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Ideal Homes and the Gender Politics of Consumerism in Postcolonial Ghana, 1960–70
Author(s) -
Murillo Bianca
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
gender and history
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.153
H-Index - 30
eISSN - 1468-0424
pISSN - 0953-5233
DOI - 10.1111/j.1468-0424.2009.01562.x
Subject(s) - consumerism , politics , ideal (ethics) , language change , exhibition , consumption (sociology) , newspaper , government (linguistics) , sociology , political science , political economy , gender studies , media studies , social science , law , history , art , linguistics , philosophy , literature , archaeology
This article uses the 1967 Ideal Home Exhibition in Accra as a window onto understanding connections between gender and consumerism in postcolonial Ghana. Drawing upon newspapers, comics and novels, it argues that the home was placed at the centre of national debates about economic recovery and political stability. Major goals of attracting Western investors and building Ghana's private sector simultaneously promoted conservative gender roles and restrictions on consumer behaviour. Cultural stereotypes targeting the consumption habits of women and youth intensified in the postcolonial period, masking larger issues like unstable wages, increasing foreign debts, high costs of living and government corruption.