Cultural Read Credit Card
What is the denotative function/description of the object?
1887 - Edward Bellamy, Looking Backward - coined “credit card”
FORM:
coins, metal plates, paper, fiber, celluloid, plastic
round or rectilinear
small & light weight
CONTENT:
then: name, city, and state - w/small paper for signature
now: name, account #, expiration date - directly signed
1920-30’s - Farrington Manufacturing Co. - Charga-Plate (metal: dog tag like) issued to preferred customers, used at specific locations - stored on location of purchase / with customer - oil and travel industry
1946 - Flatbush National Bank: Bank Credit Card - John Biggins’ “Charge-It Program”- NYC
1950 - Diners Club Card (charge card)- cardboard/paper - use: NYC, various locations
1951 - Franklin National Bank: Charge It! (charge card) - use: NYC local retailers
1958 - Bank of America: Bank Americard (Now VISA) - 60,000 mailed in Fresno, CA - first bank credit card - introduction of revolving credit w/intrest
1959 - American Express - PLASTIC: better withstand daily use - 20,000 mailed
1968 - American Express: Executive Gold Card - first color-coded luxury card - status symbol for high rollers
1970 - Master Charge: The Interbank Card - 1979: became MasterCard
1970 - electronic transactions: day / night - magnetic strips
1984 - Chase Visa Card - swipe happy Ameria - 71% of Americans 17–65 carry cards
1986 - Discover Card - first incorporation of art on card - no annual fee & cash-back bonuses (now standard)
1989 - NFL/Visa Cobranded - marketing canvas - providers logo reduced
1995 - Rolling Stones/MasterCard - first emotional connection w/incentives: discounts & frequent-buyer points
1997 - Universities & MasterCard - marketing to college students - criticism for school logos on cards and pizza to those who sign up
2000 - Austin Powers/Titanium Visa - metal metaphor gains popularity
2009 - Discover Card - popularity of pets on cards - choosing card for cat over terms
What is the connotative description of the object? Its semantic network of associations?
efficiency, convenience, immediacy, pay later, the american dream, problems/crises/emergencies , debt, bankruptcy, privacy, responsibility, maturation, independence, theft, security, value, status, identity/individuality, honor/commitment, capability, service/labor, success, contrivance, fraud, perception, small, light weight
What social practices establish its meaning?
consumerism, materialism, banking, media, self branding/customization
What does it replace in terms of social practices and other objects?
traditional currency, traditional exchange process, brick & mortar shopping experience,
What does it retrieve in terms of past meanings and practices?
trust, simplification of process & form, minimization of burden
What does it obsolesce – make no longer relevant?
national & international currency - still exists
Layaway - still exists, comeback due to economy, but relegated to people who aren’t qualified for credit cards or have bad credit.
brick & mortar retail environments, registers, big wallets, money clips, change holders/piggy banks, bank tellers, bank & atm visits, traditional bookkeeping
Among whom are these meanings shared? Is there a specific cultural group associated with this object? How might other groups read the same object?
anyone paying attention to the media
consumers
depending on the card type various groups may view other users as of a different status/social class: (Black AMEX - buy anything)
