Buy stuff, do good, save the world: Transitivity and interpellation in the sustainable fashion discourse

Abstract

Meaning production via mass media discursive practice is a complex social process, through which viewers and readers are interpellated as subjects (Fiske, 2004). Interpellation is the act of “hailing” these subjects into predetermined identities (i.e. sustainable fashion consumer) but can simultaneously “naturalize” predominate ideological frameworks (e.g. capitalism, heteronormativity, patriarchy, etc.) (Althusser, 2006). Whether a subject can resist interpellation is a matter of some debate. Who has the power to act, to speak, to resist, is naturalized through discourse (Fiske, 2004; Foucault, 1981). In this position paper, we examine sustainable fashion discursive practices in the popular press through the lens of Foucault’s conception of power dynamics as well as Fiske’s and Althusser’s interpellation theories. Thus, we will explore the most pressing issues of agency, transitivity,1 and the limited imagination present in fashion media’s discursive practice.