Robert A. Gross begins his article Markets, Magazines, and More with reference to a quote from Ellen Gruber Garvey’s book The Adman in the Parlor: Magazines and the Gendering of Consumer Culture which summarizes quite well the essential reason behind many developments that led to the creation of an American mass market. “Why…do men make magazines? To sell ad. space in them. What’s a magazine? So many pages of ad. space.” According to Gross magazines were not so much about content as they were about the advertisements in them. Of course, magazines had to be sold in order for people to read the ads, but the content of the magazine was not designed to improve the reader’s life but to get him interested in the product and eventually make him buy it.
Many scholars such as William Leach see this development in the American media landscape from a purely informational and even missionary character to a consumption and marketing based arena as a major move away from the traditional values of media outlets such as the newspaper and others. Leach evaluates this change in his book The Land of Desire where he takes a close look at the changes within the American culture and market. He argues that in the decades after the Civil War “American capitalism began to produce a distinct culture, unconnected to traditional family or community values, to religion in any conventional sense, or to political democracy. It was a secular business and market-oriented culture […].” He traces this change from the time of the Protestant settlers and early American community life, where the ultimate fulfilment was salvation, spiritual blessings for all and an end to poverty, to the 1900s, where those religious ideals were increasingly transformed and commercialized into personal satisfaction and individual pleasures and profit.
With the appearance of “new pleasure palaces” such as department stores, theaters, restaurants, hotels, dance halls, and amusement parks Americans experienced the joy of personal satisfaction. Whereas in the past, Leach writes, “values had taken their character from … the church; now they were deriving it from business and consumption.” This democratization of individual desire of the post Civil War culture is probably one of the “most notable contributions to modern society” according to Leach.
Table of Contents
1. The Creation of the American mass market and consumer culture
Research Objectives and Core Themes
The primary objective of this text is to analyze the historical development and underlying mechanisms of the American mass market and consumer culture, examining the shift from traditional, values-based community life to a commerce-driven society through the perspectives of various scholars.
- The transition from informational to consumption-based media landscapes.
- The influence of corporate marketing strategies and advertising techniques on consumer behavior.
- The role of government policy in shaping the development of mass media.
- The dynamic and contested relationship between consumer autonomy and producer manipulation.
- The cultural shift toward personal satisfaction and profit-oriented values.
Excerpt from the Book
The Creation of the American mass market and consumer culture
Robert A. Gross begins his article Markets, Magazines, and More with reference to a quote from Ellen Gruber Garvey’s book The Adman in the Parlor: Magazines and the Gendering of Consumer Culture which summarizes quite well the essential reason behind many developments that led to the creation of an American mass market. “Why…do men make magazines? To sell ad. space in them. What’s a magazine? So many pages of ad. space.” According to Gross magazines were not so much about content as they were about the advertisements in them. Of course, magazines had to be sold in order for people to read the ads, but the content of the magazine was not designed to improve the reader’s life but to get him interested in the product and eventually make him buy it.
Many scholars such as William Leach see this development in the American media landscape from a purely informational and even missionary character to a consumption and marketing based arena as a major move away from the traditional values of media outlets such as the newspaper and others. Leach evaluates this change in his book The Land of Desire where he takes a close look at the changes within the American culture and market. He argues that in the decades after the Civil War “American capitalism began to produce a distinct culture, unconnected to traditional family or community values, to religion in any conventional sense, or to political democracy. It was a secular business and market-oriented culture […].” He traces this change from the time of the Protestant settlers and early American community life, where the ultimate fulfilment was salvation, spiritual blessings for all and an end to poverty, to the 1900s, where those religious ideals were increasingly transformed and commercialized into personal satisfaction and individual pleasures and profit.
Summary of Chapters
1. The Creation of the American mass market and consumer culture: This chapter reviews scholarly perspectives on the transformation of American society into a consumer-driven culture, highlighting the roles of advertising, corporate strategy, and political intervention.
Keywords
American mass market, Consumer culture, Advertising, William Leach, Susan Strasser, Paul Starr, Consumerism, Capitalism, Mass media, Cultural shift, Market-oriented, Consumer behavior, Industrialization, Commercialization
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the central focus of this academic paper?
The paper examines the historical emergence of the American mass market and the subsequent development of a consumer-driven culture, specifically analyzing how media and corporate interests transformed societal values in the late 19th and 20th centuries.
What are the primary themes covered in the text?
Key themes include the shift in the function of magazines from informational content to advertising space, the transition from religious-based community values to secular consumption, and the debate regarding consumer autonomy versus manipulation.
What is the main research question or objective?
The text aims to explore how American society moved toward a consumer-capitalist structure and to determine whether this change was driven by inherent consumer desires or by the deliberate manipulation by producers and publishers.
Which scientific or analytical method is applied?
The author employs a comparative literature review, synthesizing the arguments of several prominent historians and social critics—such as William Leach, Susan Strasser, and Paul Starr—to provide a multi-faceted historical analysis.
What topics are discussed in the main body?
The body covers the growth of "pleasure palaces," the evolution of advertising technology, the regulatory impact of government postal policy on the magazine industry, and the criticism of the "one-sided" theory that producers hold absolute power over consumer choices.
Which keywords define the scope of the work?
The work is defined by concepts such as consumer capitalism, mass market creation, advertising strategy, corporate hegemony, and the socio-economic evolution of American culture.
How did government policies specifically influence the media landscape?
Paul Starr notes that shifts in postal policy between 1874 and 1885, specifically charging for publications by weight, provided an incentive for companies to use magazines as a primary advertising medium, thereby favoring commercial interests over purely informational ones.
What is the significance of the "pleasure palaces" mentioned in the text?
These venues, such as department stores and theaters, served as physical spaces where Americans could experience personal satisfaction, illustrating the shift away from church-centered values toward values derived from business and consumption.
Did any institutions resist the influence of consumer capitalism?
Yes, the author highlights that institutions like public universities and private colleges, alongside groups such as farmers and independent merchants, maintained alternative paths to success and resisted the total encroachment of commercial values.
- Citation du texte
- Michael Schmid (Auteur), 2004, The Creation of the American mass market and consumer culture, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/66610
