When is a car a commodity, and when is it a work of art Essay

When is a car a commodity, and when is it a work of art - Essay Example ogical developments, for example, one of the most significant inventions that revolutionized man’s means of transportation is the manufacture of automobiles. Automobile manufacturers have used the latest developments in technology to ensure that passengers are protected and kept ultimately in safe condition while travelling. In addition, technology is heading for the discovery of cost efficient and safe automobiles utilizing alternative fuels to run them. In this regard, the essay aims to determine and differentiate when a car is a commodity, and when is it a work of art. The term "commodity" is qualified as an industrial product sold by a large corporation to a mass public; and of course, a work of art is defined by the Free Dictionary (2010) as â€Å"the conscious production or arrangement of sounds, colors, forms, movements, or other elements in a manner that affects the sense of beauty, specifically the production of the beautiful in a graphic or plastic medium† (pa r. 2). The article written by John Urry entitled The ‘System’ of Automobility clearly classified cars as commodities with automobility comprising six components, to wit: (1) manufactured object; (2) individual consumption; (3) contains complex structures of â€Å"technical and social interlinkages with other industries, car parts and accessories† (Urry, 26); (4) a global form of mobility; (5) a form of cultural expression; (6) â€Å"the single most important cause of environmental resource-use† (Urry, 26). All elements point to the car as being an industrial product being mass produced globally. In fact, Urry cited that there had been â€Å"one billion cars manufactured during the last century† (Urry, 25), making it the most significant commodity that drastically changed man’s way of life. As a commodity, cars are driven by consumers to serve basic purpose of transportation. Families use vans to commute each day just to routinely go to their jobs, without actually caring about the car they