What ties these seemingly very different cruise lines together? Ultimately, consumption defines both Seabourn and Carnival. Cruising illustrates how consumption can shape leisure in modern times. Nonetheless, Seabourn and Carnival make a concerted effort to distance themselves from consumption. As a result, cruisers themselves do not view the experiences as an opportunity to consume. Instead, they define these moments of leisure based on the cruises’ values they propagate, without fully recognizing that their experience is largely shaped by what they purchase. Cruising becomes a mass culture that enforces class divisions and the necessity of consumption as a means of happiness—cruisers fail to see this.

The cruise industry, therefore, supports Adorno and Horkheimer’s argument that mass culture engenders false class consciousness. The appeal of formulaic media allows the consumer to escape into specific conventions, ultimately robbing them of their critical faculties (Adorno, Horkheimer 95). In this regard, cruising becomes a distraction that prevents consumers from furthering themselves socially or economically. “Fun comes standard,” says Carnival’s website. Indeed, cruisers accept these “standard” conventions, echoing the promises of fun and leisure without deconstructing how the cruise lines shapes these hollow ideas. Thus, they spend hefty sums on their cruise experience, all whilst believing their leisure is separate from the consumer culture they perpetuate. They set themselves into different casts while accepting the cruise line’s notions that they are all cruisers. By echoing exactly what these cruises champion, cruisers cannot fully process the role consumption plays in cruising. Their leisure, a supposed escape from work and “reality,” mirrors everyday life. As a result, cruisers ultimately fail to see the economic and societal oppression onboard these “fun” and “luxurious” ships.