Work, consumerism and the new poor / Zygmunt Bauman.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Bauman, Zygmunt, 1925-2017.

Series:

Issues in society

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Poor.

Poor--Public opinion.

Poverty.

Work ethic.

Consumption (Economics)--Social aspects.

Consumption (Economics).

Labor.

Physical Description:

ix, 131 pages ; 23 cm.

Edition:

Second edition.

Place of Publication:

Maidenhead, Berkshire, England ; New York, NY : Open University Press, 2005.

Summary:

It is one thing to be poor in a society of producers and universal employment; it is quite a different thing to be poor in a society of consumers, in which life projects are built around consumer choices rather than on work, professional skills or jobs. Where 'being poor' was once linked to being unemployed, today it draws its meaning primarily from the plight of a flawed consumer. This has a significant effect on the way living in poverty is experienced and on the prospects for redeeming its misery. Work, Consumerism and the New Poor traces this change over the duration of modern history. It makes an inventory of its social consequences, and considers how effective different ways of fighting poverty and relieving its hardships are.

Key reading for students and lecturers in sociology, politics and social policy, and those with an interest in contemporary social issues.

Contents:

1 The meaning of work: producing the work ethic 5

2 From the work ethic to the aesthetic of consumption 23

3 The rise and fall of the welfare state 45

4 The work ethic and the new poor 63

5 Work and redundancy in the globalized world 87

6 Prospects for the new poor 105.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [122]-128) and index.

ISBN:

0335215998

033521598X

OCLC:

56661168