Contemporary society is immersed in a vast array of questionable cultural products offered for consumption. The current global economy is marked by globalization processes. These processes have intensified market competition in various contexts. The impact is particularly notable in the cultural sphere. In this sense, the commodification of culture in contemporary society makes it a widely circulated commodity. It is a valuable and highly consumed good.

From this perspective, the publishing market for foreign language textbooks is a cultural ideological apparatus (Althusser, 1992). The production and marketing of printed or digital textbooks aimed at formal education are taking new directions. It tries to reach a great mass of readers and consumers. They seek quicker access to information. They also want easier access to knowledge. This occurs through the activation of social and historically constituted discursive memory. It is in response to cultural consumerism.

It is a preoccupation of many scholars in the field of applied linguistics. Many believe that economic reasons for learning English now surpass cultural and humanistic justifications. Teachers and students find themselves caught between two conflicting views. Teaching and learning English as a second language in the school curriculum is seen as cultural appropriation. On the other hand, the job market favors those who master the language.

(Gimenez, 2009)

Today, we are experiencing the contradictions of consumerism and mass culture. According to Adorno (1985), these are largely evident in modern leisure. The “civilization of well-being” seeks participation in product acquisition early. It is implicitly linked to one’s purchasing power and consumption. This creates a consumerist rationality that accompanies the individual from birth to death (Bauman, 2004). Many scholars in the field of applied linguistics are concerned. There is a widespread perception that economic reasons have overtaken cultural and humanistic justifications for learning English. Teachers and students find themselves caught in a dilemma. One aspect is teaching and learning English as a second language in the school curriculum as cultural appropriation. The other is understanding the demands of the job market, which favor those who master the language.

Through this sociological lens, Bauman (2004, p. 72) points out that the real needs of modern humans have become uninterrupted, incoherent, and surprising. “In the world of consumers, the possibilities are infinite.” Recipes for “good living” have an expiration date. The tools needed to achieve it become obsolete when new products are offered to consumers. In other words, in the race to reach the desired product, the finish line moves faster than the consumer. According to Bauman (2004), the archetype of this race in which each consumer takes part is the purchase. Furthermore, this race becomes an obsession with choosing. It keeps us in this competition for as long as we can consume. In this race for consumption, language and culture also become commodities.

Theodor W. Adorno was one of the main philosophers and critical theorists of the Frankfurt School. He coined the term “culture industry” in his 1947 work Dialectic of Enlightenment. He wrote this work in partnership with Horkheimer. According to the German school, the precepts of the culture industry arise directly from issues surrounding the “objectification” of man. This objectification, or alienation, results from the division between manual and spiritual labor. This is because the culture industry is culture completely converted into merchandise.

The culture industry is generated and maintained by capitalist interests in consumer societies. It depersonalizes and objectifies individuals. People become almost unconscious fans of its cultural productions. In this way, “acculturation” occurs easily. The goal is to perpetuate the language and culture of the colonizer. It also aims to ensure the dependence of the colonized, alongside the political and economic systems (Moita Lopes, 1996). Theodor W. Adorno was one of the main philosophers and critical theorists of the Frankfurt School. He coined the term “culture industry” in his 1947 work Dialectic of Enlightenment. This work was published in partnership with Horkheimer. According to the German school, the precepts of the culture industry start directly from the issues around “objectification” of man. This process relates to alienation. It results from the division between manual and spiritual labor. After all, the culture industry is culture completely converted into merchandise.

English is seen as a global language. It provides citizens of the globalized world with professional opportunities. It also offers job market inclusion and the ability to acquire goods and travel. In short, English is considered a privilege in this consumer society. Thus, this corroborates Bauman’s (2004) idea. In the consumer’s race to reach the desired product, English is now considered an asset. It helps one cross the finish line first.

As a result of the global commodification of English Rajagopalan (2004, p. 12) notes the emergence of an industry based on the market advantages of the language in Brazil:

The English language is big business in Brazil. It is also big business in other Latin American countries and, for that matter, the rest of the world. You can argue that English is not just a language. It is also a commodity around the world. The marketing world has quickly exploited this fetishism. Demand for English instruction has grown geometrically.

(Rajagopalan, 2004)

The market for studying English is promising. Printed or digital media are especially significant for teaching and learning books. These books confirm the views of Brazilian teachers and students about English. They express its status as a hegemonic language in a globalized society.

Thus, it can be seen that the meanings mobilized in marketing discourses for acquiring and consuming English language teaching materials are projected onto the “conception of language as an object that can be possessed in its entirety” (Grigoletto, 2001, p. 146). These discourses reveal a strongly consumerist tendency through global semantics. Acquiring English language teaching and learning books published on the Brazilian market meets one’s urgent interests and desires. People want to obtain or appropriate something — be it an object or knowledge. This urges them to participate in a certain group or the global community.

References:

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ALTHUSSER, L. Aparelhos ideológicos do Estado. Rio de Janeiro: Ed. Graal Ltda., 6ª. Ed., 1992.

BAUMAN, Z. Liquid Modernity. USA: Blackwell Publishing Inc., 2004.

GIMENEZ, T. Políticas governamentais, mídia e ensino de línguas estrangeiras. In: Contribuições na área de línguas estrangeiras. Londrina: Eduel, 2005.

GRIGOLETTO, M. Língua e identidade: representações da língua estrangeira no discurso dos futuros professores de língua inglesa. In: CARMAGNANI, A.M.G e GRIGOLETTO, M. Inglês como língua estrangeira: identidade, práticas e textualidade. São Paulo: Humanitas/FFLCH/USP, 2001.

MOITA LOPES, L. P. da. Oficina de lingüística aplicada: a natureza social e educacional do processo de ensino/aprendizagem de línguas. Campinas, SP: Mercado das Letras, 1996.

RAJAGOPALAN, K. O grande desafio: aprender a dominar a língua inglesa sem ser dominado/a por ela. In: TELMA, G & JORDÃO, C. (orgs) Perspectivas educacionais e o ensino de inglês na escola pública. Pelotas: EDUCAT, 2005.