by Joseph Heath, Andrew Potter
It’s one of the hottest concepts of the last half century, the theme of countless Hollywood blockbusters, Top 40 songs, magazine covers, and bestselling books:
industrial capitalism has turned the masses into mindless cogs in a great corporate machine. Brainwashed by ads to absorb the ever-swelling glut of useless products on the market, we consume ourselves into a state of numb complacency. The driving force behind this cycle?
Conformism. The obvious solution? Rebel! Pierce your eyebrow; ride a motorcycle; eat organic; listen to hip-hop. To undermine corporate power, all we must do is refuse to conform.
For Heath and Potter two Canadian philosophy professors the system is not something that seeks conformity, but rather the opposite, it seeks individuality and the competiton for distinction. They meticulously dissect contemporary culture and reach what might be to many a startling conclusion: that the counterculture is not just a failure, but a harmful illusion. Rebellion is just another word for relentless innovation, fashion and cool. It’s not a threat to the system, it is the system!
Since the sixties, rebels, activists, and leftists have opted out of direct political activism because, according to the countercultural critique, the entire ‘system’ is corrupt and therefore activism cannot take place within it, but must take place without it. The authors explain beautifully why this thought process is so damaging to making actual societal change, and that the efforts of the left to make the world a better place (which is what we claim as our mission, right?) has ultimately been misdirected.
This is a highly entertaining and thought provoking book, and for anyone interested in current events surrounding political activism, radicalism, and anticonsumerism, this book is mandatory reading.
In french: Révolte consommée : le mythe de la contre culture
Ces deux essayistes analysent les mouvements “contre culturels” et anticonsommations dont l’émergence a eu pour résultat (innatendu) de créer de nouveaux marchés et de renforcer le système capitaliste, au lieu de le combattre. A la fois histoire de la pop culture, manifeste politique et analyse sociale, cet essai propose un vrai débat, s’amuse à remettre en question les personnalités les plus médiatiques de la contre-culture (Michael Moore, Naomi Klein… ) et aussi les intellectuels français (Baudrillard, Debord) mais surtout, invite le lecteur à trouver de nouvelles pistes de réflexion.