Research Article: Flea Markets

Markets where hundreds and sometimes thousands of people gather to buy and sell goods, flea markets are literally a material accumulation of American culture in a concentrated area. At a single flea market one can see—and buy—lamps, cookbooks, shoes, tools, clocks, toys, uniforms, salt-and-pepper shakers, cookie jars, ratchet sets, tarpaulins, radios, paintings, porcelain sinks, drinking glasses, bookends, duct tape, and candy dishes. The variety of goods constitutes the very nature of the flea market. New but discounted merchandise is common and runs the gamut from pet supplies, housewares, and tube socks to boxes of laundry detergent, canned goods, and toothpaste. Used items are generally household cast-offs, including baby clothes, furniture, stereo equipment, carpeting, and automobile tires. Flea markets contain objects both of the past and present, revealing obsolete technologies like eight-track players and Atari video games, and out-of-date clothing like bell-bottom pants, wide ties, and polyester shirts. Some people even...
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