Santa’s Little Helper and Star of Instagram, Elf on the Shelf: Gendered Labour, Normalising Surveillance and Digitising a Childhood Phenomenon
The Elf on the Shelf (EotS) has become—as well as being a best-selling book and toy of the same name—a cultural phenomenon. As a Christmas tradition, the EotS only dates back to 2005, but has quickly gained hold in homes across the world. For the marketers of EotS, it’s also a huge money-spinner, ea...
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| Format: | Book Chapter |
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Springer
2021
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-65916-5_22 http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/86067 |
| _version_ | 1848764781385744384 |
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| author | Archer, Catherine Leaver, Tama |
| author2 | Holloway, Donell |
| author_facet | Holloway, Donell Archer, Catherine Leaver, Tama |
| author_sort | Archer, Catherine |
| building | Curtin Institutional Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | The Elf on the Shelf (EotS) has become—as well as being a best-selling book and toy of the same name—a cultural phenomenon. As a Christmas tradition, the EotS only dates back to 2005, but has quickly gained hold in homes across the world. For the marketers of EotS, it’s also a huge money-spinner, earning millions worldwide. Originally self-published as a book by a retired teacher in 2005, the EotS book now sells with an EotS toy who sits on the shelf and, according to its story, reports back to Santa any ‘naughty or nice’ behaviour of the resident children. The EotS resides in many homes and schools pre-Christmas, giving parents and teachers leverage in the lead up to Christmas. EotS can also be viewed as a more sinister societal surveillance tool, normalising the panopticon and making parents complicit with the concept of omnipresent spying. While ‘magical’ rather than technological, EotS could nevertheless be seen as normalising and promoting a parentally-endorsed surveillance (and consumer) culture. Simultaneously, the EotS also has become both a chore and a source of fun for parents of Santa believers globally, as parents (mostly mothers) each night change the Elf’s location and position. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T11:24:49Z |
| format | Book Chapter |
| id | curtin-20.500.11937-86067 |
| institution | Curtin University Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T11:24:49Z |
| publishDate | 2021 |
| publisher | Springer |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | curtin-20.500.11937-860672021-10-27T05:36:30Z Santa’s Little Helper and Star of Instagram, Elf on the Shelf: Gendered Labour, Normalising Surveillance and Digitising a Childhood Phenomenon Archer, Catherine Leaver, Tama Holloway, Donell Willson, Michele Murcia, Karen Archer, Catherine Stocco, Francesca 2001 - Communication and Media Studies The Elf on the Shelf (EotS) has become—as well as being a best-selling book and toy of the same name—a cultural phenomenon. As a Christmas tradition, the EotS only dates back to 2005, but has quickly gained hold in homes across the world. For the marketers of EotS, it’s also a huge money-spinner, earning millions worldwide. Originally self-published as a book by a retired teacher in 2005, the EotS book now sells with an EotS toy who sits on the shelf and, according to its story, reports back to Santa any ‘naughty or nice’ behaviour of the resident children. The EotS resides in many homes and schools pre-Christmas, giving parents and teachers leverage in the lead up to Christmas. EotS can also be viewed as a more sinister societal surveillance tool, normalising the panopticon and making parents complicit with the concept of omnipresent spying. While ‘magical’ rather than technological, EotS could nevertheless be seen as normalising and promoting a parentally-endorsed surveillance (and consumer) culture. Simultaneously, the EotS also has become both a chore and a source of fun for parents of Santa believers globally, as parents (mostly mothers) each night change the Elf’s location and position. 2021 Book Chapter http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/86067 10.1007/978-3-030-65916-5_22 https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-65916-5_22 Springer restricted |
| spellingShingle | 2001 - Communication and Media Studies Archer, Catherine Leaver, Tama Santa’s Little Helper and Star of Instagram, Elf on the Shelf: Gendered Labour, Normalising Surveillance and Digitising a Childhood Phenomenon |
| title | Santa’s Little Helper and Star of Instagram, Elf on the Shelf: Gendered Labour, Normalising Surveillance and Digitising a Childhood Phenomenon |
| title_full | Santa’s Little Helper and Star of Instagram, Elf on the Shelf: Gendered Labour, Normalising Surveillance and Digitising a Childhood Phenomenon |
| title_fullStr | Santa’s Little Helper and Star of Instagram, Elf on the Shelf: Gendered Labour, Normalising Surveillance and Digitising a Childhood Phenomenon |
| title_full_unstemmed | Santa’s Little Helper and Star of Instagram, Elf on the Shelf: Gendered Labour, Normalising Surveillance and Digitising a Childhood Phenomenon |
| title_short | Santa’s Little Helper and Star of Instagram, Elf on the Shelf: Gendered Labour, Normalising Surveillance and Digitising a Childhood Phenomenon |
| title_sort | santa’s little helper and star of instagram, elf on the shelf: gendered labour, normalising surveillance and digitising a childhood phenomenon |
| topic | 2001 - Communication and Media Studies |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-65916-5_22 http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/86067 |