{"product_id":"the-world-of-goods-routledge-classics-9780367679828","title":"The World of Goods Routledge Classics","description":"\u003cb\u003eBook Synopsis\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eIt is well-understood that the consumption of goods plays an important, symbolic role in the way human beings communicate, create identity, and establish relationships. What is less well-known is that the pattern of their flow shapes society in fundamental ways. In this book the renowned anthropologist Mary Douglas and economist Baron Isherwood overturn arguments about consumption that rely on received economic and psychological explanations. They ask new questions about why people save, why they spend, what they buy, and why they sometimes-but not always-make fine distinctions about quality.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eInstead of regarding consumption as a private means of satisfying oneâs preferences, they show how goods are a vital information system, used by human beings to fulfill their intentions towards one another. They also consider the implications of the social role of goods for a new vision for social policy, arguing that poverty is caused as much by the erosion of local communities and networks as it is by lack of possessions, and contrast small-scale with large-scale consumption in the household. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA radical rethinking of consumerism, inequality and social capital, \u003ci\u003eThe World of Goods\u003c\/i\u003e is a classic of economic anthropology whose insights remain compelling and urgent.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis Routledge Classics edition includes a new foreword by Richard Wilk.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eForget that commodities are good for eating, clothing, and shelter; forget their usefulness and try instead the idea that commodities are good for thinking.\u003ci\u003e â Mary Douglas and Baron Isherwood\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTrade Review\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\"A pioneering work of the anthropology of consumption\"\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e - The Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\"The most widely read British social anthropologist of her generation\"\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e - The Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\"A master at discerning order in unexpected forms and surprising places\"\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e - The New York Times\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTable of Contents\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eForeword to the Routledge Classics Edition \u003cem\u003eRichard Wilk\u003c\/em\u003e Introduction \u003cstrong\u003ePart 1: Goods as an Information System\u003c\/strong\u003e 1. Why People Want Goods 2. Why They Save 3. The Uses of Goods 4. Exclusion, Intrusion 5. The Technology of Consumption 6. Consumption Periodicities \u003cstrong\u003ePart 2: Implications for social policy\u003c\/strong\u003e 7. Separate Economic Spheres in Ethnography 8. International Comparisons 9. Consumption Classes 10. Control of Value \u003cem\u003eIndex\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Taylor \u0026 Francis Ltd (Sales)","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51037052764503,"sku":"9780367679828","price":16.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0817\/1739\/5799\/files\/9780367679828.jpg?v=1750934179","url":"https:\/\/bookcurl.com\/products\/the-world-of-goods-routledge-classics-9780367679828","provider":"Book Curl","version":"1.0","type":"link"}