TY  - JOUR
AB  - Edward Bellamy’s famous 1888 best‐seller Looking Backward imagined a paradisal world where social and economic problems of poverty, strife, class, and war were eliminated through a Utopian political economy based on socialist principles. What makes Bellamy’s thought compelling for marketing scholars is his emphasis on the consumer, his focus on equality as the vehicle for societal transformation, and his analysis of the role consumer desire, envy, and greed play in generating strife and strain. Thus, his Utopian vision seems to have much in common with the mantra of the modern marketing machine – happiness is material, and your credit card is your ticket to the good life. However, his vision of the good life is largely at odds with the market economy’s version. This paper examines the man behind a uniquely consumer oriented socialist paradise and suggests that his writings have left an inspiring legacy that marketing academics might find insightful.
VL  - 18
IS  - 6/7
SN  - 0263-4503
DO  - 10.1108/02634500010348978
UR  - https://doi.org/10.1108/02634500010348978
AU  - Schroeder Jonathan Edward
PY  - 2000
Y1  - 2000/01/01
TI  - The consumer in society: Utopian visions revisited
T2  - Marketing Intelligence & Planning
PB  - MCB UP Ltd
SP  - 381
EP  - 387
Y2  - 2024/04/24
ER  -