Making Over the Body: The Style of the Consumer-Citizen

• In Event: Scholar to Scholar II
  In Paper Session: Citizenship as Stability and Change: Exploring Technologies of American Virtue and Belonging

Abstract

Contemporary makeover television posits a view of citizenship that focuses on the consumption of the body. Consumer-citizenship is not a new phenomenon in the US, with citizens often urged to consume as a way to aid in the building of the nation, such as after World War II. Consumption of the body is not necessarily a new phenomenon either, especially since the advent of the cosmetics industry in the early 20th century US. Throughout the 20th century, women were encouraged to consume as a way of fulfilling their citizenship duties of appearing in a beautiful manner, through the purchase of cosmetics, diet plans, clothing, exercise equipment, and cosmetic surgery. However, through makeover television, the public has seen a particular style of the consumer-citizen emerge, particularly for women.
Makeoverees emerge from the makeover mill on a plethora of makeover shows looking almost identical in style, despite the wide variety and identities of the individual shows. This coherence in style results from an ideology of style present in American media that necessitates the consumption of products. Style itself is sold as a commodity that can be exchanged for a “better” career, family, or self-esteem. Style is thus a mode of self-governance in the US, a way of requiring citizens to discipline themselves as part of contributing to the nation. The consumer-citizen style helps to make individuals more productive members of society fully in charge of their lives, as neoliberalism mandates that citizens take individual responsibility for the success of their careers and lives.

Author

• Shana Heinricy, Xavier University