
released 10/25/2024
Artificial. Tacky. Cheap. Inauthentic. These are just some of the many disparaging words people use to describe plastic. But Jeffrey Meikle explains that throughout the history of plastic’s development and use, Americans have also adopted positive views of the idea of plasticity. Meikle, author of American Plastic: A Cultural History (1996), traces the technological, economic, and cultural development of plastic. Initially (and still) viewed primarily as a threat to authenticity and quality products, plastic also offers people a way to think of their own selves and environments as malleable and, therefore, customizable — which fits the culture of modernity well. Meikle explores various anti-plastic cultural movements and discusses our acquiescence to plastic’s benefits, lamenting our lack of grounding in the authentic stuff of nature.
This interview was originally featured on Volume 26 of the Mars Hill Tapes.
15 minutes
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