Consuming the Romantic Utopia: Love and the Cultural Contradictions of Capitalism [Hardcover]

Eva Illouz (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0520202759 | ISBN-13: 978-0520202757 | Publication Date: May 29, 1997 | Edition: 1

To what extent are our most romantic moments determined by the portrayal of love in film and on TV? Is a walk on a moonlit beach a moment of perfect romance or simply a simulation of the familiar ideal seen again and again on billboards and movie screens? In her unique study of American love in the twentieth century, Eva Illouz unravels the mass of images that define our ideas of love and romance, revealing that the experience of "true" love is deeply embedded in the experience of consumer capitalism. Illouz studies how individual conceptions of love overlap with the world of clichés and images she calls the "Romantic Utopia." This utopia lives in the collective imagination of the nation and is built on images that unite amorous and economic activities in the rituals of dating, lovemaking, and marriage.
Since the early 1900s, advertisers have tied the purchase of beauty products, sports cars, diet drinks, and snack foods to success in love and happiness. Illouz reveals that, ultimately, every cliché of romance--from an intimate dinner to a dozen red roses--is constructed by advertising and media images that preach a democratic ethos of consumption: material goods and happiness are available to all.
Engaging and witty, Illouz's study begins with readings of ads, songs, films, and other public representations of romance and concludes with individual interviews in order to analyze the ways in which mass messages are internalized. Combining extensive historical research, interviews, and postmodern social theory, Illouz brings an impressive scholarship to her fascinating portrait of love in America.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

"Illouz creates a map of the intricate relationship between love and economics in American society. In an analytical style reminiscent of that of Daniel Bell in its scope and intellectual ambition, she argues that romantic love captures our minds and hearts by promising transgression through consumption of leisure and nature."--Michelle Lamont, author of Money, Morals, and Manners

About the Author

Eva Illouz teaches sociology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. She is the Academic Director of the Program of Cultural Studies as well as a member of The Center for the Study of Rationality

Product Details

• Hardcover: 332 pages
• Publisher: University of California Press; 1 edition (May 29, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0520202759
• ISBN-13: 978-0520202757
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,768,241 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Detailed, Scholarly, Original, December 24, 2001

By 

Lleu Christopher "www.liminalworlds.com" (Hudson Valley, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Consuming the Romantic Utopia: Love and the Cultural Contradictions of Capitalism (Paperback)

This is an extremely thought-provoking look at the relationship between romance and consumer capitalism. It explores in some detail the way in which our expectations of love and romance are influenced, perhaps even created, by advertising and the media. Yet, it goes quite a bit beyond this fascinating but limited theme to tackle some wider issues. Eva Illouz's study cuts to some core aspects of contemporary culture --the way our perception of nature, travel and tourism (and of course the way these are related to romantic stereotypes) have become tied to capitalist consumption; the "cultural contradiction" of capitalism --namely, that it's based on production (i.e. hard work) yet sells us on consumption (i.e. materialism, leisure);
the different impact consumer culture has on working class and upper middle class people. The book appears to be aimed at an academic audience, which is a pity, because the subject is of much wider concern. While it definitely takes concentration, and a willingness to endure extensive footnotes, I found it well worth the effort.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Questions an assumption..., January 18, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Consuming the Romantic Utopia: Love and the Cultural Contradictions of Capitalism (Hardcover)

The idea of 'romantic love' is our culture's sacred cow: just try to find a dozen other books in print that examine this modern, Western notion in a critical way. Illouz does good work here, using numerous interviews and polled data (one wishes she had a larger sample, my main criticism, and that it seems to drift toward the end)... to arrive at the conclusion that our internalized images of 'romance' come from advertising, not from our personal experiences. It's one of those books that shifts the way you see things just slightly, so that the familiar becomes much more interesting and suspect (I certainly think of this tome when I read in personals ads about 'moonlit strolls on the beach, champagne, and red roses'...). And boy, will you get a reaction from your friends when they see you goggling this volume! Nothing irritates people more.