Abstract
This article analyzes the representation of consumption in Luiz Ruffato's Eles eram muitos cavalos. I argue that the writer, by referencing commodities as tokens of reality, emphasizes the inescapable presence of consumer culture in the everyday life of large urban centers in Brazil. Utilizing cultural studies' theoretical contributions to the study of consumption and everyday life, I demonstrate that these references, rather than appearing as a metaphor for an alienating force controlling irrational consumers from a certain social segment, appear in Ruffato's text as part of the experience of various social segments, creating identifications among its members, as well as reinforcing social divisions.
Keywords:
consumption; everyday life; urban space; Luiz Ruffato