"Ornament of the Mass" is a collection of articles by the German sociologist and cultural theorist Siegfried Kracauer (1889–1966), united by the theme of contemporary mass art and technological innovation. His essays explore both the general impact of capitalism on all forms of mass art (in the article that gives the collection its title) and its more specific manifestations. In addition to his reflections on the relationship between photography and human memory in the article "Photography," the book includes essays on the typewriter, technical gadgets in restaurants, and the transformation of poetry and creativity into soulless commerce.