Material Culture

“By studying culture as something created and lived through objects, we can better understand both social structures and larger systemic dimensions such as inequality and social difference, and also human action, emotion, and meaning.”

Woodward, Ian. Understanding Material Culture. Sage Publications, 2014.

Definition

Material culture is an approach for examining the social and cultural context of the objects used in everyday life.

Context

Anthropology

Procedure

1. Collect materials or objects that share some relationship to each other. Of course, there may be limitations to what can and can’t be collected, but try to get a sample that represents real social dynamics.

2. Organize the objects based on any patterns or themes that make sense. Think about the relationships the objects have to each other, daily activities, and people.

• What do they have in common?

• What makes them different?

3. Use photography and writing to reflect on the meaning behind the patterns. Try to think of insights that aren’t apparent at first. Describe how these insights can motivate positive changes moving forward.

Use Case

I did a study which analyzed the material culture of the garbage that I throw out. For three days, I kept all of the items I would have normally thrown away. I made a few exceptions for some unsanitary things, but I was able to collect most of my trash.

After collecting all of my garbage, I wrote about three different stories they told about my life.

Friendships: Most of the alcohol was brought to my apartment by other people. I enjoy inviting people over on the weekends and socializing with games and other fun activities. The trash I throw away isn’t just my own, it also comes from my friends and social interactions. 

College Lifestyle: Most of the trash I throw away is from my daily needs of being a frugal graduate student.

Personal Habits: My apartment unfortunately does not have recycling management. To deal with this, I have created a recycling corner in my closet. As shown in the photo on the left, I place any big recyclable materials into these cardboard boxes. When there’s no more space left, I drive all the items to a recycling center nearby.

Data Analysis

Storytelling is an effective way to bring material cultures to life. My garbage stories revealed the social context (friendships), my different consumption patterns (college lifestyle), as well as my own activities involved in waste management (personal habits). I now have a better understanding of what waste means to me.