheric fame of extreme wealth, later as a party girl, later still as a reality TV star. She always seemed a cipher for whatever was disapproved of at the time, so people poured scorn on her for being a “celebutante”, famous for being famous, and later held her up as the height of 2000s vacuity. Granted, the '00s were pretty vacuous, but there seemed to be a top note of misogyny to all this. Surely, party men were vacuous, too – but “party men”, as a genre, didn’t even exist. Likewise, Hilton’s sex tape, by today’s lights, was a clear example of exploitation. But the whole business was so shrouded in mystery - indeed, her business was mysterious: what was a paparazzi shot, sneaked without her knowledge, and what had she deliberately set up? What was real, in her air-headed reality TV persona, and what was she amplifying for comic effect? Which parties was she paid to attend, and which was she at to authentically see her authentic friends, and was there even a Rizla of difference between the two? So the rumours that perhaps she’d had a hand in the tape’s release, for publicity purposes, seemed just as likely as anything else. You’d have had to be a really close Paris-watcher to parse these fine distinctions, and none of them seemed to matter that much, since she seemed to be having a blast, either way. At the start of her fame, it was fashionable to disapprove of consumerism and vapidity, while at the same time feverishly following it. More recently, privilege has taken their place, and Paris Hilton embodied that too, with all the same caveats, that she was simultaneously derided for it and obsessed-over. I hadn’t really processed her as a human being, because of all these swirling, shape-shifting caricatures, and I definitely hadn’t processed her life story as in any way sad, or for there to be any genuine troubles underneath the insistent, jaunty flashing of those incredibly white teeth. In fact, there’s a hell of a lot of awful trauma in her past: grooming by a teacher, drugging and likely sexual assault by an acquaintance, kidnapping - sanctioned by her parents - to one of those “therapeutic” boarding schools like '60s borstals without the oversight. It’s still quite hard to match this past with the magazine-cover perfection she presents to the world, but perception turns like an oil tanker. Speaking to Paris, it seems she’s had enough of being a caricature. ZOE WILLIAMS Spacer Image v O .. EDITH PRITCHETT'S WEEK IN VENN DIAGRAMS UK using its post Brexit deals to import low quality meat Finding somewhere to rent In Londoh Phenhomenal amount of effort, stress and money for a predictably dire Feward PLUS, INSIDE Articles Image ‘Don’t go a day without touch’ COUPLES REVEAL THE LITTLE THINGS THAT MAKE A RELATIONSHIP WORK Guardian writers and readers share the habits and rituals they have with their partners to keep things ticking over nicely Articles Image ‘I’m not afraid to die’ SAM NEILL ON HIS NEW MEMOIR AND LIVING WITH BLOOD CANCER The actor’s book reveals he will need chemo for the rest of his life. But relaxing on his farm, he is philosophical Articles Image ‘I’m a militant atheist’ DAVID BADDIEL ON WHY GOD IS TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE The comedian discusses his search for identity, one-upping Tom Stoppard – and how football can fill a religion-shaped hole Articles Image The women forced out of Iran ‘EVERY ACT OF RESISTANCE IS A SPARK OF HOPE’ As Iranian girls rise up against the iron rule of the Islamic Republic, seven women talk about why they had to flee their homeland EDITOR’S PICK About Image In 2014, Brenda Leyland was confronted outside her home by a reporter after sending hundreds of tweets trolling the McCanns on Twitter. Four days later, she took her own life. What led Brenda to spend hours attacking a couple she’d never met, and why was her exposure so devastating that it resulted in her suicide? Nine years on, her son Ben speaks to Simon Hattenstone about his mother’s complicated legacy. Joe Stone, commissioning editor LAST WEEK’S HIGHLIGHTS Bullet The big idea: in a disaster, bad help can be worse than no help at all Bullet Tim Dowling: is it the suburbs my wife finds dispiriting? Or me? Bullet How Andy Warhol kickstarted our obsession with superstars Bullet Sali Hughes: The hard-working sunscreens that also add a glow Bullet One man’s incredible photos of all 58 of Britain’s native butterflies The Guardian Gl?%lian Manage your emails | You are receiving this email because you are a subscriber to Inside Saturday. Guardian News & Media Limited - a member of Guardian Media Group PLC. Registered Office: Kings Place, 90 York Way, London, N1 9GU. Registered in England No. 908396
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