Patricia Cormack

Patricia Cormack

Ph.D., York
Professor
605
Nicholson Tower
(902) 867-2224
pcormack@stfx.ca

Dr. Cormack studies state formation in Canada, especially in terms of how the state makes itself appealing to citizens. She has published a book on this topic (with J. Cosgrave) called, Desiring Canada: CBC Contests, Hockey Violence, and Other Stately Pleasures (University of Toronto Press, 2013). She has also explored the intersection of celebrity and state in the case of the Jian Ghomeshi scandal at the CBC and the formulation of Justin Trudeau as a celebrity in the 2015 Canadian federal election. Dr. Cormack also studies Durkheim, especially in the context of teaching sociological thinking.

Research Interests

State, Canada, celebrity, nationalism, classical theory.

Recent Publications

Books –

Cormack, Patricia and James F. Cosgrave. (2013) Desiring Canada: CBC Contests, Hockey Violence, and Other Stately Pleasures. University of Toronto Press.

Cormack, Patricia. (2002)  Sociology and Mass Culture: Durkheim, Mills, and Baudrillard. University of Toronto Press. 

Cormack, Patricia. (ed.) (1999) Manifestos and Declarations of the 20th Century. Garamond Press.

Refereed Articles –

Patricia Cormack, James F. Cosgrave, David Feltmate. (2017) “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Sociology: Goffman, Mills, and Berger. Sociological Review. Vol. 65, No. 2.

Melissa Horsman and Patricia Cormack. (2016) “A Meaningful Meaninglessness: Canadian University ‘hook-up’ and ‘party’ culture as gendered and class-based privilege.” Gender & Education.

Patricia Cormack and James F. Cosgrave. (2016) "State Celebrity, Institutional Charisma, and the Public Sphere: Managing Scandal at the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation" Media, Culture & Society. Vol. 38, No. 7.

Cormack, Patricia and Mireille Lalancette. (2015) “Trudeau as Celebrity Politician: Winning by More than a Hair” Canadian Election Analysis 2015: Communication, Strategy, and Canadian Democracy Samara/UBC Press.

Cormack, Patricia (2015) “Mass Culture”. The Wiley-Blackwell Encyclopedia of Consumption and Consumer Studies. Ed. J. Michael Ryan and Daniel Cook.

Patricia Cormack, James F. Cosgrave (2013). “Theorising the State Celebrity: A Case Study of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation”. Celebrity Studies. Vol. 5, No. 3.

Patricia Cormack, James F. Cosgrave, and Lynda Harling-Stalker (2012). “Who Counts Now? Re-making the Canadian Citizen”. Canadian Journal of Sociology (special issue on cancelation of mandatory long-form census).  Vol. 37, No.3.

Cormack, Patricia. (2011) “Branding and Politics in Canada: The Case of Tim Hortons and the Public Sphere”. In Political Marketing in Canada: The Practice of Political Marketing and How it is Changing Canadian Democracy. University of British Columbia Press.

Cormack, Patricia. (2010) “Masses”. Baudrillard Dictionary. Ed. Richard G. Smith. Edinburgh University Press & Columbia University Press.

Patricia Cormack. (2008) " 'True Stories' of Canada: Tim Hortons and the Branding of National Identity". Cultural Sociology. Vol. 2, No. 3.

James F. Cosgrave and Patricia Cormack. (2008) “Disenchanted Wonder: Collecting Canadian Identity through the CBC ‘Seven Wonders of Canada’ Project”. Topia: Canadian Journal of Cultural Studies. No. 20.

Cormack, Patricia. (2005) "Angels, Bells, Television and Ireland: the Place of the Angelus Broadcast in the Republic". Media, Culture & Society. Vol.27, No.2.

Cormack, Patricia and Clare Fawcett. (2002) "Cultural gatekeepers in the L.M. Montgomery tourist industry". In Literature and Tourism:  Reading and Writing Tourism Texts, ed. by H-C. Anderson, M. Robinson, pp. 169-190. London: Continuum.

Fawcett, Clare and Patricia Cormack. (2001) "Guarding Authenticity at Three L.M. Montgomery Sites." Annals of Tourism Research. Vo. 28, No. 3.

Cormack, Patricia (1999) "Making the Sociological Promise: A Case Study of Rosemary Brown's Autobiography." Canadian Review of Sociology & Anthropology. Vol. 36: No.3.

Cormack, Patricia. (1996)"The Paradox of Durkheim's Manifesto:  Reconsidering The Rules of Sociological Method." Theory & Society Vol 25, No. 1.