This paper explores the influence of the larger material culture on consumers living within the culture of poverty so that the scholarly community mightbetter understand the actual as well as potential role marketing plays in the lives of the poor. The data are a series of short stories based explicitly on six distinct subpopulations of impoverished people, and these stories are used as ethnographic data for the purposes of analysis. An interpretation emerges that emphasizes five inter-related thematic categories: meager possessions, consumer restrictions, role of the media, consumer reactions, and survival strategies. The paper closes with a summary of findings and specific implications for the marketing community with regard to theory and practice.
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