Theoretical Analysis
Looking around my apartment, I realize that almost everything I own is 2nd hand; whether it-s the chair I-m sitting in, the table I eat at, the toaster, the mug, the books, the record player, etc. virtually everything is used. The more I think about it, I realize that I have been shopping 2nd hand since I was old enough to drive to the closest resale shop. Although originally my intentions were probably different than they are now, something about it has always attracted me. This research is not only rooted in a personal quest to find out what is so pleasing about used things but also to find out if other people get the same satisfaction in shopping 2nd hand as I do.
As I sat down and pondered this, I identified many reasons why I shop 2nd hand. First and most obvious is the price. If I buy a high-quality, good-looking kitchen table at a new, commercial store then I would probably be looking at no less than 50 euros, and even that would be hard to find. On the other hand if I were to buy it at a used store, depending on where I go, I could get it for around 20 euros. So, anyone can do the math. Second reason is because, in my opinion, it is more environmentally and socially sound. With the money I spend on a used kitchen table, there were no trees cut down or raw materials used. Likewise, when I buy used clothing I am not supporting any unethically sound practices such as sweatshop labor. It is so difficult these days to buy clothes, or anything for that matter, and know exactly where it was made. The materials are made in one part of the world, while fabricated in another. At least when buying second-hand things, you aren-t directly giving your money to a corporation employing these practices. The third and fourth reasons - character and life story - are interlinked and comprise the crux of why I prefer 2nd hand things.
I would like to take these two reasons and examine them more closely through the works of Walter Benjamin and Arjun Appadurai. These two authors as well as my own research have helped me better understand the attraction and appreciation for 2nd hand shopping.
In his article “The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction”, Benjamin (1968; original edition, 1936) introduces the idea of an “aura” certain works of art have that is intricately linked to its originality. This aura is strongest around original masterpieces such as the Mona Lisa but decays as the work of art is re-produced. Just as with the natural auras that are seen by many people around natural matter, the aura has to do with distance. The closer one is to a human or tree, the brighter the aura will be. In Benjamin-s eyes, once a work of art is reproduced, its authenticity or “aura” is jeopardized because it no longer has its presence in time and space. “The authenticity of a thing is the essence of all that is transmissible from its beginning, ranging from its substantive duration to its testimony to the history which it has experienced. Since the historical testimony rests on the authenticity, the former, too, is jeopardized by reproduction when substantive duration ceases to matter. And what is really jeopardized when the historical testimony is affected is the authority of the object.” (Benjamin 1968: 221)
The authority in Benjamin-s eyes is the aura of the object. Therefore the more a work of art is reproduced the more its aura diminishes. Along these lines, take the original Michelangelo frescos in the Sistine Chapel in Rome. If one sees these original frescos on the ceiling, it produces a feeling inside of us, a feeling of realness and authenticity. It has authority because we can see its originality and feel its history. Now, what happens when we leave the Sistine Chapel and pass numerous tourist shops selling anything and everything with the reproduction of the frescos? This feeling of authority or the aura exponentially decays with every passing tourist wearing a t-shirt and carrying a bag or umbrella painted with Michelangelo.
To sum up, the aura or the feeling of awe created by unique or remarkable objects is directly linked to its originality and place in history. In my opinion, the aura of unique things could also be perceived as its character or personality. So nowadays, in a time when everything is standardized and mass-produced, how do we find this aura? Does it still exist? And if so, what creates it? These questions are pertinent in my life because I am constantly searching for character, in buildings, places, people, and things. And usually, depending on the quality of the object, I feel there is more character in old things. Is it possible then, that this character or aura is brighter around 2nd hand things and that-s what attracts people to them?
In my interviews with customers of two 2nd hand stores in Leuven I asked them what attracts them to shopping 2nd hand. While most of the answers touched on the character and price of the items others referred to the item-s life story or history. One lady told me that, “most older items have personality; things that you can-t find anywhere anymore” (Lydie, meet the shoppers), while others made general statements about older things being more beautiful. I wanted to know more in-depth how they defined character and what, in their opinion, was the difference between new and old things. Almost everyone stated that there was in fact a difference and some of the most interesting responses I encountered were that older items and 2nd hand items are “more authentic”, “better-made”, “more rare”, “more original”, “more unique”, and have a “history” and/or “life-story”.
After analyzing these responses, I was immediately brought back to Benjamin and the aura. In essence, the character, authenticity, originality and uniqueness of 2nd hand items, could be thought of as the aura. But how is character obtained? Why do people think used things have more character? I propose it is because of its life story. The longer life story of something equates to more character and more originality. Therefore as some thing is exchanged more frequently then it collects more value. I would like to discuss this idea of the life history and life-story of 2nd hand things in the context of Appadurai-s “The Social Life of Things.”
Appadurai-s basic premise put simply is that the exchange of commodities creates value and that commodities obtain social lives through their politics. For the purposes of my analysis, what interests me is more the value created by the exchange of commodities and the knowledge that accompanies this exchange.
According to Appadurai (1986: 41-42), “If we regard some commodities as having ‘life histories- or ‘careers- in a meaningful sense, then it becomes useful to look at the distribution of knowledge at various points in their careers. Such careers have the greatest uniformity at the production pole, for it is likely that at the moment of production, the commodity in question has had the least opportunity to accumulate an idiosyncratic biography or enjoy a peculiar career.”
Essentially, the life history of an object is most standardized and uniform when it is mass-produced. And as one definition of uniform describes that (something) is always the same in quality, degree, character or manner, it essentially means it is void of character. The object has not developed a career yet, and in my opinion, doesn-t develop one until someone has used it. Therefore, the more an object has been used and/or exchanged, the more life-story and character it acquires. This is fitting as some people I interviewed reported that 2nd hand items have more character because they are “more original and have a story” or that they “are special because they get a second life” or that they “have already had a life.”
So, if I return to Benjamin-s concept of the aura, and that object-s authority, it is plausible that the aura could also be represented by an object-s longer life history. It has been through more hands and is more human than a mass-produced object, so therefore it-s aura is brighter. And this aura is what attracts people to second-hand things, many times over new items.
The journey that a thing has experienced is directly related to the degree of its character or personality. Just as with a person who has had many experiences will most likely have more character and personality than someone who has always remained stationary. This is a rather far-fetched analogy but it makes sense. Most of the time 2nd hand things are not original but they embody a sense of mystery that is almost impossible to achieve with mass reproduction. I don-t know where that chair came from but it has a history; every groove, crack and scratch has a story behind it.
So to summarize all these points, people are attracted to 2nd hand things because they have a brighter aura, which is a result of a longer and more complex life story. Through our conversations, I could say that many people prefer shopping 2nd hand because used things have more character and more history. In other words, there is little to no opportunity for character or life-story to develop in mass-production. Thus the more character is dependent on the longer life history or career.
1. Appadurai, A. 1986 ‘Introduction: commodities and the politics of value’. In The Social Life of Things (Ed, Appadurai, A.) Cambridge University Press, New York.
2. Benjamin, Walter. 1968. ‘The work of art in the age of mechanical reproduction-. In Illuminations, ed. Arendt (trans. Zohn), 217 - 251. New York: Harcourt, Brace. (Original publication, 1936.)
December 15th, 2005 at 6:44 pm
Kim, i agree, you don’t have to be an Avon lady. i had no idea that you did so much cool stuff in Leuven… you should brag a little more!
CM
June 23rd, 2006 at 2:43 am
Kim,
I am searching for Kimberly Trathen born around April 8, 1967, the daughter of Robert S. Trathen, my cousin. If we are related I would love to hear from you.