Alternative Hedonism Research Articles

Confronting the deep problem of consumption: Why individual responsibility for mindful consumption matters

AbstractDecades of intentional cultivation of consumerism, materialism, affluence, and hedonism, fueled by advertising messages, have created a consumption culture that is not sustainable anymore. In addition to the problems of climate change, there are also significant social costs associated with overconsumption and harmful consumption. We identify the causes of the consumption problem and why individual consumers must take responsibility to avoid harmful consumption for their own and societal well‐being. Although multi‐faceted action by governments, marketers, and civil societies is essential, a bottom‐up transformational movement is also required to drive the mindful consumption mindset. Top‐down measures of technology‐led efficient product solutions and consumer nudging strategies have had limited success compared to the rate at which the problem is compounding. Thus, we suggest four critical interventions to socialize the bottom‐up mindful consumption movement—education for transformative social learning; alternative hedonism; advertising, tv, and social media messaging; and creating an engagement forum for all like‐minded people devoted to the cause. Through socializing the bottom‐up mindful consumption movement, these interventions will encourage a cultural shift toward alternative lifestyle conceptions of well‐being, leading to increased sustainable consumption behavior and eudaimonia.

Alternative Hedonism and the Critique of Consumption in the Philosophical Thought of Kate Soper

The focus of this paper is on the philosopher Kate Soper, author of at least a dozen books on feminism and continental philosophy. She has been involved in numerous environmental and peace movements in the UK and elsewhere in Europe, and her work on ecological issues is partly influenced by this. She has published numerous articles in Radical Philosophy, New Left Review and Capitalism Nature Socialism. This paper attempts to summarise her theory of 'alternative hedonism'.

倫理的消費ともうひとつの快楽主義 K.ソパーによる消費主義批判の刷新

倫理的消費ともうひとつの快楽主義 K.ソパーによる消費主義批判の刷新

Alternative Hedonism: Its Relation to Tattoo Coverage and Community Type

Alternative hedonism is an unconventional form of consumerism that offers a middle-ground consumption practice between sustainability and hedonism. Based on a review of the literature, we identified three major themes of alternative hedonism: seeking pleasure from consuming differently, civic responsibility, and voluntary simplicity. This study is designed to determine whether tattoo coverage (none, light, or heavy) and community type (urban, suburban, or rural) have main and interaction effects on alternative hedonism practices such as community engagement, green consumption, shopping small, and holistic wellness. We collected data via online survey from 168 lightly tattooed, 213 heavily tattooed, and 185 non-tattooed individuals. We discuss implications of our findings for both scholars and practitioners.

Predatory and Alternative Hedonism – Better Later than Now?

Hedonistic ethos is to intensify in the environment of consumer culture and in the atmosphere of unlimited consumerism, intentionally supported by market mechanisms. The value patterns of hedonistic life style are defined by experience motivations, excitement, sensual pleasures, delight, self-satisfaction, intensive need for emotional stimulations, present-time orientation or accelerated pace of life. It is considered identical with radical inclination towards individualization life practices, rapidly growing egoism and narcissistic tendencies confirming the meaning of one’s own existence. Life philosophy of independence, non-determination and “inner orientation” logically leads to the application of such life strategies that can support and develop this attitude to life. Predatory hedonism focusing on the values of pleasurable experience requires mobility, flexibility and variability; it refuses to accept stability and obligations, i.e. anything that could tie and restrict life movement focusing on the fleeting and shifting world of experiences. It is a life “without ties”, unpredictable, unsettled, wild and impulsive. Hedonistic life style oriented towards consumer values, however, meets with frequent social, ecological and ethical criticism. There is room for discussion related to the alternative model of hedonism based on more responsible and well-considered approach towards consumption and voluntary modesty, which shall eventually enhance the sense of personal happiness and general satisfaction with life. Ethical consumption, as part of fulfilling the idea of alternative hedonism, may become an attractive objective of this lifestyle, based on a non-ascetic, but socially and environmentally friendly, way of life. The alternative hedonism is further compared with ideas of economics of productive consumption and with development of financial market.

Against accumulation: lifestyle minimalism, de-growth and the present post-ecological condition

ABSTRACTThe post-2008 financial crisis era has seen an upsurge in popular cultural narratives that implicitly challenge principles of economic productivity, consumption and growth by lamenting a so-called ‘world of too much,’ advocating ethics of minimalism, and renouncing everyday busyness. Narratives range from lifestyle advice on simplicity and de-cluttering private homes, to quests for the reduction of individual labor, communication, social contacts and distraction. This article questions these narratives in terms of eco-politics. Using Kate Soper’s concept of ‘alternative hedonism,’ the article analyzes a selection of five self-help books and one blog that promote lifestyle minimalism in order to interrogate their potential in stimulating de-growth eco-politics through popular culture. Drawing on post-ecological theory, it argues that narratives of lifestyle minimalism are paradoxical in that they resist yet at the same time promote capitalist cultures of growth. To overcome this limitation, it is crucial to understand and transform the narrative premises of lifestyle minimalism in ways that contextualize problems of ‘excess,’ ‘clutter’ and ‘a world of too much’ as intrinsic to the current system of capital accumulation. The article concludes by reflecting on the potential of an eco-movement that joins the alternative culture of minimalist hedonism with the eco-political agenda of de-growth.

Equilibrium of the Food Marketing System: a Debate of an Ethical Consumption Performance Based on Alternative Hedonism

Discussions about the impacts of marketing systems on society have been strongly encouraged in the field of macromarketing. However, these studies have focused on analyzing human and organizational actors, neglecting, to a large extent, the impacts of practices of marketing systems on other non-human stakeholders, such as those associated with or materialized in the form of a product. This article debates the material basis of the product of animal origin based on the concepts of justice, stakeholder theory, and externalities. An argument was developed attributing the status of a moral agent to the animals used to make products and focusing on this debate, arguing for the establishment of a consumption pattern that morally considers animals. This was made feasible by new alternatives for food performances exemplified by the conduct of vegetarian and vegan consumers.

The Fair Trade consumer as a citizen-consumer: civic virtue or alternative hedonism?

This paper aims to explore Fair Trade consumer orientations by focusing on the ‘citizen-consumer’ dimension. Those who buy Fair Trade products are often regarded as consumers who are motivated by social responsibility and an altruistic spirit. However, some studies show that such consumers are not necessarily altruistic or political, but rather hedonistic and individualistic. In order to examine what kinds of people purchase Fair Trade products, we analyse the Fair Trade consumer's attitude using social survey data from Japan. The result of this analysis demonstrates that the variables concerning ‘alternative hedonism’ (creativity, quality of products, post-materialism) have positive effects on response in purchasing Fair Trade products. On the other hand, the variables concerning ‘civic virtue’ (dedication to the public interest, altruism, social support) have no significant effect on it. This result shows that Fair Trade consumers do not always internalise the movement's principles, but pursue their individual lifestyle in different ways. In other words, consumers' ‘little narratives’ are not an obstacle to the realisation of ‘grand narratives’, but rather a condition of the latter.

Explorations into Creaturely Sensations and Trap-lines

This exposition is a meditation on the embodied sensations of being idle learnt from sitting with and dressing as a cat, to the contentious issues of pest control in New Zealand, Aotearoa. Dress, one of the most distinctively human cultural forms, is used to explore both the human-animal divide and animal –becomings. Putting into practice Kate Soper’s concept of ‘alternative hedonism’ and Ron Broglio’s ‘surface encounters’ this is an engagement with writing, a performance project and the complex relationship with our fellow creatures and environment.

Creativity for sustainable development?

Abstract Environmental degradation is one of the main challenges facing the modern world. Transition to sustainable development is often cited as a strategy to contain the situation. Arguably, nation-states cannot manage this shift alone. Therefore, individuals are urged to participate in the process of transition to sustainable development by acting sustainably in their capacity as consumers and citizens. Sustainable consumption is an essential way for consumers to contribute to sustainable development. This article examines the roles that the creative input of consumers in the zero-waste brand community on Facebook might play for consumers. The focus is placed on the two theoretical possibilities: manifestation of environmental citizenship and means of self-expression. Drawing on the ideas of individualisation of responsibility and political consumerism, the article explores the creative input of consumers in the zero-waste brand community as a potentially political form of advocacy for sustainable consumption and development. The article concludes that the creative input of consumers in the zero-waste brand community might be viewed as an impact-oriented pro-environmental behaviour, whose role is a combination of manifestation of environmental citizenship and means of self-expression. As such, it fits better with the framework of depoliticised alternative hedonism than political consumerism.

Food-based Activities versus Material Possessions: Alternatives to Consumption

We examine how food-related experiential activities offer different types of intrinsic pleasures, create an alternative path to consumerism, and subsequently affect happiness and well-being. Participant’s perspectives on these activities are compared to those of their favourite material possessions to explore the differences in meaning and motivations. Phenomenological interviews centred on food activities and material possessions revealed that experiential food-related hobbies are valued highly and a source of great life satisfaction because of meeting a variety of psychological needs. These activities offer an alternative conception of what it is to flourish and to enjoy a ‘high’ standard of living as they were found to be mostly intrinsically motivated. Many material possessions also suggested intrinsic aspirations while others showed a mix of both intrinsic and extrinsic aspects. The data reveal that the need for adopting extrinsic life aspirations is not strongly expressed when food-related experiential activities, such as food growing and preparation, are a part of regular life. These food-based activities and certain types of material possessions with intrinsic values encourage a more ecologically sustainable use of resources and reduce social and environmental exploitation associated with consumerism. This research contributes to new modes of thinking about happiness and well-being by supporting the ‘alternative hedonism’ concept as remedy to consumerism.

"Nanna Style": The Countercultural Politics of Retro Femininities

Over the past two decades in the West, practices of ethical consumption have become increasingly visible within mainstream consumer culture (Lewis and Potter). While they manifest in a variety of forms, such practices are frequently articulated to politics of anti-consumerism, environmentalism, and sustainable consumption through which lifestyle choices are conceived as methods for investing in—and articulating—ethical and social concerns. Such practices are typically understood as both a reflection of the increasing global influence of neoliberal, consumer-oriented modes of citizenship and a response to the destabilisation of capitalism’s certainties in the wake of ongoing climate change and the global financial crisis (Castells et al.; Miller).

Towards conscientious food consumption: exploring the values of Czech organic food consumers

AbstractThe effects of the organic consumption are often contested with regard to the motives of consumers. Main goal of the paper is to present a theoretical framework that would encapsulate the motives of consumption and enable to identify the conditions for sustainable consumption. In particular, the paper seeks a new perspective that will not be tied to specific ways of life and that could bridge the complex, and often contradictory, motives of consumers. This framework is applied to map the values of organic food consumers in the Czech Republic with the use of the means‐end approach. The participants identified about 30 attributes related to organic food. Those attributes were divided into 14 basic categories. The study proves that Czech consumers mainly see organics as food ‘without chemicals’ that is favourable to health. At the same time, the identified hierarchical map of values reveals the great importance of the environmentally friendly approach, which results in the reduction of negative impacts and creates an opportunity to balance the relationship between society and nature. Some of the identified motives have pointed out a potential for merging together the egocentric and altruistic motives of ethical consumption in relation to the concept of ‘alternative hedonism’.

Onerous consumption: The alternative hedonism of off-grid domestic water use

In the contemporary, industrialized, urban world practices of domestic water usage typically transcend the physical boundaries of the home as indoor plumbing connects with municipal sewer lines and water mains. These infrastructural connections sever the sites of individual water consumption from the sites of its collection, storage, purification, and distribution. But what happens when individual homeowners become self-sufficient for gathering, conserving, and recycling water? Drawing from ethnographic research conducted amidst off-grid homeowners this paper examines how practices of domestic water conservation and usage unfold when individuals become self-sufficient for water. We find that off-grid homeowners engage in what we call “onerous consumption”—a type of alternatively hedonistic consumption characterized by burdensome involvement in the gathering, conserving, channeling, utilization, and disposal of resources. We argue that “onerous consumption” results in a profound awareness of resource utilization and consequently leads to greater resource conservation. We reflect on the value of the concept of onerous consumption for research and theorizing on sustainable and ethical consumption.

The Impact of “No Impact Man”: Alternative Hedonism as Environmental Appeal

As “No Impact Man,” writer Colin Beavan conducted a one-year experiment to determine whether he and his family could reduce their environmental impact to zero while living and working in Manhattan. This article examines the No Impact Man (NIM) experiment both as “alternative hedonism,” a reconceptualization of the “good life” that avoids unduly damaging the natural world, and also as a kind of “eco-stunt,” an attempt to garner significant media coverage about positive environmental behaviors. We use DeLuca's theorization of the “image event” to analyze the No Impact Man franchise—blog, book, and documentary film—though we modify that theory in order to explore how No Impact Man functions as multi-media and new-media spectacle. In particular, we explore the risky double-bind Beavan finds himself in when, through his choice to publicize the NIM eco-stunt, he is critiqued for opportunism, foolishness, and insincerity. We suggest that efforts to publicize eco-stunts, however well conceived, invariably invite backlash. As a result, we find that alternative hedonism theory and practice open a space of invitation to environmentally beneficial behaviors and attitudes that could have potential with some audiences, but their mass appeal is compromised by the limitations of the stunts that publicize them.

INTRODUCTION

1. Introduction: Cultural Studies and Anti-Consumerism: A Critical Encounter Jo Littler and Sam Binkley 2. Young Women and Consumer Culture: An Intervention Angela McRobbie 3. Against the commodification of everything: Anti-consumerist cultural studies in the age of ecological crisis Jeremy Gilbert 4. 'Alternative Hedonism, Cultural Theory and the Role of Aesthetic Revisioning' Kate Soper 5. Tackling Turbo Consumption: An interview Juliet Schor and Jo Littler 6. Liquid Consumption: Anti-Consumerism and the Fetishized De-Fetishization of Commodities Sam Binkley 7. The elusive subjects of neoliberalism: Beyond the analytics of governmentality Clive Barnett, Nick Clarke, Paul Cloke and Alice Malpass 8. Consuming the Campesino: Fair Trade Marketing between Recognition and Romantic Commodification Matthias Zick Varul 9. Alternative realities: downshifting narratives in contemporary lifestyle television Lyn Thomas 10. Fourth worlds and neo-Fordism: American Apparel and the cultural economy of consumer anxiety Jo Littler and Liz Moor 11. Consuming Authenticity: From Outposts of Difference to Means of Exclusion Sharon Zukin 12. Fashioning Social Justice through Political Consumerism, Capitalism, and the Internet Michele Micheletti and Dietlind Stolle 13. The Quandaries of Consumer-Based Labor Activism: A Low-Wage Case Study Andrew Ross

ALTERNATIVE HEDONISM, CULTURAL THEORY AND THE ROLE OF AESTHETIC REVISIONING

The potential of consumption to figure as a site of political agency is now recognized by both corporate capitalism and its No Logo opposition. Many now also accept that the pursuit of consumerist lifestyles is the major contributor to ecological crisis. This article argues the importance in this context of recognizing the impact and longer term implications of some emerging forms of self-interested disaffection with consumerism on the part of affluent consumers themselves. For a small, but arguably growing number of these, consumerism is now compromised by its specific displeasures (stress, congestion, pollution, ill-health…) and seen as actively pre-empting other more rewarding ways of living. The ‘alternative hedonism’ implicit in these forms of consumer ambivalence is analysed with a view to disentangling its perspective from either the more didactic (and often overly naturalistic) conceptions of need and satisfaction offered by some Marxist strands of cultural theory, and from the post-modernist celebrations of consumer culture as a resource for the pleasures of fantasy, fashion and self-styling. In pressing the case for the development of a new ‘hedonist imaginary’ with which to subvert current perceptions of the attractions of a consumerist material culture, the article also considers the possible contribution of cultural and artistic activities to the formation of an anti-consumerist aesthetic.

Citizenship and consumption

List of Illustrations List of Figures and Tables Acknowledgements Notes on Contributors Introduction: K.Soper & F.Trentmann PART 1: RETRIEVAL Civic Choices: Retrieving Perspectives on Rationality, Consumption, and Citizenship M.Bevir & F.Trentmann Consumption and Politics in Twentieth-Century China K.Gerth Sartorial Manoeuvres in the Dusk: Blue Jeans in Socialist Hungary F.Hammer PART 2: TALK AND ACTION Consuming without Paying: Stealing or Campaigning? The Civic Implications of Civil Disobedience around Access to Water B.Morgan The Banality of Consumption M.Hilton 'Public Connection' and the Uncertain Norms of Media Consumption N.Couldry, S.Livingstone & T.Markham The Moral Force of Consumption and Capitalism: Anti-Slavery and Anti-Sweatshop M.Micheletti PART 3: PROSPECTS Exit Homo Politicus , Enter Homo Consumens Z.Bauman Consumer Citizenship in Post-national Constellations? M.Everson & C.Joerges Sustainability, Well-being and Consumption: The Limits of Hedonic Approaches J.O'Neill 'Alternative Hedonism' and the Citizen-Consumer K.Soper Index

Re-thinking the `Good Life`

Citizenship and consumption have frequently been regarded as oppositional and even mutually exclusive domains of activity and theory. Recent consumption practices and discourses — although they raise many complex issues both empirically and theoretically — have begun to revise this perception. This article offers reasons for enlarging the framework of thinking about the contemporary `civic' or `republican' aspects of consumption in order to include considerations that have been little registered even in the argument of those whose special interest is in the environmentally concerned citizen or `ethical' consumer. It argues for the need to recognize the extent to which moral concerns may now be coinciding with more self-interested forms of disaffection with `consumerist' consumption, and revisions in thinking on the part of affluent consumers themselves about the `good life' and what conduces to human flourishing and personal fulfilment. Theorized under the concept of `alternative hedonism', attention is paid to the ways in which affluent consumption is both compromised by its negative effects (including congestion, pollution, overwork, stress) and pre-emptive of other possible pleasures and satisfactions. This theoretical approach is presented as distinctive in allowing for a consumer whose privately experienced and self-interested needs may come to encompass public goods and the gratifications of a more socially accountable consumption. The article advances a case for viewing the `alternative hedonist' reaction to consumerism as further adding to the ways in which consumption may be said today to be acquiring a `republican' dimension and emerging as a site of citizenship, and thereby of pressure for a sustainable consumption.

Troubled pleasures: writings on politics, gender and hedonism

What happens when 'life's simple joys' become complicated? When pleasure is transformed as a function of consumption, the innocent comforts of food, nature and place are embedded in complex practices of distribution and exploitation. Exotic and diverse objects of pleasure are made available only at the price of a heightened awareness of their origins, genealogies and possible effects; 'authenticity' recedes behind objects produced as pleasures. Troubled Pleasures considers the ways in which modern pleasure is fraught with unhappy implications, at the same time as contemporary critical arguments put into question the touchstones of identity, morality, subjectivity and desire. It brings together writings which explore the sources of pleasure's 'loss of innocence', and which argue the case for a scrupulous 'alternative hedonism'. Including essays on human needs, socialism and gender, a feminist response to Joyce's Ulysses, and a fictional reflection on appetite and excess, Troubled Pleasures plots an Epicurean path between righteous asceticism and conspicuous consumption.