With these words, distinguished historian Frank Trentmann draws his magisterial 2017 book, Empire of Things, to a close. The book’s subtitle, How We Became a World of Consumers, from the Fifteenth Century to the Twenty-First, describes Trentmann’s ambition, which has global scope. He uncovers the historical roots of our modern consumer society, starting in the 1600s, partly by mining an enormous amount of data from an amazing array of sources, and partly by recognizing what came before it. A big shift occurred when wealthy Europeans in cities turned away from an idea that had guided previous generations, Aristotle’s praise for the use of private wealth as, Trentmann says, “a sign of civic virtue and pride in a community governed and defended by like-minded brave, propertied citizens. . . . The admired life was that if the active citizen who increased the splendor and strength of his city by erecting monumental buildings, commanding an army and sponsoring communal feasts and public works. Large-scale consumption was safe—and could be enjoyed—when it occurred in the pursuit of such public ends.”

Citizen-consumers. Consumers as virtuous citizens—taking responsibility for the social and ecological consequences of their consumption. A fantasy, perhaps, but as Trentmann’s project shows, what we feel and think about consumption, and the ways we consume, have not been fixed. They evolved and will continue to evolve.

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