I read somewhere that the word "artisanal" is falling out of favor in terms of being the "it" word in food marketing. It's interesting, isn't it, how certain words and phrases take hold of the collective imagination? Ten years ago, no one used "artisanal" to describe anything, but right now it is hot, viral, omnipresent. There's a groovy cheese shop in NYC called Artisanal. Here's a link to a story about a shop in Brooklyn that sells artisanal mayonaisse.
Seriously?
We humans are pack animals. We want to fit in, sometimes desperately, it seems. I think fitting in makes us feel safe. It's instinctual. Standing at a stoplight with a group waiting for the light to change, if one person jaywalks, others will follow suit. We dress like our heroes and heroines, try for the same hairdos and such. Slang is all about fitting in, hey? Yeah.
Maybe that's why everyone gets in line at the supermarket at the same time, in order to fit in to the prevailing pack behavior pattern. Who knows?
The latest hot phrase in the U.S. is class warfare. I've seen it in print, heard it repeatedly on the radio. Wow.
Clearly I have had way too much time to sit around and think. Today my plan is to be more active than reflective. I love to think but it's time for a paradigm shift. Remember when that was a prevailing phrase? Hmm.
6 comments:
oh yes, the media and advertising pundits love their hot button words. I always thought 'artisanal' was dumb. and don't get me started on 'class warfare'.
but yeah, we are definitely herd animals and not always to our benefit. especially when we act like lemmings.
i'm grateful for things that are handmade. how they are "sold" is something that has little effect on their value to me.
the commercial world is the most fragile of power structures. at best it's an artifice that creates its own reality - part of it's work is to substantiate its existence by creating a language of need. when that language becomes stale or loses its cachet, it has to reinvent itself. present a new "face", cause that "face" to speak in a language that appeals, create a need: blogging's like this. steven
i've been to artisanal in nyc and it is groovy! maybe even beyond!
i think i actually used artisanal when describing my friend's ice cream company - oh no!! ha ha....
class warfare? if it can be non-violent i say BRING IT ON!
speaking of paradigm, remember this gem?
subvert the dominant paradigm
must say, this notion has never fallen out of favor with me!
But Kim, any time there's class warfare, you know who wins? The people with money! Yikes.
Steven yes ... but say more please about how blogging is like marketing. Please?
Ellen - yeah! We become lemmings after awhile, doing as we're told to do which can be damn confusing when we're told to eat a bag of Fritos and drink a six of beer every night, yet we're also told to be slender and active. No wonder we're in such a tizzy!
good god...it hasn't reached our shores here in Oz yet as far as I know. How do you say it "artIZanal" "artis-anal" ARTisinl??
To be honest I have no idea how it is Pronounced!
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