Offering what he says may be the first of its kind in the nation, sociology professor Mathieu Deflem of the University of South Carolina plans to teach a course next spring on Lady Gaga that will seek to explain the success of the mega pop star. Deflem, a 15-year instructor and fan of the singer, says the class (Lady Gaga and the Sociology of Fame) will look at the woman as a social event, noting how she has managed to attract 10 million followers on Facebook and six million on Twitter.

 

Deflem’s decision represents a dramatic turn for the professor whose focus has been in criminology, policing and the sociology of law. But like millions of people, Deflem can’t seem to get enough of Lady Gaga, having attended 28 of her concerts and counting, both in the U.S. and overseas. He also has his own website devoted to her: gagafrontrow.net.

 

“Other people say that Gaga’s the new Madonna,” Deflem told the university’s newspaper, the Daily Gamecock. “But I don’t see it that way at all. I see it more like there’s people who have this very individual thing. Frank Zappa had it. Prince had it. Miles Davis had it. Jimi Hendrix had it. And Lady Gaga has it.”

 

The official description of the class notes that, “First-year students are not advised to take this course because the scholarly approach adopted in the course might be too challenging.”

-Noel Brinkerhoff

 

Professor Goes Gaga (by Jake FitzGerald, Daily Gamecock)

SOCY 398D Course Overview (University of South Carolina)

Lady Gaga and the Sociology of the Fame (University of South Carolina)