Enterprise & Society

Schatzberg, Eric, 1956-
Symbolic Culture and Technological Change: The Cultural History of Aluminum as an Industrial Material
Enterprise & Society - Volume 4, Number 2, June 2003, pp. 226-271

Oxford University Press

The history of aluminum illustrates how the concept of symbolic meanings can help connect culture with business history. Aluminum's symbolic meanings played a crucial role in its industrial history, largely through the enthusiasm that greeted the introduction and diffusion of the metal. Symbolic meanings influence technological innovation through their role in shaping expectations, a role understood by the historical actors who engage in struggles over the meanings of competing innovations. For aluminum, this struggle centered on the conflict between the material's two major meanings: aluminum as modern and aluminum as ersatz. This debate over meanings has played out differently in aviation, electric wiring, and automobiles.