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Islands of the Living Dead

The Social Geography of McDonaldization

University of Maryland

Two images of the social geography of the McDonaldization of society suggest themselves: Weber's "iron cage" and Foucault's "carceral archipelago." Although both are helpful in understanding McDonaldization, neither is satisfactory. On one hand, although the cage-like image fits to a degree, it is certainly not an iron cage because escape remains an easy (if not often taken) option for most people. On the other hand, the idea of an archipelago of McDonaldized settings is very attractive, but again, because escape is easy, it cannot be considered a carceral system. It is argued that it is best to see today's McDonaldized systems as "islands of the living dead." Building on George Romero's sci-fi cult classic, the author contends that although there is much life on these islands, they are also in many senses "dead." Although it is in the interest of the owners of these settings to make them as dead as possible, those in them often struggle to create as much life as possible.

Key Words: McDonaldization • rationalization • iron cage • carceral archipelago • social geography

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