Suchergebnisse

Spain during the time period 711 to 1492 was one of the most brilliantly creative and affluent nations in the Western Europe. During this epoch, Spain was populated by Muslims, Christians, and Jews who served as rulers, military leaders, scientists, philosophers, mathematicians, astronomers, and merchants, as well as consumers. The highest levels of cultural creativity and affluence are traceable to those rulers who encouraged religious tolerance, regardless of their own religious affiliation. I propose that this historical pattern is a valid one for marketing systems in contemporary Muslim–Christian–Jewish societies. Enforcement of religious orthodoxy by the government appears to discourage cooperative entrepreneurial activities and to reduce affluence, whereas government support of interfaith endeavors is linked to advances in science, business, and the arts.

This inquiry uses an anthropological construal of metaphor to argue for the multi-vocal presence of symbolic meanings in the marketplace. Metaphoric imagery is described as it emanates from marketers, popular culture media and consumers with respect to the product area of hair care. We identify two primary deep metaphors for hair: (1) a living organism requiring nourishment and hydration; and (2) a malleable structure that may be subjected to design and utilized as apparel, accessory, or protection. This theoretical approach is compared to two others currently `in play' in marketing: the Brands-as-Icons model of Holt (2004) and the Meaning Management Model of McCracken (2005).

This article presents three vantage points from which to observe the phenomenon of addiction—the professional models of social science; the lay models of popular culture; and the personal understandings of the author, a social scientist, dweller in popular culture, and recovering addict. Throughout the narrative, attempts are made both to humanize the comprehension of addiction and its very frequent companion, mental illness, and to challenge the reader to engage in emotional and moral discourse regarding the nature of this all-too-human and all-too-common malady.