This paper builds on two leading models of artistic practice, the “network-building” and “autonomous sphere” approaches, to show how an expressive work can reverse the normal antinomy between artistic recognition and commercial success and become an immediate crossover hit. Focusing on a single “pointy” case from the world of literature—the 1996 novel Infinite Jest, by David Foster Wallace—I ask whether a set of unique social dynamics attends the process of making a “cultural splash.” In the case of Infinite Jest, success came from occupying an intermediate position in the “space between fields” and eliciting a complex, mutually referential response from cultural intermediaries. In this way, the book attracted samplings of recognition and renown, the contrasting reputational ingredients associated with an enduring cultural appeal. Nevertheless, the novel’s declining reputation in recent years suggests that we should differentiate a cultural splash from the better-known dynamics of canonization and classicization. In the paper’s final section, I conceptualize a cultural splash as an effect generated by works that undergo a “fast transcendence” by unmooring themselves temporarily from the limiting effects of being counted as “art” or “pop.”

本文以“网络构建”和“自治领域”两种主要的艺术实践模式为基础，展示富有表现力的作品如何扭转艺术认可与商业成功之间的正常对立，并立即成为跨界热门。专注于文学界的一个“尖锐”案例——大卫·福斯特·华莱士 1996 年的小说《无限笑话》——我想问是否有一套独特的社会动态伴随着“文化轰动”的过程。在无限笑话的情况下，成功来自于在“领域之间的空间”中占据一个中间位置，并引起文化中介的复杂、相互参照的反应。通过这种方式，这本书吸引了认可和声誉的样本，与持久的文化吸引力相关的对比声誉成分。尽管如此，近年来这部小说的声誉下降表明我们应该将文化飞溅与众所周知的经典化和经典化动态区分开来。在论文的最后一部分，我将文化飞溅概念化为作品所产生的效果，这些作品通过暂时摆脱被视为“艺术”或“流行”的限制效应而经历“快速超越”。