Bennett, J (2001). Commodity Fetishism and Commodity Enchantment. The Johns Hopkins University Press.
Watch clip:
1. Enchantment consists in a mixed bodily state of joy and disturbance, a transitory sensuous condition dense and intense enough to stop you in your tracks and toss you onto new terrain, to move you from the actual world to its virtual possibilities. I found this point interesting, as I have never thought of enchantment as a mix of two states, such opposite as Bennett states here. In thinking about it further I have come to the conclusion that enchantment is made up of wonder and a sense that the future is not known, which relates to this state of disturbance that is mentioned.
2. At the same time, animations can delight — perhaps for the same sensory reasons that a kaleidoscope does: metamorphoses of shape, color, size, and arrangement of form capture the imagination. This article talks about the use of animation (specifically in a TV commercial for GAP khaki pants) and how the use of animation can get across the idea of enchantment. The comment Bennett says makes sense to me, as I am amused by beautiful shows of colour and movement, such as a kaleidoscope or screen saver, as is most humans, which is why this idea is taken into advertising.
3. Can the enchanting potential of animation survive commercialization? Can advertisements qualify as sites of the ethically-useful kind of enchantment I seek? And even if they can, should we not seek our enchantments elsewhere? I stopped at this comment mainly because it confused me. From what I understand it alludes the question, is the use of enchantment in the media going to amuse us long term or is it going to be something that the media will exhaust to a point where we will become immune to the feelings of enchantment being presented to us?
4. There’s no doubt that some kind of enchantment is the goal of advertising, and that many people in rich societies are caught up with consuming. This point seems very obvious, I think in most, if not all, well off societies, that consuming is very present. People are always wanting to be associated with products that will life others opinions of them, and give them the image shown in advertising. I just had an interesting thought because I know that when you buy a product you do not get the lifestyle shown in its advertising, but the thing is others may still associate this lifestyle with you and think you do have that advertised lifestyle.
5. I am an advocate of this environmentalist critique and support political efforts to reconstruct the economic infrastructure that demands continually increasing levels of consumption and waste. I saw how easily this infrastructure overpowers individual efforts toward ecological living while in a Wal-Mart store: the “REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE” banner hung above the check-out aisles could only be a joke inside a warehouse crammed with thousands of low-priced and ultimately disposable “goods.” This point is funny that Wal-Mart can promote the clean green society when in fact their store is filled with disposable goods that will all end up in the dump. Yet despite this, I’m sure that more people that not, will begin to associate Wal-Mart with the clean green image and not challenge it in their mind. They will mindlessly accept what is put in front of them.
