79 344 - American Consumer Culture

Institution:

Carnegie Mellon University

Subject:

Description:

Are you what you buy? Has shopping replaced working as the pursuit which brings meaning and value to our lives? This course examines how and why Americans came to define the ?good life? through the acquisition of 'stuff,? the pursuit of leisure activities, and the longing for material abundance, from colonial times to the present. Weekly readings, films, discussions, and essay assignments, will focus on the ways in which ordinary people have embraced, shaped, and resisted consumption and consumerism as a core ideal of American culture and life. Along the way, we will consider the following questions: What does it mean to say that the United States is a consumer society? If we are one, how and when did we become one? Does consumption liberate or imprison us? Specific topics include shoplifting, advertising, branding, boycotts, annual model changes, and consumer activism.

Credits:

9.00

Credit Hours:

Prerequisites:

Corequisites:

Exclusions:

Level:

Instructional Type:

Lecture

Notes:

Additional Information:

Historical Version(s):

Institution Website:

www.cmu.edu/

Phone Number:

(412) 268-2000

Regional Accreditation:

Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools

Calendar System:

Semester

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