Problems with the defetishization thesis: ethical consumerism, alternative food systems, and commodity fetishism

Ryan Gunderson ()

Agriculture and Human Values, 2014, vol. 31, issue 1, 109-117

Abstract: The defetishization thesis claims alternative markets can lead to a more honest, less mystified relationship with food production and, in turn, strengthen civil society. Drawing from Marxian political economic and environmental sociological theory, I make three general claims: (1) capitalism is inherently ecologically and socially harmful; (2) “ethical” commodities derived from alternative markets cannot fundamentally counteract the pervasiveness and scale of (1); and, because of (1) and (2), (3) ethical consumerism does not defetishize the commodity form, but acts as a new layer of commodity fetishism that masks the harms of capitalism by convincing society that the harms of capitalism can be rehabilitated with the commodity form itself. Prescriptively, I argue traditional, large-scale political tactics would be needed for “defetishization” to take place. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2014

Keywords: Green consumerism; Commodity fetishism; Alternative food systems; Environmental sociology; Sociology of consumption; Treadmill of production (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (7)

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DOI: 10.1007/s10460-013-9460-8

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