Table of Contents

Introduction
1. Theorizing Things: Disciplinary Diversity in Thinking about Objects
2. Valued Possessions: What are Things Worth?
3. Making Things: Labor in Production
4. Producing Things: A History of Systems of Manufacture
5. Beautiful Things: The Aesthetics of Surfaces
6. The Greed Imperative: User Needs in Product Design
7. Planned Obsolescence: Unsustainable Consumption
8. Objects as Signs: What do Things Mean?
9. The Obsession of Possession: Fetish Objects
Conclusion
Bibliography
Index

Promotional Information

Designing Things provides the reader with a map of the rapidly changing field of design studies, a subject which now draws on a diverse range of theories and methodologies - from art and visual culture, to anthropology and material culture, to media and cultural studies.

About the Author

Prasad Boradkar is Associate Professor in the College of Design at Arizona State University.

Reviews

"A must read for those interested in the world of things. It explains complicated theoretical texts in ways that will delight readers." David Brody, Parsons The New School for Design "A lucid introduction to many of the theoretical perspectives that exist around objects and their design. For students it provides a deep understanding of the social meanings of design in both its production and consumption and the ethical issues that these raise" Guy Julier, Leeds Metropolitan University