The Commodity Frontier Analysis

For the final assignment of the semester, we have been given the task of creating an autobiographical essay using five concepts from our course. Before I begin to go into much more detail, I believe it is important to start off with some simple definitions in regards to work, family, and gender as it is the course name. Work is defined by Hannah Arendt as “the construction of a stable world of things, which become the basis for action” (138). The family is referred to by Friedrich Engels as the connection of multiple individuals which make up a whole (734). Finally, gender is defined as being “an institution that is embedded in all of the social processes of everyday life and social organizations” (Risman, 430). As a way of concluding the course …show more content…
Arlie Hochschild defines “the commodity frontier” as “ it looks out on one side to the marketplace and on the other side of the family. On the market side, it is a frontier for companies as they expand the number of market riches for good and services that in yesteryear, formed part of unpaid “family life. On the other side, it is a frontier for families that feel the need or desire to consume such goods and services”(Hochschild,35-36). Overall, what I take away from the concept of the commodity frontier is it is the market in which goods and services are provided and families must go to be able to buy these services. I might be totally off from the actually meaning of the commodity frontier but I do understand that there is a fine line between the two. An example of what I mean by a fine line between the two is when my mother uses the phrase “ I am not your maid” after she comes home from work and cleans up a mess. At that moment right there, my mother is considered having crossed the line between a job in which she could get paid for and a task she does to keep her house clean. Another personal interpretation of the commodity frontier pushes us to look into how technology has affected us. We used to live in a world where we could write letters and have conversations with people allowing face to face interaction. Now we live in a world where when the newest piece of technology comes out, we all are running just to purchase it. This is because as humans we are drawn into wanting new things to stay in the loop. However, this new technology adds so many intriguing aspects to their devices that have led to a deterioration in the amount of face to face interactions we have. This is something I am totally guilty for and notice it the more I get older. My generation has lost the ability to handle having a conversation with someone in person because they are so addicted to their