Consumption, Spectacles of

In the phrase “cathedrals of consumption,” “cathedrals” refers to settings designed to attract people and compel them to spend their time and money. For a setting to become a cathedral, consumers have to be enchanted, which is to say that the setting must create a spectacular aura that draws people to it and seduces them to consume. In this sense, “spectacular” and “enchanted” are synonymous, signifying a positivity, at least from the perspective of the capitalists who have designed and invested in these cathedrals of consumption. In one sense, this same positivity is also in play in the phrase “spectacles of consumption.” Just as spectacular auras must permeate the atmosphere of cathedrals of consumption, the same kinds of enchanting auras must enliven spectacles of consumption. The positivity in all of these spectacles is that no matter what their content is, the requirement that the spectacle of consumption be enchanting is essential for making a profit. In a another sense, however, “spectacles of consumption” signifies something inherently and profoundly negative. In this latter sense, spectacles of consumption are to be critiqued and challenged, and their enchanting aspects are interpreted as being seductively corrosive and perniciously alienating

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• Consumption, Spectacles of

  Open Access•Sam Binkley•The Blackwell Encyclopedia of…•2007

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