عنوان

Radical consumption :

0335236839

9780335236831

0335221521

033522153X

1281953148

9780335221523

9780335221530

9781281953148

b701045

Radical consumption :

[Book]

shopping for change in contemporary culture /

Jo Littler.

New York :

Open University Press,

2009.

1 online resource (viii, 146 pages).

McGraw-Hill education

Includes bibliographical references (pages 117-140) and index.

Front cover; Half title page; Title page; Copyright page; Contents; Acknowledgements; Introduction; 1 Sanctimonious shopping?: Ethical consumption as a 'crisis of moralism'; 2 Cosmopolitan caring: globalization, charity and the activist-consumer; 3 Greenwash, whitewash, hogwash?: CSR and the media management of consumer concern; 4 Interior economies: anti-consumer activism and the limits of reflexivity; 5 Ecologies of green consumption; Notes; References; Index; Back cover

0

The increasingly conspicuous problems of contemporary consumerism (particularly social exploitation and environmental destruction) combined with the ever-expanding niche markets of neoliberal consumer capitalism have led, in recent years, to a skein of 'alternative' consumer practices. Ethical consumption, fair trade, consumer protests, brand backlashes, green goods, boycotts and downshifting: these are all now familiar consumer activities - and in some cases, are almost mainstream. This book suggests we can understand this phenomenon as an expanding field of 'radical consumption': for this is a world in which we are increasingly encouraged to shop for change. By examining their practices, precedents and politics, this book asks: just how radical are these forms of 'radical consumption'? It argues that we need a more expansive vocabulary and to open up approaches of enquiry in order to understand the area's many contradictions, strengths and weaknesses."Radical Consumption" therefore draws on a number of contemporary theories, terms and debates in media and cultural studies, including cosmopolitanism, reflexivity, cultural economies and ethics. By doing so, it raises a number of questions, including: Is ethical consumption merely a sop for the middle classes? Can such forms of consumption ever move beyond their niche market status to become an effective political force? Should we understand corporate social responsibility as a form of consumer-oriented greenwash? And can we really buy our way to a better, more equitable or sustainable future? "Radical Consumption" takes a multifaceted, interdisciplinary approach to examining contemporary radical consumption, analysing its possibilities and problems, mobile moralities, methods of mediation and its connections to wider cultural formations of production and politics.

Master and use copy. Digital master created according to Benchmark for Faithful Digital Reproductions of Monographs and Serials, Version 1. Digital Library Federation, December 2002.

MIL

195314

Radical consumption.

9780335221523

Shopping for change in contemporary culture

Consumer protection.

Consumption (Economics)-- Moral and ethical aspects.

Consumption (Economics)-- Social aspects.

Culture-- Economic aspects.

Environmentalism-- Economic aspects.

Green products.

Sustainable development-- Economic aspects.

Consumer protection.

Consumption (Economics)-- Moral and ethical aspects.

Consumption (Economics)-- Social aspects.

Culture-- Economic aspects.

Environmentalism-- Economic aspects.

Green products.

POLITICAL SCIENCE-- Public Policy-- Cultural Policy.

SOCIAL SCIENCE-- Anthropology-- Cultural.

SOCIAL SCIENCE-- Popular Culture.

Sustainable development-- Economic aspects.

JBCC

JBFS

JFC

POL-- 038000

SOC

SOC-- 002010

SOC-- 022000

Littler, Jo,1972-

20201207164625.0

pn

[Book]

Y