Abstract
This article examines the significance of the theoretical ideas developed by Daniel Miller on material culture in the broader context of the social sciences in his classic book Material Culture and Mass Consumption. In this book, Miller not only proposes a general theory of consumption but also presents a new reading of the process of objectification as developed by Hegel and on this basis offers a new interpretation of the contradictions of contemporary society. The ideas developed in this book are then analyzed in the light of his later publications, and finally we discuss the influence Miller’s ideas on anthropology and consumption studies in Brazil, particularly those dealing with social groups at the base of the pyramid and digital anthropology.
Keywords:
Material culture; new consumer studies; consumer society; anthropology of consumption; digital anthropology