Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Green Looks Good On You: The Rhetoric And Moral Identity Of Conscious Consumption Blogs, Abigail O'Brien

Scripps Senior Theses

Conscious consumption blogs are at the center of a particular online community where eco-friendly products are popularized. Through the lens of these blogs, this paper analyzes discourse around identity, purchasing, sustainability, lifestyle, community, and activism, to investigate the forces at work in the conscious consumption movement and identify where there is a need for a shift towards a more political environmentalism. As an environmentalist strategy, conscious consumption disproportionately centers the consumer angle, constructing personal possessions as symbols of sustainability. Language analysis reveals strong individualistic messages about personal belief, preference, and benefit which overwhelm any sense of communal good. Instead, motivation …