Documentando a superação: Demi Lovato: Stay Strong e o discurso terapêutico contemporâneo

Abstract

In this article, we demonstrate how contemporary therapeutic discourse shapes the construction of different subject position for Demi Lovato in the documentary Stay Strong, produced by MTV, in a context marked by the massive presence of biographical narratives of celebrities’ disorders and mishaps in the media culture. We also analyze how the suffering in the contemporary culture amalgam authenticity, intimacy and identity in the relations between celebrities and their fans by setting a motivational ethos. We conclude that, in contemporary times, celebrities are recreated as self-heroes by the media exposure of their weaknesses, problems and personal misfortunes. In this discursive practice, Demi Lovato becomes an example of suffering and overcoming. Keywords: Demi Lovato, therapeutic discourse, subject position, documentary, biography.