ABSTRACT
The process of historical change that resulted in the culture of consumption we know today has been for the most part a gradual one that defies the simplistic historiography of dates and events. To chart the emergence of a cultural ethos, a social practice, or an economic mode of production by isolating one element from a broader matrix is to obscure significant historical continuities that persist despite changing conditions. As Lipsitz (1994) remarks: “much of what seems new in contemporary culture carries within itself unresolved contradictions of the past” (p. 19). Nonetheless, major social, economic, and cultural innovations do carry with them the potential for radical transformations in the lives of people and communities. If a process such as consumption cannot be held accountable for all the changes apparent in a particular historical epoch, a careful analysis of it can, however, shed some new light on the nature of the historical changes occurring in that period. Ultimately, the study of consumption sites and practices is fertile ground for interdisciplinary work that focuses closely on the changing social, economic, and cultural conditions of our brave new world.
