Seeing the World Secondhand

7/27/2019 Seeing the World Secondhand

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Cultural Studies Review

volume 18 number 2 September 2012

http://epress.lib.uts.edu.au/journals/index.php/csrj/index

pp. 22341

Caroline Hamilton 2012

ISSN 1837-8692

Seeing the World Second Hand

Mad Men and the Vintage Consumer

CAROLINE HAMILTON

UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE

MadMen was the first television series to be produced by the US cable stationAmericanMovieClassics(AMC).Untiltheserieslaunchedin2007thenetworkwas

knowntoviewersmostlyforitsre-runsofoldfilms.Thechannelsreputationfor

nostalgicprogrammingmadeittheidealhomeforaseriesthatreturnedto1960s

Americatoexplorethesocialeffectsoftheadvertisingindustryinthewakeofthe

postwarconsumerboom.Like other premiumcable television showssuchasThe

WireandTheSopranos,MadMenrapidlyattractedahighlydevotedfollowing,but

unlikethegrittyrealitiesofeverydayAmericanlifeofferedbythoseshows,MadMen

offeredaself-consciouslystylisedandstylishpresentationofthepast.Accordingto

earlyreviews,thiswasunderstoodastheprimarypurposeoftheproduction.The

reviewerat theLos Angeles Times, for instance, provided readerswith a two-line

glossontheshowthatread:

SetinaMadisonAvenueadagencyin1960,MadMenhasthestoriedlook

ofTheApartment, Bewitchedand a retroboutique all rolled into one.

Meninslimsuitsandwhiteshirts,womeninpointybrasandsweatersets,


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VOLUME18 NUMBER2SEP2012224

allsidewayssmilesandwhitehippatteramidtherattleoficecubesand

thetinyclatteroflighters.1

ReviewslikethisimpliedthattoenjoyMadMenoneneededonlyanappreciationof

the original American movie classics in which its host channel specialised, a

concept that generated somewhat unexpected audience excitement: that this

contemporarytelevisionserieslookedsoconvincinglylikethesetofanoldmovie

animated fans totaketo blogsandmessage-boardsto sharetheir obsessionwith

whatonefandescribedasthetinydetailsthatarejustsoperfect.

Iget totallyabsorbedby theblondefurniture,thewardrobes,hair-styles,

thickplastic-lensedglasses,andmake-up.

[What]alsomakestheshowbrilliantistheartdirection,eventhesound.

Thosetypewriters,thosecigarettelighters,theclickingoftheheels.2

Nowentering its fifth season, theaudiences pleasurewiththose tiny details

hasnotdiminished.WhileMadMenhasneverboastedthekindofratingsthatcan

qualifyitasamainstreamsuccess,theshowsimpactonpopularculturehasbeen

widespread.3 Setting the program in the world of Madison Avenues burgeoning

advertisingindustrydrewattentiontothelong-neglectedsocialandculturalhistory

ofadvertisingindustry.Publisherstookadvantageofviewersnew-foundinterestbyproducingtitleslikeKingsofMadisonAvenue:TheUnofficialGuidetoMadMen ,Mad

Men Unbuttoned: A Romp Through 1960s America, and The Real Mad Men: The

RemarkableTrueStoryofMadisonAvenuesGoldenAge.4Moresignificantthanthese

books devoted to unpicking the fictional andhistorical development of consumer

culturewastheshowsinstigationofafull-blownconsumerfeverforallthingsmid-

century:fashions,lifestylesandtheartanddesignofconsumerAmerica.Magazines

likeGQ,VogueandVanityFairnotonlyputthestarsoftheshowontheircoversbut

presentedreaderswithstyleinstructionsfortheirownlives:howtoreplicatethe

look of the Sterling Cooper offices, Betty Drapers kitchen or Joan Holloways

silhouette.TheUSclothingretailerBananaRepublic,inpartnershipwiththeshows

creators, used the distinctive 1960s look as inspiration for a nationwide fashion

campaign;BrooksBrothersproducedasuitbaseduponthatwornbyleadingman

Don Draper (itself based on a 1960s Brooks Brothers original); a nail polish

company released a Mad Meninspired line of colours. Consumer tie-in


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Caroline HamiltonSeeing the World Second Hand 225

opportunities areobviously a lucrative alternative revenue stream for a program

thatreportedlycosts$2.84milliontoproduceperepisodebutMadMenspopularity

ismorethanamarketinginitiative.5IthashadknowinghomagesfromTVstalwarts

SesameStreetandTheSimpsonsandspawnedtheUnofficialMadMenCookbookand

MadMen-inspired Halloween costumes, cocktail parties and theme weddings. All

these attest to the shows status as a social meme.When the show returned to

televisionforitsfifthseasonearlyin2012thestorymadefrontpagenews.

Yet, not everyone is crazy for Mad Men. The shows ability to generate

consumerheathasbeeninterpretedbysometelevisionandculturalcriticsasdirect

evidenceofitsweaknessasgenuinetelevisionart. MadMenhasbeenaccusedby

some of being primarily interested in selling audiences on the 1960s, trading

consumer nostalgia for genuine historicity. Mark Greif, writing for the London

ReviewofBooks ,remarks,forexample:

Theactressesarebeautiful,theBrilliantineinthemenshaircatchesthe

light, and everyone and everything is photographed as if in stills for a

fashion spread. The shows 1950s is a strange period that seems to

stretch from the end of World War Two to 1960, the year the action

begins.Thelessyouthinkabouttheplotthemoreyouarefreetoluxuriate

in the low sofas and Eames chairs, the gunmetal desks and geometric

ceilingtilesandshinyIBMtypewriters.Nottomentionthelushcostuming:

partydresses, skinny brown ties,angora cardigans, vividblue suitsand

ruffledpeignoirs,capturedinthepuredarkhuesandwidelightingranges

thatTechnicolornevercommittedtofilm.6AccordingtoGreif,MadMendevotesitselftothepursuitofanostalgicstyleatthe

expense of genuine attempts to grapple with the legacy of the past. He takes

exception,forinstance,tothewaytheshowinvitestheaudiencetotakepleasurein

lookingatthepast,evenwhileitdrawsattentiontothemanyundesirableaspectsof that history (for example, sexism, racism andhomophobia). Grief believes this

only gratifies audiences by presenting them with artfully constructed scenes of

people looking good while doing the wrong thing. This suspicion regarding the

popularityofMadMenissharedbyDanielMendelsohn,who,inanessayfortheNew

YorkReviewofBooks in2011,proposedthattheaudiencesdelightatandenjoyment


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of the shows mid-centuryaesthetics demonstrates a failure to fully conceive the

significanceofthepast.Mendelsohnaccountsforthisbynoting:

mostofthe peoplewhoare soaddictedto the show are either younger

adults, to whom its world represents, perhaps, an alluring historical

fantasyofatimebeforethepresenterasseeminglyendlessprohibitions

against pleasures once taken for granted (casual sex, careless eating,

excessive drinking, and incessant smoking);or youngerbabyboomers

peopleintheirfortiesandearly fiftieswhoremember,barely, theshows

1960ssetting,attitudes,andlook.7

Mad Mens appeal to this demographic, Mendelsohn suggests, is an example of

inauthenticnostalgia: onlythosewhocannot remembertheperiodwould longto

return there, and only thenbecause theyare luredby aworldmadeofappealing

surfaces.ThisdowngradingofMadMenfromseriousdramatonostalgicfantasyisa

recurrentcritical strategyamonga certainstrandofreviewerskeen todistinguish

themselves from the popular hype. In another review, this time for the online

magazineSlate,PatrickRaddenKeefeexpressesamoreequivocalanxiety.Whilestill

enjoyingtheshowsartfuldesign,heworriestheuseofhistoricalartefactsservesto

reinforce an ephemeral present rather than consolidate historically grounded

understanding of the past: Mad Men is a delicious but ultimately meaningless

immersioninstyleoversubstance.8

Cantherebemoretotheaudiencesenjoymentof MadMensuseofcostume

and design than empty gratification? IfMadMen emphasised other non-material

aspects of history in order to transport its audience back in time, would it be

regardedasamoregenuineandseriousattempttograpplewithhistory,ratherthan

anexerciseinretrogressiveconsumernostalgia?InthisessayIwanttosuggestan

approachtounderstandingaudienceexcitementforMadMensrepresentationofthe

mid twentieth century that goes beyond the typical explanation of style oversubstance. Readings of Mad Men which propose the shows foregrounding of

materialartefactsfromthepastissimplyanexerciseinwindowdressingimposea

falsebinary,implyingthatanyelementof stylecannothavesubstantiveimpacton

the meaning of a text. These readings also assume that interest in the past, and

particularlyinthematerialcultureofthepast,issymptomaticofaconservativeand

superficial nostalgia, implying that historicity is the only acceptable mode of


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engagingwiththepast,andthattakingpleasureinlookingbackstemsfromadesire

todisassociateoneselffromthepresent.

MadMenisnotthefirstmediatexttobeaccusedoftrivialisinghistoryforthe

sakeofgratifyingaudiences.Thepopularityofheritagefilmsandperiodpiecessuch

asthoseproducedbyMerchantIvoryinthe1980swerecriticisedbyfilmscholars

forcuratingamuseumaestheticthatspoketoaudiencesinsearchofself-approving

cultural elevation rather than accurate, deep engagements with history.9 Joseph

Hipsky observes of such films, for example, that [c]ritics regularly toast their

sophisticated themes and gorgeous landscapes, architecture, and costumes.

Reviewerscelebratetheirworkashighlyliteraryevenasmarketersofstyle

clothing,accessories,design,interiordecoration,architectureborrowfromtheir

fashions.10Theimplicitconclusionhereisthatsuchresponsesareinappropriate.A

good historical film must not set a social trend. Period-specific details may be

impressive,buttheyoughtnotbethe focusof seriousart.Yet,MadMenchallenges

theauthorityofsuchpronouncements.AstheselectioncommitteeofthePeabody

Award for media excellence and achievement notedwhen it presentedMadMen

withits2007award,thetinydetailsrepresentinmicrocosmthecomplexityof the

largesocialthemes:

ThisshrewdaccountofAmericancultureslidingintothe1960s,holdingby

fingernailsontotheattitudesofthepost-WWII1950s,isassharpasthe

creasesinthetwobuttonsuits,aspreciseasanarrow-knottednecktie,as

wryastheryeonthebar.Italsoremindsusofthesexismathomeinthe

suburbs,oflifeasconstrictingasthecorsetsandthepearlchokers.11

MadMenmobilisesobjectsandvisualdesignfrommid-centuryAmericatoestablish

the role of material things in characterising the complexity of individuals, their

relationships to one another, and society more broadly. Audiences delight in

undertakingtheworkofunderstandingtheserelationshipswithintheframeofthenarrative and, as the programs adoptionas a creative touchstone for consumers

demonstrates,alsodelightinmobilisingsimilarobjectstosimilarendsintheirown

lives.Significantly,criticsofMadMenwhohavedismissedtheshowforitsconsumer

nostalgia fail to note the shows popularity comes at a timewhen the consumer

desiretoinvestinthesignificanceandvalueofobjectsfromthepasthasbecomea

notableculturaltrend.


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WE ARE ALL HOUSEKEEPERS NOW

TheascentofMadMentopopularacclaimmirrorsseveralothergloballysuccessful

cable television programs;Mad Men differs from these other programs is in its

manifestation of an immersive, transmediated pop culture aesthetic amongst its

fans.Few devoteesofTheWireorTheSopranos express a desire toreplicate the

backroomsoftheBadaBingClub,or thecrack-housesofdowntownBaltimore,not

tomentionthesartorialstylingsofaCarmellaSopranooranAvonBarksdale.This

immersiveengagementisthemostdistinctiveaspectofMadMenspopularity:the

showsharesitspassionformaterialhistorywithitsviewers.Arecentarticleinthe

Australian edition of the Big Issue points out, for example, that inMad Men the

clothes,the coffee tables and thecigarette holders aregorgeousdetails,butwhat

makes them penetrate the part of your brain that drives you to visit [charity]

shops?12 In this respect Mad Men serves a function beyond water cooler

conversation, it has become, in the words of sociologist Ann Deslandes, the

exemplary current pop culture platform for the vintage aesthetic.13 This effect owes

much to the shows creator and head writer, Matthew Weiner. Weiner earned

himself a reputation early in the shows production for his tendency to focus

obsessivelyonthematerialaccuracyofhisshow.Muchhasbeenmade,forinstance,

ofhis insistence that the fruit thatwas to adorn a kitchen countertop had to be

replacedbecauseitssizeandshapebetrayeditsoriginsinthetwenty-firstcentury.14

SuchscrupulousattentiontodetailhasmadeWeinerasubjectoffascinationtothe

mediawhohaveusedanecdoteslikethesetoconstructasketchofamanwithan

almostautisticauteurism.Inoneinterview,thejournalistmakesmuchofthefact

thatWeiner,havingonegrandfatherinthefurbusiness,theotherinshoes,hasa

connoisseurspedigree,asif thisancestrymadeWeinerdestinedtobea fastidious

readerofmaterialculture.15

MadMenisnottheoriginatoroftheculturalfashionforthepastbutservesasanoteworthy example of the increasingly mainstream popularity for vintage

consumption. The writers for AMCs website have even formulated their own

awkwardverbtodescribethis:to MadMenoneself.16Attheofficialwebsitefans

can play a game that presents a cartoon version of themselves to be styled in

costumestypicaloftheeraandtheprogram:theold-fashioned,newyoucansip

frommartini glasses, smoke cartoon cigarettes, set a silk scarf at a jaunty angle


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whiletotingleopard-skinluggageand,whencomplete,thefinished lookcanbeset

against a favourite Mad Men scene and downloaded. While the myriad cross-

marketingopportunitiesthathavepresentedthemselvesmeanitispossibletoMad

Menyourselfvirtually,or inthelocalmall,therealpleasureapleasuretheshow

itselfdemonstrates;andtowhichitssignificantproductionbudgettestifiesistobe

found in the collection and curatorship of vintage originals. This means

circumventingthemallinfavourofsecond-handshoppinglocations:charityshops,

antiquestores,garagesales,orcarbootmarkets.

Eventenyearsagooldgoodsthatwereantiquatedyetvaguelyfamiliarwould

havebeendescribedasretro,butinrecentyears,ashabitsofglobalconsumerism

have changed, the word vintage has gradually achieved widespread cultural

currency.17Borrowedfromitsuseinwineterminology,anythingnowdescribedas

vintage connotes the application of principles of connoisseurship regarding the

consumption,presentation,careandpreservationofoldobjects.Vintage shopping

places emphasis on the second-hand item as having value for the consumer

accordingtoitsage,ratherthanpre-possession(thusremovingsomeofthestigma

otherwise attached to second-hand goods). Vintage items retain, in the words of

sociologistGrantMcCracken,theirpatinaapropertyofgoodsbywhichtheirage

becomesakeyindexoftheirstatus.18Manyoftheactivitiesassociatedwithretro

andvintageconsumptionarethesame(visitingparticularlocations,usingparticular

languageandspecificknowledge);however,wherethetermretroemphasisesthe

consumersapproachorphilosophyof lookingbackinordertomoveforwardthe

morerecenttermvintageemphasisestheexpertiseoftheconsumerinapplyingthis

approach.19 If the popularity of earlier period dramas like those produced by

MerchantIvorywasattributedtotheirconstructionofamuseumaestheticfortheir

viewers,MadMenspopularitymightbeattributed to its production of a vintage

aesthetic: presenting mid-century America as an emporium of carefully selected,highlydesirableitems,theappreciationofwhichcanaffirmonesaccumulationof

culturalandsocialcapital.

Thereis,asPeterBrooknotesinhisessayonmelodrama,adramaofmorality

attachedtoobjects.20Wetradethemforemotions,forfreedomfromguilt,forself-

esteem,forasenseofidentity.Agrowingnumberofscholarsofconsumerculture

are now taking noteofthedramaofmoralitythat dominates the consumptionof


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mass produced artefacts today. Consumer habits such as second-hand shopping,

foraging and local, fair-trade and free-range consumption movements are being

studied as evidence of new modes of ethical consumption.21 One of the most

interestingofthesemoralmoveshasbeentherevaluationofartefactsofthepast,

especiallyitemsthatoriginateintheeraofburgeoningindustrialproductionofthe

1940s, 50s and 60s. In studies of re-consumption of music, fashion, design,

furniture,cuisineandevenpastimesfromearliercultures,newconsumersexpress

thebeliefthatthisworkconstitutesademonstrationofpersonalvaluesregarding

therecuperativepossibilitiesavailablewithinconsumerculture.Inapost-industrial

world,anobjectsprovenanceandaestheticqualityanddesignhistoryholdmore

influence than its mere novelty notes Adrian Franklin: Objects with tangible

historiesofproductioncomparefavourablytothosecreatednowwhichhaveasort

ofabsenceoforigin.22Olditemsaredesirablenotonlybecausetheyrepresentan

alternative to the present but, more particularly, because they represent an

alternative to contemporary modes of consumption and production. As Arjun

Appadurai describes, contemporary globalised consumption is serious work for

consumers:

the labor of reading ever-shifting fashion messages, the labor of debt

servicing, the labor of learning how best to manage newly complex

domestic finances, and the labor of acquiring knowledge in the

complexitiesofmoneymanagement.Thislaborisnotprincipallytargeted

at the production of commodities but is directed at producing the

conditionsofconsciousnessinwhichbuyingcanoccurEveryhousewife

knows that housekeeping is work, as real as any other. We are all

housekeepersnow,laboringdailytopracticethedisciplinesofpurchasein

a landscape whose temporal structures have become radically

polyrhythmic.23Forthosewhochoosetoconsumevintage,thisconsciousnessisfurtheraugmented

by the labour of evaluation which involves comparing the relative benefits and

deficits of consumer practices, present and past, and the labour of investment,

constructingthepersonalstoriesattachedtotheobjectasisnowusedandasitonce

was.Vintageshoppingthusrequiresa formofdoublediscipline:theregulationof

onesdesiresinrelationtooldthingsastheyarenowandastheyoncewere.The


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searchforqualityandvaluethatistheclassichallmarkofconsumerexpertiseis

extendedinvintageshoppingtobecomequalitiesandvalues:thedisciplineofthe

imagination that can link desire for old commodities because of their apparent

noveltyinthepresentwithfantasyandnostalgiaforabetterkindofconsumption.

Forvintage consumers this is serious andoften politically, socially and culturally

complexwork:thepastmayserveasarenewableresourcebutthisisnoguarantee

thatitisalwaysethicallysound.24Itisinstructivetoobservethatjustascriticsof

MadMenhaveaccusedtheshowofusingcostumes,objectsanddesigntoproduce

consumer driven nostalgia with scant attention to the politics and history

submergedbeneaththeobjects (reinvested)aura,actsofvintageconsumptionare

likewisesubjecttosimilarclaims:

Thatwehaveacquiredapassionforthingsthatinanothercontextor

timemarked the curtailing ofwomens lives, the treatment ofeconomic

hardshipasmoraldeficiencyandthecheerfulendorsementofnon-white

peoples inferiority bears thinking carefully about as we wander craft

marketsandvintagefrockshops.25

Unsurprisingly for a show that foregrounds the role of style and design as

storytelling devices, Mad Men reflects upon how and why old objects take on

particularvalueinindividuallives.Anepisodeinseasonthreeusestheredecoration

oftheDraperlivingroomasanopportunitytoexplorehowindividualsexpresstheir

desires regarding the past and the future through material objects.WhileDon is

discussingacontractthatwillseehimcommittedtothecompanyforthenextthree

years,Bettyhiresaprofessionaldecoratortogivetheirhomeanew,modernlook.In

differentwaysbothareconfrontingstasisandchangeasequallytroublingoptionsin

theirpersonallives.BettysdissatisfactionwithherhomelifeismirroredbyDonat

the office. After a final consultation with the interior decorator, Betty leaves her

newly refreshed living room tomeet privately with the charming local politicianHenry Francis. Bettys attraction to Henry is signalled by the transformative

experienceofbeingwitnesstoasolareclipse,aneventthatleavesBettyfeelinga

littledizzy.Henry,helpinghertohercar,noticesalarge,pinkcouchinthenearby

antiquesstoreandobserves,thatswhatyouneed.Afaintingcouch,Henrygoeson

to explain, is what Victorian ladies once used whenever they were feeling

overwhelmed. Appropriately, Betty falls for the fainting couch and Henrys


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euphemistic recounting of the couchs service to the overcorseted ladies of the

Victorian era.She decides tobuy it tocomplementhernew redesignat home.Of

course,itisadisastrousmatch.Asthedecoratoradmonishes:

Decorator:Whatwereyouthinking?Itsawful.

Betty:Itsanantique.

Decorator:Wediscussedthisformonths,andwedecidedantiqueswere

expected.Lookaround!Youhaveruinedthewholeroom.26

IfBettyhasruinedtheroom,sheseemsunperturbed.Bytheendoftheepisodethe

audienceseesthecouch,amidmodernistdesignerobjects,directlyinfrontoftheir

fireplace(aspacethedecoratorhaspreviouslyexplainedisthesoulofourhome),with Betty comfortably ensconced upon its soft, pink folds. If the modern object

embodiesthetechnologicallysophisticatedandprogressiveaspirationsofthemid-

century, Bettys attraction to the antique Victorian sofa reveals a desire to

reintroducesomeaspectofthepastintohermodernlife.Shelongsforanobjectthat

willconnecthertoanold(imagined)life;thelifeofVictorianladies,withwhichshe

sensessomeconnection.

Whenthedecoratorcurses herromantic infatuationwithantiquesas wholly

too expected, modern audiences might sympathise with Bettys desire for

somethingvintagetoconnecthertoanestrangedbutfascinatingpast.Bettysdesire

tobringtheantiquesofaintothemodernlivingspacedemonstratespreciselythe

kind of idiosyncratic labour required forvintage consumption.Vintage goodsare

valuabletotheconsumertothedegreethattheyrepresentabetteroption,even

when the political and social realities represented by these goods are highly

problematic.Atfirstglance,Bettyschoiceseemstodemonstratenothingmorethan

her naive bad taste, but through the context in which her fainting couch is

discovered(outonwhatiseffectivelyaplatonicdatewithanothermanatatimein

herlifewhenitseemsthateverythingisonthebrinkofchange)itisclearthather

attachmenttothefaintingcouchhaslittletodowithaestheticsandeverythingtodo

withhowtheimaginedhistoryoftheobjectconnectswithherownexperiencesin

thepresent.Bettysdecisiontoplaceasofathatrepresentsfemaleconstrictionand

frustrationinthecentreofanotherwisethoroughlymodernlivingroomcreatesan

aesthetic dissonance that cannot be ignored. The past, despite its many


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shortcomings, promises the secure territory that the future doesnt offer a

housewife.

In the episodes foregrounding of the role ofmaterial objects, audiences are

instructed to pay attention to the alternative discourse that takes place between

itemsandspectators.Thefaintingcouchisnomereexpectedantiquebutanobject

expressionofsublimatedandconflictingdesiresforamoretraditionalpastanda

liberated,rebelliousfuture.AsKateBollickobserves,Weinerandhissetdesigners

are signposting to audiences the metaphoric language of period objects and the

significancetheypossessbeyondtheirimmediatefunction:

What Weiner is saying with his impeccable sets is that all of these

seemingly superficial material thingsthe god-awful antiques we

inexplicablyfallfor,thetastefulendtablesandsofasselectedforusby

paidexpertsarelegitimateexpressionsofwhoweare.Usedcorrectly

that is to say, digging beneath the notions of what we collectively

rememberorimagineorwishthe1960slookedliketouncoverwhatwas

actuallyavailableandcommonatthetime,thenenteringintothemindsof

thecharacterstoreallyfigureoutwhichchoicesthey,personally,would

makeset design is just as revealing as any line of dialogue, visually

describingnotonlyindividualpersonalitiesandtheirrelationshipstoone

anotherbutsocietaltruths,too.27

CriticalresponsestoMadMenwhichfaulttheshowbecauseitproceeds,forthe

mostpart,likeasoapoperaignorethepotentialmeaningandsubstancetobefound

intheshowsuseofobjects.Forthesecriticstheuseofhistoricallyaccurateprops

andcostumescanonlybeusedtocreateauthenticsignsofthetimesbutcannever

offer a commentary on the social and cultural phenomena equal to believable

conflictsbetweenpersonalityandsituation.28Despitethesecomplaints,thereexists

a substantial body of film scholarship that draws attention to the way in whichprops and costumes are foregrounded in costume films, period pieces and

melodramas(filmgenresoftenmalignedfortheirconservativepoliticsandnostalgic

social discourses). In analysing such genres, scholars point to the alternative

narratives that areestablishedviathemetaphoric languageofperiod objectsand

actions. Often, as SueHarpernotes, the spectatoris aware that objectspossessa


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significance beyond themselves and their immediate function, but ultimately [is]

excludedfromtheirexactcodifiedmeaning.29

Inheressay on thephenomenon of retro shopping, KajaSilverman observes

how consumers use second-hand shopping as way to engage with the past.

Silverman suggests that retro is not evidence of contemporary amnesia or a

straightforwardnostalgia,butis,rather,a practicethatdemonstrateshowthepast

exists through textual traces in a cultural and ideological conversation with the

present.Shedescribesretroshoppingasadialoguebetweenconsumersandclothes;

a private conversation exclusive of the official narratives of history. Such habits

presentachallengetotheusualunderstandingoftimeand textuality:shoppersdo

notapproachartefactsfromthepastaspartofanyobjectivehistorytobe foundin

textbooksbutaspersonalitemsconnectedtohighlysubjectivehistoriesofuse.As

Silvermansays,byrecontextualisingobjectsfromearlierperiodswithintheframe

ofthepresent,consumersrereadtheminwaysthatmaximisetheirtransformative

potential.30Whilethereremainsatendencytodismissconsumption,evenvarious

formsofethicalconsumption,asessentiallytrivial,theseconsumerreengagements

with the material culture of the past demonstrate a howprevious erasmight be

reappropriated for the present in a manner which challenges typical

preconceptions. It is usual, for example, to consider that the only place the past

occupiesforthepresentpopularcultureisasemptystereotypicalreferent,inthe

styleof televisionshowsor films suchasHappyDaysorAustinPowers,orindeed

high-brow period equivalents such as the Merchant Ivory films, yet the current

popularity for a program such as Mad Men and its association with vintage

consumption suggests that modern consumers are interested in personal

engagements with the past of a sort distinct to the kind of blank nostalgia

consideredthehallmarkof1980sand90spopularculture.

InFredericJamesonsinfluentialtheoryofpostmodernnostalgiathehistoricalpastwasreplacedbyfashionableandglossypastness;actualmemoriesofthepast

substitutedwithculturalstereotypeswhichcomeinturntoconstitutethememories

ofpopcultureconsumers.Inthisview,nostalgiaceasestobeanemotiontiedtoreal

experienceandbecomesamediamodea stylisticsimulationbecausethepasthas

become fundamentally estranged.31 However, recent historians of nostalgia have

shown persuasively that it is possible to consume a past that is not ones own


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withoutfallingintothetrapofpostmodernsimulacra.Conventionalconceptionsof

nostalgia stress the personal aspect of the phenomenon, assuming the fantasy of

nostalgia stems inevitably from some fragment of actual experience. Fred Davis

sociologicalstudyofnostalgiaarticulatesthiscommonunderstanding:

theweight of testimony seems to suggest that the past which is the

objectofthenostalgiamustinsomefashionbeapersonallyexperienced

pastratherthanonedrawnsolely,forexample,fromchronicles,almanacs,

history books, memorial tablets, or, for that matter legend. (Can I be

nostalgicfortheGanges,aplaceIhaveneverseen,oryoufortheCrusades,

atimewhenyouhaveneverlived?)32

Davisimpliesthattheanswerisno,yettherenowexistsawealthofevidencethatas

an affect and a cultural style nostalgia has become divorced from a necessary

concept of personal lossobjects and images of and from the past can be

understood inotherwaysthatarentnecessarilyto dowithfirst-handyearning.In

SvetlanaBoymsTheFutureofNostalgia,theauthoridentifiesaformofreflective

nostalgiathat,contrarytotraditionalconfigurationswhichpromisetotakeusback

home,insteadprioritisestheindividualexperienceoflongingandloss,emphasising

theimperfectprocessof remembranceand theultimateunknowabilityof thepast.

Boymexplains:

Re-flectionsuggestsnewflexibility,notthereestablishmentofstasis.The

focushereisnotonrecoveryofwhatisperceivedtobeanabsolutetruth

but on the meditation on history and passage of time Reflective

nostalgia cherishes shattered fragments of memory and temporalizes

spaceItrevealsthatlongingandcriticalthinkingarenotopposedtoone

another, as affective memories do not absolve one from compassion,

judgmentorcriticalreflection.33

Thiskindofnostalgiaisnotconservative,doesnotconstrictmeaning:byusingthepastasanexploratoryvehiclethroughwhichtounderstandtheinexplicabilityofour

desires and our origins this activity opens out into questions of knowledge and

belief,it seeks to exploreconfigurations andconceptionsof time and thecultural

andsocialpoliticsbywhichitiscontextualised.

Instead of starting from the assumption that nostalgia is a typically

unreflectiveformofmemory,wemightsaythatitgivessensorydepthto


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ourawarenessoftheotherplaces,timesandpossibilitiesthatareatonce

integraltowhoweareanddefinitivelyalientous.Inthatsense,nostalgia

always has the potential to function as a kind of critical self-

consciousness.34

Rather like Silvermans theory of the dialoguebetween consumerand object and

betweenpastandpresentintheactofretroshopping,thisnostalgicmodeisbest

approached not as naturalised home-coming but as point of departure: an

explorationofthecreativeconstructed-nessofpersonalhistory.

Weiners construction ofMad Men makes it clear that he understands his

audiencesharethisattitude.Usingthecomplexpersonalhistoryofhisprotagonist

DonDraper,Weinerdemonstrateshowitispossibletobenostalgicforapastthatis

notonesown.DickWhittaker,formerlythebastardchildofaprostitute,becomes

Don Draper all because of an opportunistic moment on the battlefields inKorea

whereby he is able to claim another mans identity as his own. Effectively Dick

Whittakerlivesasecond-handlifeasDonDraperheinheritsawarwidow,anew

hometown,evenamedalofhonour.ContrarytothosecriticswhosuggestMadMens

audiencepopularityisattributabletothesecond-handgratificationofwatchingthe

poor impulse control of its leading characters, the shows driving narrative

concentrates on the discipline involved in the morality of objects: Dons daily

labourtomakepersonalmeaningfromtheartefactsofhislife.Likethelabourofthe

vintageconsumer,Donslifeis livedin reflectivemoderelianton reappropriation

andremediation.Theshowhintsthatthisabilitytounderstandthelinksbetween

objects and desires givesDon a special advantage onMadisonAvenue.When the

executives from the Kodak companymeetwith the advertising heads at Sterling

Coopertodiscusshowbesttopromotetheirnewinvention,acartridgeforloading

slidesintohome-projectors,Dontellsthemdefinitivelytheirproductneedsaname-

change.ItsnotcalledtheWheel,itscalledtheCarousel,hesays,sensingthatitisnotthepracticalbuttheemotionalaspectsofthenewproductthatwillcountwith

consumers. It lets us travel the way a child travels, round and around and back

home again, toa placewhereweknowweare loved. Ashespeaks slides of the

Draperfamilyareshownhappy,candidportraitsoftheall-Americanlife.Onlythe

televisionaudienceknowsthe unhappy realitythat lurks beneath theseprojected

imagesofthereallifeofDonDraper:thesecretofDickWhittaker,amarriagein


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breakdownandpressuresatwork.35Inrecognisingthevalueinnamingthedevice

theCarousel,Dondemonstratesthatheunderstandstheessentialhumandriveto

reclaimandrefashionthepastaccordingtopresentdaydesiresandrequirements.

Turning round and around and back home again does not mean a literal

homecoming (something neither possible nor desirable for a man like Don), but

rather the ongoing process by which our past is constructed according to our

present desires. Any nostalgic pangs for a lost time or place are self-consciously

creative; historical reality and its textual presentation are collapsedthe

inescapabilityoftextualityismadeapparent,andembraced.

This sense of personal history operating in ongoing carousel mode also

illustrates the degree to which new technology comes to influence our

understandingoftimeandexperience.Theeraofdigitaltechnologyhastransformed

our ability to access, circulate, and consume the culturalpast and this has made

memory amatter of perpetually reconfigurablerandom access.36 Boym connects

the reflective nostalgic mode to the effects of modern day technologies and the

culturalandsocialchangesbroughtaboutbyglobalisation:

Theambivalent sentiment permeates twentieth-centurypopular culture,

where technological advances and special effects are frequently used to

recreatevisionsofthepast,fromthesinking Titanictodyinggladiators

and extinct dinosaurs. Somehow progress didnt cure nostalgia but

exacerbated it. Similarly, globalization encouraged stronger local

attachments.In counterpointtoourfascinationwithcyberspaceandthe

virtual global village, there is a no less global epidemicofnostalgia, an

affectiveyearningforacommunitywithacollectivememory,alongingfor

continuityinafragmentedworld.37

Indeed, it is not only communities but families that are influenced by this

technologically enhancedyearning forcollectivememoryand imaginedcontinuity.The longing to make personal meaning of the past recurs as one ofMadMens

principlethemes.InaninterviewwiththeNewYorkTimesWeinerexplains,partof

theshowistryingtofindoutthissoundsreallyineloquenttryingtofigureout

whatisthedealwithmyparents.38AlthoughinitiallydismissingMadMenasaretro

fashiontrend,oneofthe manyfadsthat takethe formofinfatuationswithcertain


16/19


moments in the past, Mendelsohn observes that the shows vintage aesthetic

essentiallyrepresentsachildseyeviewofthepast.

IfsomuchofMadMeniscuriouslyopaque,allinexplicableexteriorsand

posturing,itoccurstoyouthatthisis,afterall,howtheadultworldoften

lookstochildren;whateveritsblankness,thatworld,asrecreatedinthe

show,feelssomehowrealtothoseofuswhowerekidsbackthen.39

Mendelsohnconsidersthepopularityoftheprogram,andparticularlythepopularity

of its period aesthetics, might owe something to the fact that it captures the

sentiment of those attempting to engage with the world of their parents, using

vintageartefactstouncoverthehiddenmeaningsof theirorigin.Thepopularityof

Mad Men among younger audiences, and the combination of this with other

consumptionhabitssuchasvintagecollecting,pointstowardsthepleasurestobe

foundindiscoveryandreclamationofthematerialhistoryofonesunknownpast.

Critical responses to Mad Men which fault the show for promoting indulgent

consumernostalgia fail to take into account how the showspopularity dovetails

withthedevelopmentofnewculturesofnostalgicreconsumptionandreclamation.

The vintage aesthetic has emerged ina culturalmomentinwhichconsumers are

abletoaccess,circulate,andreconfigurethetextualtracesofthepastinnewand

dynamicways;thisinvolvesareconfigurationofnostalgia,dislocatingitfromany

specific meaning in the past.40 As Boym notes, the proliferation of nostalgia in

popularculturemustbesetinrelationto thesignificanceofnewtechnologiesthat

allowaudiencestorescue,recycleandreconfigurethepastintheculturalandmedia

terrain. The proliferation of nostalgic modes, genres and styles reflects an

engagementwiththepastbasedonculturalmediationandtextualreconfiguration

inthepresentviaparticularrepresentationalandtasteregimes.Thepopularityof

the period details Mad Men carefully foregrounds should not be mistaken as

evidence of a straightforward nostalgia for the good old days but rather, asdemonstration ofa desire on the part of the shows creators and its audience to

reappropriate, reinterpretandreread thepast accordingtoalternativenarratives

informedbypresentdaydiscoursesregardingpersonalidentityandprovenance.If

the reclamation and reconsumption of the past can be said to have become an

establishedcultural styleit isnota result ofa crisis ofloss, but rather,througha


17/19


surfeitofinformationtechnologyandglobalflows,itiswhatwehavegainednew

marketsforoldthings.

CarolineHamilton isaMcKenzieFellowwiththe Publishing andCommunications

programattheUniversityofMelbourne.Sheispresentlyworkingonastudyofthe

work livesand culture ofAustralian smallpublishersand freelancers. She isalso

coeditinganissueofCulturalStudiesReviewonthesubjectofamateureconomies

tobepublishedin2013.

NOTES

1MaryMcNamara,BackWhenMenWereMadMen, LosAngelesTimes ,19July2007,

(accessed30January2012).

2SeecommentssectioninMaureenRyan,WildaboutMadMen:ATalkwithCreatorMatthewWeiner,

ChicagoTribune,15October2007,

(accessed20Dec2011).

3Theshowsreturnforseason5attracteditshighesteveraudienceof3.5million.Toputthisin

perspective,intheUnitedStateswhenthecurrentmostpopularTVshow, TwoandaHalfMen ,

returnedtoscreenslate2011itattractedanaudienceof27.7million.

4JesseMcLean,KingsofMadisonAvenue:TheUnofficialGuideto MadMen,ECWPress,Toronto,2009;

NatashaVargasCooper,MadMenUnbuttoned:ARompthrough1960sAmerica ,HarperCollins,New

York,2010;AndrewCracknell,TheRealMadMen:TheRemarkableTrueStoryofMadisonAvenues

GoldenAge ,Quercus,London,2011.

5AviSalzman,Analyst:MadMenDealwithNetflixShouldSpurLionsGate, Barrons,7April2011.

,accessed23January2012.

6MarkGreif,YoullLovetheWayitMakesYouFeel, LondonReviewofBooks ,23October2008,pp.15

16,(accessed30

November2011).

7DanielMendelsohn,TheMadMenAccount,NewYorkReviewofBooks ,24February2011,

(accessed30November2011).

8PatrickRaddenKeefe,Week3:IsMadMenJustaGuiltyPleasure?, Slate,1September2009,


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(accessed24Nov2011).

9AndrewHigson,TheHeritageFilmandBritishCinemain DissolvingViews:KeyWritingsonBritish

Cinema,ed.AndrewHigson,OxfordUniversityPress,Oxford,1996,pp.23249.

10MartinA.Hipsky,Anglofil(m)ia:WhyDoesAmericaWatchMerchantIvoryMovies?, Journalof

PopularFilmandTelevision ,vol.22,no.3,1994,p.98.

11PeabodyAwardwebsite,Winners2007,

(accessed31March2012).

12LorinClarke,WhattheDonHasDone,BigIssue,26October2010,p.14.

13AnnDeslandes,FleaMarketEthics,NewMatilda,16March2010,

(accessed19December2011).

14DeirdrevanDyk,10Questions:MadMencreatorMatthewWeiner, Time,3April2008,

(accessed15February2012).

15NeilMidgley,MatthewWeineronCreatingMadMen,Telegraph,15January2010,

.

16,MadMenYourself,AMCMadMenwebsite,(accessed

13March2012).

17ElizabethE.Guffey,Retro:TheCultureofRevival,ReaktionBooks,London,2006,p.25.

18GrantMcCracken,CultureandConsumption:NewApproachestotheSymbolicCharacterofConsumer

GoodsandActivities ,IndianaUniversityPress,Bloomington,1988,p.54.

19Guffey,p.3.

20PeterBrook,TheMelodramaticImaginationin ImitationsofLife:AReaderonFilmandTelevision

Melodrama,ed.MarciaLandy,WayneStateUniversityPress,Michigan,1991,p.64.

21SeeforexampleTaniaLewisandEmilyPotter(eds), EthicalConsumption:ACriticalIntroduction ,

Routledge,NewYork,2010.

22AdrianFranklin,TheEthicsofSecond-HandConsumptioninLewisandPotter(eds),p.165.

23ArjunAppadurai,ConsumptionDurationandHistoryinModernityatLarge:CulturalDimensionsof

Globalization,UniversityofMinnesotaPress,Minneapolis,2000,pp.823.

24

R.A.Peterson,CreatingCountryMusic:FabricatingAuthenticity,ChicagoUniversityPress,Chicago,1997,p.220,qtdinSharonZukin,ConsumingAuthenticity, CulturalStudies,vol.22,no.5,2008,pp.

72448,726.

25Deslandes.

26SevenTwentyThree,MadMen,season3,episode7.

27KateBollick,TheFaintingCouchforBestSupportingActor, Slate,28September2009,

(accessed

23February2012).


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28Mendelsohn.

29SueHarper,SexualityinCostumeMelodramain GainsboroughMelodrama,ed.SueHarperand

RobertMurphy,BFI,London,1983,p.50.

30KajaSilverman,FragmentsofaFashionableDiscoursein StudiesinEntertainment:Critical

ApproachestoMassCulture ,ed.TaniaModleski,IndianaUniversityPress,Bloomington,1986,p.150.

31FredericJameson,Postmodernism,ortheCulturalLogicofLateCapitalism ,Verso,NewYork,1991.

32FredDavis,YearningforYesterday:ASociologyofNostalgia ,FreePress,NewYork,1979,p.8.

33SvetlanaBoym,TheFutureofNostalgia ,BasicBooks,NewYork,2002,pp.4950.

34NadiaAtiaandJeremyDavies,NostalgiaandtheShapesofHistory, MemoryStudies ,vol.

3,no.3,2010,p.184.

35TheWheel,MadMenseason1,episode13.

36JimCollins,ArchitecturesofExcess:CulturalLifeintheInformationAge ,Routledge,NewYork,1995,p.

45.

37Boym,p.xiv.

38AlexWitchell,MadMenhasitsMoment,NewYorkTimes ,22June2008,

(accessed12

March,2012).

39Mendelsohn.

40Oneofthebestexamplesofthisnewlytechnologisedvintageaestheticincludethesmartphoneapps

suchasInstagramwhichallowuserstoaddfilterstodigitalphotographstomakeimagesappearolder,

fadedanddatedinwaysthatsuggestearliererasofmediadevelopment(sepiatone,kodachrome,

polaroidandsoon).

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Seeing the World Secondhand