“Frantic economic urgency of producing fresh waves of ever more novel-seeming goods” (Jameson)
Today in class, we started to discuss the impacts of Jameson’s thoughts on our culture. Jameson discusses how we are always flooded with a collection of “new” goods in the market: new clothing styles, new cookware, new films. However, many of these “new” goods are recycled versions of what we already have, reinforcing a cyclical fashion.
His assertions connect back to Habermas and the concept of “cult of the new.” Habermas argues that we are drawn to new things, even if they are not truly new. The idea of the object being new is more compelling than an actually new.
As a consumer in the United States, I am constantly exposed to the “novel-seeming goods” in the marketplace. Activewear is a particular place that I shop in since I workout a ton. Brands like Gymshark and Lululemon will drop new collections, but many of the leggings they release are similar or even the same to what they have released before. There will be a slight tweak in the cut of the legging, the fabric, the seams or another small detail, and they will then re-brand the legging as something new. However, there is a lot of hype that goes around these releases, often leading to them selling out within the first day they are released. Though the leggings are not that different than what they already have, the novel value of these new leggings make consumers want to buy them. Gymshark will continue to release these new (but not really new) leggings because it works for them economically and they are able to market their new collections as selling out fast. Thus, the cycle of urgent continues to push Gymshark to make minor tweaks to their products, which then urges other companies to do the same.
One of Gymsharks' most popular leggings that has been re-released a couple different times
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