Interweavings: A cultural phenomenology of everyday consumption and social atmosphere within Danish middle-class families

This
dissertation
is
based
on
anthropological
fieldwork
carried
out
by
the
author
among
 middle‐class
 families
 in
 Copenhagen
 over
 a
 two‐year
 period.
 The
 article‐manuscripts
 presented
in
it
are
concerned
mainly
with
practices
of
everyday
consumption
in
family
 life,
 and
 with
 the
 cultural
 phenomenon
 of
 hygge – the
 Danish
 term
 for
 a
 form
 of
 everyday
togetherness,
which
is
often
seen,
by
both
Danes
and
foreigners,
laymen
and
 academics,
as
a
particular
trait
to
a
Danish
style
of
interaction
and
larger
way
of
life.


Social­material
atmosphere
Through
 the
 research
 presented
 in
 manuscripts
 2
 and
 3,
 this
 dissertation
 is
 the
 first
 academic
work
to
offer
a
thorough
cultural
and
social
analysis
of
the
everyday
form
of
 atmosphere
 and
 interaction
 known
 as
 Danish
 hygge. Hygge
 is
 found
 to
 encapsulate
 many
of
the
affective
qualities
that
Danes
seek
from
family
life,
as
well
from
other
social
 relations
which
are
often
emotionally
close
yet
usually
of
a
non‐sexual
nature,
such
as
 friendship.
The
attractions
of
hygge
also
apply
to
a
distinct
feeling
of
atmosphere
at
and
 around
certain
places,
both
in
the
home
and
in
public
space.
In
particular
manuscript
3
 shows
 that
 the
experience
 of
hygge
 comes
about
 through
a
 constellation
 of
 temporal
 experience,
 forms
 of
 interaction
 and
 social
 activities,
 plus
 material
 conditions
 and
 objects,
 by
 which
 the
 realization
 of
 this
 experience
 entails
 a
 certain
 pattern
 of
 consumption.
It
is
argued
here
that
the
values
and
social
and
material
practices
that
pertain
to
 hygge,
 including
 consumption
 patterns
 and
 norms,
 are
 emblematic
 of
 middle‐class values
in
Danish
 society.
Hygge
is
 shown
 to
 be
a
 pleasant
and
 highly
 valued
everyday
 experience
of
safety,
equality,
personal
wholeness
and
a
spontaneous
social
flow;
which
 is
 charged
 with
 values
 around
 authenticity
 that
 contrast
 strongly
 both
 with
 the
 experience
 of
 the
 contract‐like
 relations
 of
 work
 life,
 and
 of
 the
 commercial
 interests
 and
 forces
 that
 one
 faces
 as
 a
 consumer.
 Yet
 in
 spite
 of
 the
 egalitarian
 features
 of
 hygge,
the
latter
represents
an
exercise
of
social
control
in
everyday
life.
Manuscript
2
 documents
 that
 around
 the
 notion
 of
hygge
 there
 exists a
 hierarchy
 of
 attitudes
 and
 negative
 stereotypes
 that
 represent
 a
 
 middle‐class
 worldview,
 and
 which
 is
 directed
 against
‘lower’
and
‘upper’
classes
whose
values
and
ways
of
life
are
seen
as
more
raw
 and/or
superficial
than
those
of
the
subject,
and
thus
less
characterized
by
hygge.

The
 dissertation
 analyzes
 how
 the
 symbolic
 values
 of
 everyday
 consumer
 goods
 and
 social
 practices
emerge
in
 this
 context
 of
egalitarian
 values.
Hygge
is
 found
 to
 be
 antithetical
 to
 luxury
 and
 intensity,
 and
 to
 be
 a
 quality
 that
 people
 attach
 to
 the
 consumption
 of
 ‘ordinary’
 goods.
 The
 keywords
 in
 this
 regard
 are
 affordability,
 spontaneity
and
authenticity.

The
 dissertation
 analyzes
 the
 underlying
 cultural
 values
 as
 characteristic
 of
 egalitarian
social
patterns
in
 the
Nordic
welfare
 societies.
Manuscript
2
considers
how
 norms
 and
 values
 around
 hygge
 represent
 a
 historical
 continuity
 with
 the
 bourgeois
 family
life
that
arose
in
the
18th
century,
and
sanctified
the
notion
of
warm
and
intimate
 relations
 in
 the
 home.
 The
 roots
 are
 also
 traced
 further
 back
 in
 time
 to
 the
 Nordic
 peasant
culture
in
which
a
general
fear
of
other
people’s
envy
would
taboo‐ize
the
open
 display
of
luck,
wealth
and
happiness.

Ultimately
the
attraction
and
meaning
that
hygge
holds
is
here
seen
as
founded
in
 a
general
cultural
idealization
of
‘inner
space’
that
resonates
with
historical
patterns
in
 Danish
 history,
and
 the
 national
 self
 perception
 of
Danes
as
 being
a
 small
 nation.
 But
 also
 in
 a
 yearning
 for
 home
 and
 intimacy
 that
 is
 a
 general
 romantic
 disposition.
 The
 dissertation
also
discusses
the
critique
of
hygge
that
sometimes
appears
in
the
realms
of
 Danish
art
and
politics,
in
which
hygge
is
seen
as
introvert,
passive
and
petit‐bourgeois,
 and
as
a
barrier
to
ambition,
intensity
and
greatness.
These
perspectives
are
considered
 in
manuscript
2.

The
 analytical
 limitations
 of
 interpreting
 hygge
 as
 a
 trait
 of
 Danish
 and
 Nordic
 culture
 are
 discussed
 against
 a
 background
 of
 indications
 that
 material
 and
 social
 phenomena
which
are
comparable
to
hygge
exist
in
other
cultural
contexts
than
those
 of
Denmark
or
the
Nordic
region;
both
as
a
form
of
practice
and
subjective
experience
in
 everyday
life,
and
as
a
linguistic
concept
with
relatively
similar
meanings.
Manuscript
3
 therefore
proceeds
 to
develop
an
analytical
 framework
 that
sees
hygge
as
merely
one
 cultural
 variant
 of
a
much
more
general
 human
 experience
and
 form
 of
 togetherness.
 The
 phenomenological
 concepts
 of
 dwelling
and
interiority
are
employed
 to
approach
 hygge
as
a
universally
human need
and
capability.
The
dissertation
in
this
regard
shows
 the
 effects
 or
 potentialities
 by
 which
 material
 settings
 and
 objects
 have
 a
 potential
 (affordance)
for
creating
this
kind
of
atmosphere.
It
is
argued
that
the
material
objects
 and
goods
that
characterize
hygge
partake
in
creating
a
subjective
experience
of
being
 with
others
in
a
here
and
now,
which
is
temporally,
spatially
and
symbolically
bounded
 from
 the
 world
 that
 lies
 ‘outside’,
 and
 its
 demands
 and
 structures.
 This
 collective
turning‐away
 paradoxicaææy
also
entails
an
attention
 to
 the
wider
world
as
 contrast.
 The
dissertation
suggests
 that
 through
 this
attention
 to
 the
exterior
 from
 the
interior,
 and
concrete
exchanges
between
inner
and
outer
space,
the
exterior
becomes
present
 in
the
interior.

Family
consumption
(manuscript
4)
In
 analyzing
 everyday
 practices
 of
 consumption
 within
 families,
 this
 dissertation
 contributes
to
current
research
into
family
consumption
by
showing that
the
individual
 seeking
 of
 autonomy
 and
 presence
 towards
 other
 family
 members
 is
 a
 driver
 of
 everyday
consumption.
Through
different
practices
of
consumption,
from
shopping
with
 others
or
deciding
which
food
to
buy
for
dinner,
to
deciding
e.g.
to
pay
for
ones
children
 to
 attend
 boarding
 school,
 family
 members
 seek
 autonomy
 for
 themselves,
 for
 the parental
couple,
and
for
their
children
as
a
value
that
these
are
socialized
towards.
It
is
 argued
 here
 that
 this
 dynamic
 is
 not
 sufficiently
 recognized
 in
 current
 consumer
 research
 on
 families,
 nor
 are
 negotiations
 among
 family
 members
 over
 consumption
 decisions,
which
also
lacks
attention
to
the
cultural
and
social
factors
that
underlie
these
 patterns
 of
 family
 life.
 The
 dissertation
 reviews
 previous
 studies
 of
 family
 decision‐ making
 around
 consumption,
 and
 finds
 that
 these
 studies
 amply
 document
 the
 existence
of
ongoing
negotiations
among
family
members
over
consumption.
However
 this
 line
 of
 research
 entirely
 lacks
 attention
 to
 the
 cultural
 and
 social
 context
 for
 the
 negotiations.
The
dissertation
reviews
anthropological
and
sociological
studies
of
family
 life
in
a
modern
Western
context,
which
provide
an
understanding
of
the
larger
societal,
 cultural
 and
 historical
 setting
 for
 everyday
 life
 and
 practices
 of
 consumption
 among families.
These
studies,
together
with
family
consumption
within
CCT
(Consumer
Culture
 Research),
 constitute
 the
 framework
 for
 analyzing
 the
 data
 collected
 through
 the
 author´s
ethnographic
fieldwork.

Throughout
the
thesis
demonstrates
the
need
for
attention
to
the
wider
cultural,
 societal
 and
 historical
 context
 of
 everyday
 consumption,
 for
 which
 the
 manuscript
 1
 argues
 on
 theoretical
 grounds,
 as
 well
 as
 through
 a
 critical
 review
 of
 interpretive
 consumption
research.
In
 terms
 of
 family
 relations
 it
 is
 argued that
 the
 concept
 of
 intersubjectivity
 is
 better
suited
than
notions
of
shared
identity
to
conceptualize
the
simultaneous
relation
 between
 the
 individual
 and
 the
 collective
 within
 the
 family.
 In
 this
 regard
 the
 author
 discusses
 how
 the
 analysis
 of
 consumption
 practices
 can
 move
 beyond
 seeing
 these
 mainly
 as
 ways
 of
 constructing
 identity,
 and
 towards
 an
 appreciation
 of
 how
 consumption
 relates
 to
 being.
 This
 dissertation
 discusses
 how
 the
 practice
 of
 consumption
 supports
 a
 human
 striving
 for
 presence,
 and
 the
 experience
 of
 other
 people’s
presence.
The
ethnographic
data
collected
for
this
PhD
dissertation
show
that
the
intention
 of
 family
 members
 to
 influence
 or
 secure
 the
 future
 of
 their
 family
 and
 its
 individual
 members
is
a
central
even
if
often
implicit
consideration
in
many
instances
of
everyday
 consumption.
Therefore
the
author
it
points
to
temporal
prospection
as
a
promising
site
 for
 the
future
study
 of
family
 consumption.
 
 The
 study
 of
 this
 topic
 can
 be
 used
 as
 a
 point
of
access
 for
 theorizing
 the
 relation
between
individual
and
collective
in
modern
 families,
 towards
 which
 this
 dissertation
 takes
 steps.
 The
 implications
 for
 CCT (Consumer
Culture
Theory)
family
research
are
considered
in
terms
of
its
methodology,
 and
 the
 research
 objects
and
 questions
 that
 define
 the
 field.
In
 terms
 of
 the
 research
 field
manuscript
4
argues
for
defining
it
as
directed
towards
how
through
consumption;
 people
 construct,
 reproduce
and
distance
 themselves
 to
 the
 family
as
a
phenomenon.
 Methodologicallt
 it
 is
 demonstrated
 here
 that
 research
 into
 families´
 consumption
 patterns
has
much
 to
gain
by
 the
 researcher
encountering
both
 the
 family
as
a
group,
 and
its
members
as
individuals,
and
interviews
the
latter
both
in‐
and
outside
the
home,
 as
 well
 as
 observes
 their
 concrete
 practices
 of
 consumption
 in
 both
 spheres.