Russell Belk is one of the most distinguished thought leaders in marketing and
consumer research. He is also one of its most distinctive. This paper examines
the distinctiveness of Russell Belk's remarkable writing style, arguing that it
exemplifies the `academic gothic'. Five characteristically gothic traits are
found in his published corpus — excess, monstrosity, irony,
supernaturalism, doubling — and the implications for writing
marketing research are considered.
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