Why do lovers on greeting cards always walk on bea

Why do lovers on greeting cards always walk on beaches? Why do stuffed animals seldom have paws? When did bad posture and messy hair become de rigueur? In Cute, Quaint, Hungry and Romantic, author Daniel Harris offers an answer, concentrating on the politics and low-brow aesthetics of product design and advertising. With a sharp wit and insightful eye, Harris, a noted essayist, puts consumerism on trial.

The aesthetics of consumerism, Harris argues, are not thrust upon us but emerge out of a rich and imaginative collaboration between the forces of capitalism and our own fears and desires.