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      Lessons from science fiction: Frederik Pohl and the robot prosumer

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      Journal of Consumer Culture
      SAGE Publications

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          Abstract

          The diverse fields of business, management and marketing have long explored the concept of the ‘prosumer’ – the producer-consumer who not only consumes those products produced by industry, but also has some hand in their creation. But while the term itself is often credited to futurist Alvin Toffler , the concept he describes (and that which Ritzer et al. adapt) is a central concern of science fiction, which has much to offer our understanding of modern-day prosumption and is not limited by the language and limitations of purely scientific academic discourse.

          Indeed, one of the most important voices in this area is author and editor Frederik Pohl, with his co-authored novel The Space Merchants and short stories including ‘The Midas Plague’ and ‘The Man Who Ate the World’. In each of these works, Pohl seeks to satirise the mindless robot-like behaviour of human beings, while also posing a word of warning for the social, economic and ecological impact mass-prosumption. This is a particularly relevant message given the rise of ‘surveillance capitalism’ – the real world manifestation of the dystopias that Pohl and his contemporaries describe.

          In this paper, I argue that science fiction isn’t just a useful tool for social theorists, but rather, a vital resource, as it provides a speculative framework through which to interrogate the potential impacts and implications of new technology, and the links between production and consumption, technology and work. Furthermore, it provides the means through which to imagine possible futures and the lasting impacts of consumption that go beyond describing the world as it is, and move into the realms of what the world may become.

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          Most cited references5

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          The changing nature of consumption and the intensification of McDonaldization in the digital age

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            The prosumer

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              The Robot Story: Why Robots Were Born and How They Grew Up

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                Author and article information

                Journal
                Journal of Consumer Culture
                Journal of Consumer Culture
                SAGE Publications
                1469-5405
                1741-2900
                July 23 2020
                : 146954052094422
                Affiliations
                [1 ]Lancaster University, UK
                Article
                10.1177/1469540520944228
                a06b587f-2f67-4eae-a75e-8f831258e79e
                © 2020

                http://journals.sagepub.com/page/policies/text-and-data-mining-license

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