Introduction
The striking emergence of ‘consumer society’ in the Low Countries during the twentieth century came about in two waves. The first – from around 1920 until the 1960s – saw the discovery of the individual figure of the consumer. During the second, postwar wave, the notion of a society made up of cons...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Open Journals
2017-09-01
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| Series: | BMGN: Low Countries Historical Review |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://bmgn-lchr.nl/article/view/6641 |
| Summary: | The striking emergence of ‘consumer society’ in the Low Countries during the twentieth century came about in two waves. The first – from around 1920 until the 1960s – saw the discovery of the individual figure of the consumer. During the second, postwar wave, the notion of a society made up of consumers took hold. Commonalities between the Low Countries and other parts of the world facilitated a transnational dialogue about the place of consumers and the shaping of a society which could accommodate them. The crucial role companies, officials and civic organisations played in shaping consumer society calls attention to the limitations of a perspective focused primarily on individual consumers. This special issue highlights how a focus on the rise of consumer society yields a fruitful integration of questions of economy, politics, and citizenship, and forces us to rethink the position the Low Countries in a transnational context.
This article is part of the special issue on consumption history.
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| ISSN: | 0165-0505 2211-2898 |