Where Stuff Comes From
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Review
"Successful products must fit into the whole panoply of life and society. The whole story can only be told by someone with a grand view of things, who sees both the trees of design and manufacturing and the forest of the social and political forces upon all of us. Three cheers for Harvey Molotch-this is a great book."
-Donald A. Norman, author of "The Design of Everyday Things
"With great originality, Molotch has created a sociology of objects, seen as the product of the joint work of many people, especially designers. With this in hand, he brings new perspectives to old debates about consumerism and creativity."
-Howard S. Becker, author of "Art Worlds
"This is an engaging and enjoyable book about the design of everyday things. Harvey Molotch tells us what design is, who designers are, where design happens, and how society, culture, geography, the marketplace, and just about everything else imaginable all contribute to making things look and work the way they do."
-Henry Petroski, author of "The Pencil and "The Evolution of Useful Things
"Human beings like stuff. We like to make, steal, hoard, and especially use things. How these goods come to be, how they are designed, manufactured, distributed, and especially used to make meaning is the central concern of industrial society. "Where Stuff Comes From is a superb introduction to exactly how this process works...or doesn't. It's MUST reading for anyone interested in the power of the manufactured world."
-James B. Twitchell, author of "Living It Up: Why We Love
"Superb, a witty and verbally pyrotechnical book. "Where Stuff Comes From is deeply subversive and revolutionizes our thinking aboutconsumerism."
-Jules Lubbock, author of "The Tyranny of Taste
-Donald A. Norman, author of "The Design of Everyday Things
"With great originality, Molotch has created a sociology of objects, seen as the product of the joint work of many people, especially designers. With this in hand, he brings new perspectives to old debates about consumerism and creativity."
-Howard S. Becker, author of "Art Worlds
"This is an engaging and enjoyable book about the design of everyday things. Harvey Molotch tells us what design is, who designers are, where design happens, and how society, culture, geography, the marketplace, and just about everything else imaginable all contribute to making things look and work the way they do."
-Henry Petroski, author of "The Pencil and "The Evolution of Useful Things
"Human beings like stuff. We like to make, steal, hoard, and especially use things. How these goods come to be, how they are designed, manufactured, distributed, and especially used to make meaning is the central concern of industrial society. "Where Stuff Comes From is a superb introduction to exactly how this process works...or doesn't. It's MUST reading for anyone interested in the power of the manufactured world."
-James B. Twitchell, author of "Living It Up: Why We Love
"Superb, a witty and verbally pyrotechnical book. "Where Stuff Comes From is deeply subversive and revolutionizes our thinking aboutconsumerism."
-Jules Lubbock, author of "The Tyranny of Taste
Product Description
Molotch takes us on a fascinating exploration into the worlds of technology, design, corporate and popular culture. We now see how corporations, designers, retailers, advertisers, and other middle-men influence what a thing can be and how it is made. We see the way goods link into ordinary life as well as vast systems of consumption, economic and political operation. The book is a meditation into the meaning of the stuff in our lives and what that stuff says about us.
Inside This Book
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First Sentence
Where does it come from, this vast blanket of things-coffeepots and laptops, window fittings, lamps and fence finials, cars, hat pins, and hand trucks-that make up economies, mobilize desire, and so stir up controversy? Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index
Where does it come from, this vast blanket of things-coffeepots and laptops, window fittings, lamps and fence finials, cars, hat pins, and hand trucks-that make up economies, mobilize desire, and so stir up controversy? Read the first page
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Concordance
Browse Sample PagesConcordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
`For any product, form and function are always bound up.',
By J. Cameron-Smith "Expect the Unexpected" (ACT, Australia) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)
This review is from: Where Stuff Comes From: How Toasters, Toilets, Cars, Computers and Many Other Things Come To Be As They Are (Paperback)
The everyday objects of our lives, and where they come from, are the subject of this book. How do items such as paper clips, post-it notes and bathtubs come into being? What factors influence design, and why do we (many of us, anyway) want this stuff?I found this book fascinating. Some items of `stuff' - such as toys and lamps change relatively quickly in response to fashion. Some other items - such as pencils and toilets - do not. The influences on change seem to vary, depending on the item. Take, for example, the chair. Chairs are not universally used around the world; many people squat, sit cross-legged or sit flat on the ground. But where chairs are used, we actively train our children how to use them `properly'. And as a consequence, for many of us: `Chairs have become part of the methodology of respect and rectitude.' The design of chairs has changed, and while there is some contrast between the utilitarian and the artistic, the distinction is often blurred. It's interesting to consider some of the cultural and other factors that influence design, as well as the functionality that mirrors contemporary life. There are plenty of examples including the garlic press; the Palm Pilot; and the Chrysler PT Cruiser. And there are items that could be different: the computer keyboard (which evolved from the typewriter) for example, or the conventional western toilet which could be modified to accommodate squatting but isn't. Why things are the way they are and what factors influence this makes for very interesting reading. The linkages between items are interesting to consider: the toaster (to give one example) did not develop in isolation. Toasters require a source of power (a power outlet), a place to sit (a benchtop) as well as bread sliced to a particular width and toppings (Vegemite for this Australian). While this book primarily discusses what is rather than what might be, it's possible that an awareness of the politics of design could result in more environmentally friendly products. Who influences whom, and how? Jennifer Cameron-Smith
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
4.8 out of 5 stars (4 customer reviews) 6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A must read,
By Richard Oliver - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Where Stuff Comes From: How Toasters, Toilets, Cars, Computers and Many Other Things Come To Be As They Are (Hardcover)
Harvey Molotch gets network thinking. More than that, he does it. In his book, "Where Stuff Comes From", he shows, with brilliant simplicity, the complex web of interactions that lie behind creation and production of the everyday stuff that surrounds us. This is a book that every thinking designer should read. Actually, it's a book that anyone who cares about the world we live in should read. Sensible, humane and thoughtful, it brightened up my day.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
`For any product, form and function are always bound up.',
By J. Cameron-Smith "Expect the Unexpected" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Where Stuff Comes From: How Toasters, Toilets, Cars, Computers and Many Other Things Come To Be As They Are (Paperback)
The everyday objects of our lives, and where they come from, are the subject of this book. How do items such as paper clips, post-it notes and bathtubs come into being? What factors influence design, and why do we (many of us, anyway) want this stuff?I found this book fascinating. Some items of `stuff' - such as toys and lamps change relatively quickly in response to fashion. Some other items - such as pencils and toilets - do not. The influences on change seem to vary, depending on the item. Take, for example, the chair. Chairs are not universally used around the world; many people squat, sit cross-legged or sit flat on the ground. But where chairs are used, we actively train our children how to use them `properly'. And as a consequence, for many of us: `Chairs have become part of the methodology of respect and rectitude.' The design of chairs has changed, and while there is some contrast between the utilitarian and the artistic, the distinction is often blurred. It's interesting to consider some of the cultural and other factors that influence design, as well as the functionality that mirrors contemporary life. There are plenty of examples including the garlic press; the Palm Pilot; and the Chrysler PT Cruiser. And there are items that could be different: the computer keyboard (which evolved from the typewriter) for example, or the conventional western toilet which could be modified to accommodate squatting but isn't. Why things are the way they are and what factors influence this makes for very interesting reading. The linkages between items are interesting to consider: the toaster (to give one example) did not develop in isolation. Toasters require a source of power (a power outlet), a place to sit (a benchtop) as well as bread sliced to a particular width and toppings (Vegemite for this Australian). While this book primarily discusses what is rather than what might be, it's possible that an awareness of the politics of design could result in more environmentally friendly products. Who influences whom, and how? Jennifer Cameron-Smith
5.0 out of 5 stars
Thank you!,
By Crimson Cougar 12 - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Where Stuff Comes From: How Toasters, Toilets, Cars, Computers and Many Other Things Come To Be As They Are (Paperback)
It was great, arrived on time in the condition described and was a lot cheaper then my university bookstore. Thank you!
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