The Consumer in History – Dr Peter Gurney (notes)

Concepts and themes

-               Hegemony of the modern consumer

-               Identify and ‘freedom of choice’

-               Consumption, social protest and political change

-               Limits of ‘consumer society’

-               Consumption and the environment

Citizen consumers – i.e. if we go into a NHS hospital now, they don’t view us as patients but consumers.

Its often assumed that we express who we are as people, we expect to have the freedom to choose how we consume.

The idea of freedom of choice is bound up in the Cold War..

We expect to be not slaves at work and not expect to express ourselves at work and have a limited freedom – unfulfilling jobs.

Shopping is political, not in terms of political parties. Political with a small ‘P’.

The golden age of capitalism, from the end of the 2^nd world war to the late 70’s: more fridges, record players, cars etc.

‘Consumer society’ was originally used as a negative, it feminised people. They worried about consumption and was a demonilising effect on the society.

The term limits of ‘consumer society’ suggests that we’re all in it, we all partake in it. So the question is, who is left out? Who can’t consume?

There is a lack of will to stop consumerism.

Barbara Kruger ‘I shop therefore I am’ (1987) a take on.. ‘s ‘I something therefore I am’ (look it up)

She uses a credit card shape – we’re nothing without credit/debit cards now.

Pete Betts ‘Post-Communism’ (1990) – Whats it saying about Lenny? What’s it saying about the dream of post economy? It is becoming more Capitalist. If we could paraphrase the image it shows that communism has failed, is it because of the cold war, nuclear bombs? Or is it because he’s gone to tescos? There again its freedom of choice.

Communism is eradicated.

The lure of that has undermined the communist utopia.

Ingram Pinn, Financial Times 13 August 2011 – What is wrong with Britain? Britain is broken. MPs expenses, Bankers bonuses and a regular person with adidas shoes.

Nike ‘sweatshops’ in China – working all hours for little money. Making cheap consumer goods to fund is in the West. This is why our consumer base has collapsed in the past 40-50 years.

Anti-Nike poster – using ‘Slavery’ with their logo as the ‘V’

‘If the shoe fits’ – it uses an image of a shoe squishing one of the workers.

Adulteration: no horsemeat sold here (2013) Manufactories want to make more from the product so they adulterate everything. The worst forms have been stopped, but nevertheless it still happens everyday.

British Gas (Centrica) first half profits for 2015: £528 million: ‘profiteering’? – Privatised under the Tories, they took public assets including British gas and sold them off as shares. They kept the name as it was patriotic and was like a seal of approval.

Profiteering – a charge against capitalist companies use in the cold war, there was a language you could use to criticise when we were getting ‘ripped off’.

Deaths from hypothermia from 2005-2013 of persons aged 65 years and over (England and Wales) – Shut out of consumerist prices, they cant afford the gas.

Number of deaths where hypothermia was mentioned on the death certificate of persons 65 years and over 2005-2013.

Food banks - biggest provider is Trussell Food Banks.

‘Conspicuous Consumption’ – high end – Rolls Royce

and Lower end – Fiat 500’s 5 years credit APR% etc, Makeup.

‘Private debt is good, public debt is bad’ Government have used the crash to minimised private debt.

Global warming – Extinction of polar bears. He predicts they will be extinct in our life time.

The 18^th Century Origins of Consumer Society

-               A consumer revolution?

-               Class, gender and consumerism?

-               Empire and commodities: sugar boycotts

-               Hazlitt’s critique of fashion

The earlier slave commodities was for cotton, tea, sugar.

Josiah Wedgewood (1730-1795) workers were massed together to create products cheaply and quickly which creates an explosions of products on the market.

Fantasy, desire and Victorian consumer culture:

-               Rise of the mass market

-               Invention of the ‘consumer’

-               Great exhibition 1851

-               Development of department stores

19^th Century created classes of people. And with that the middle class continuously grows.

The 1840s used to be called ‘the hungry 40s’ as many people starved to death. There was depression. Most workers were consuming more than they had. They benefited from the consumption opportunities.

Making Britain one of the oldest capitalist consumerist countries in the world.

You cannot satisfy a consumer. Desire is always the downfall; you get the 5 series BMW but then want the 7 series.

George Cruikshank: Consuming anxieties series (1800ish)- illustrates the negativities of consumers.

Avid consumers – interior design, gardening, cooking – all domestic consumerism. The Victorians are to blame for that, created interior designs, gardens. (It is not all negative aspects)

Primark – CONSUMERISM COMPANY – How can these goods be made at this price? Because the workers cost/paid so little.

The Great Exhibition, Hyde Park, London 1851 – a showcase of British commodities, of British capitalism. It was effectively a huge department store.

George Cruikshank illustrated the closing of The Great Exhibition with the goods spread out to the rest of the world. Which is exactly what happened, the Exhibitions spread across the countries.

Democratic Alternatives to Capitalist Consumerism:

-               Consumer organising and class conflict

-               Regulating the market

-               Revolution or reform: moralising capitalism?

-               Co-operation or competition?

They took the profits which were made from the products and gave it back to the public. They would give back 15% percent of what they’ve spent.

Co-ops now try to regulate the market and empower the consumers.