Commodification and Commercialization

Abstract

Commodification is a multifaceted concept, having roots in political and economic theory as well as cultural and literary studies. Broadly defined, commodification is the transformation of immaterial, social relationships into commercial relationships that often utilize the language and ideological stances of a market driven economy and capitalist society (for example, terms and ideas surrounding "buying and selling," "supply and demand"). In order to understand this important and complex idea, we need to understand the etymology of the word commodification. At the root of the word is commodity, which in modern language usage is defined as "a kind of thing for use of sale, an article of commerce, an object of trade" and "food or raw materials as objects of trade" (Oxford English Dictionary).