Consumerism: A Big Part in Modern Human Life

The citizens of the United States of America are known for their strong sense of freedom. Take that freedom away, and there would be a prodigious riot that traverses across the country. However, the same freedom that Americans thrive on, are slowly poisoning the minds of the masses. Consumerism is the name; the plan is to slowly take over the population, and it has. Consumerism is both beneficial and detrimental to society, and freedom would not exist without the need people have to buy new and innovative items.

There is a very big epidemic of consumerism within the United Sates and it is a result of the contribution of many factors within our society. It is evident that this is not necessary when one views other communities throughout the world but America has yet to make the changes it needs to solve this problem. A big problem with retailers and producers of products is their use of sweatshops, which are located in and out of the U.S. Sweatshops are a huge problem because they are known for having very low safety standards for their employees and mistreat their employees consistently. The reason they are used is because they can give the company better profits off of their goods.

In the book, Brave New World, written by Adolus Huxley the author demonstrates how consumerism fills the underminded individuals with artificial "happiness" due to unnessacary luxuries. With the huge emphasize of consumptions, it makes them feel obliterated to buy, buy and buy without the need to. For example, in our era we are filled with luxuries like; electronics, endless amounts of clothing, expensive shoes or watches. We like the thought of a seven-hundred dollar watch on our wrists because it fills people with exictment taunting them to buy more and more expensive materials. In BNW, buying is considered second nature.

1.Whats consumerism ? Consumerism is defined by the preoccupation of society with the acquisition of consumer goods . Good morning/afternoon fellow classmates , today I’ll be discussing how the powerful images conveyed in Bruce Dawe’s texts Americanized and Abandonment of Autos, and a cartoon by Clay Butler, raise issues and concerns about consumerism.

As Jhally explained in her “Image Based Culture” (Jhally) article, today’s marketplace economy has the biggest impact on the tools that constitute today’s commercial society. He was arguing that today’s advertisement had became a subtle force in our society, stresses consumerism by associating the procurement of commodities with happiness. However, the reviews indicates that

Many would say money is the most influential force in any decision. In the article “Forget money: how I found real worth when I stopped caring about getting rich” by Tom Bilyeu, the author discusses the notion about the role money has in finding happiness. The informational article “The creation of Discontent” by Juliet Schor, follows this idea by explaining that the more luxury items we purchase, the more discontent we become. However, in the contrasting article “In Defense of Consumerism” by Llewellyn H. Rockwell Jr., the writer counters by emphasizing the beneficial effects of commerce such as the increase in standard of living. Consumerism is critical to improve quality of life and allows people to find happiness Consumerism is important

In the novel Brave New World by Aldous Huxley, happiness is directly correlated to the consumerism that is instilled in the citizens from the beginning of their lives in order to create a materialistic culture where instant gratification is the foundation of the society. From the beginning of their lives, citizens in Huxley’s society are conditioned using the process of hypnopaedia to fundamentally influence their thoughts and understanding of the world around them. Through this process, the “utopian” society has formulated a consumerist culture as there is no actual want, materials are easily acquired and viewed as disposable. As things break or falter, they are cast out, there are no reparations as made evident in a hypnopaedia rhyme tactic,

Many people claim that consumer purchases stand necessary! Like food, money, and means of transportation, but in modern day, consumers purchase products more for their looks and values, but less for their technicalities. All goods can hold a political statement. If one thinks poorly of a product that the bulk of society highly values, then they risk the chance of being frowned upon . Also, purchasing can increase one’s self-image but that feeling proves only temporary.

Many people do not understand what overselling capitalism with consumerism means. Based on the essay by Benjamin Barber, I have learned that people mistake the difference between what they want and what they actually need. In the essay he makes a contrast between capitalism and consumerism by giving examples throughout the essay. He also outlines the values of capitalism and how it has a positive impact on society and the impact of consumerism on people.

Aldous Huxley’s futuristic novel Brave New World written in 1931 is about a futuristic dystopian society in which a totalitarian government controls society through the use of science and technology and consumerism, not unlike many societies today. The advancement of sciences and technological development is the basis of society in Brave New World as the citizen’s in the society are genetically modified and engineered from birth in order to be more productive and to consume more. Although the dystopian society takes this scientific control to an extreme, we see in today’s society technology taking over the lives of individuals in order to be eligibly more efficient, more productive, and promote consumerism. A clear parallel between the novel

As humans, we may not exactly be able to read others’ minds, but we are certainly able to manipulate them using what is called the art of persuasion. The way a topic is handled, especially a sensitive and debatable one, plays a huge role when it comes to convincing someone regardless of their previous thoughts on the issue. The Creation of Discontent and In Defense of Consumerism are two essays discussing the same topic: the effects of consumerism on Americans. Clearly, these essays support contradicting opinions and the authors are sweating to make their voices heard using different methods. While Schor decides to take a logos approach and use facts and statistics to support her point, Rockwell uses a pathos appeal attempting to make his essay more

Consumerism is the center of American culture. Americans tend to confuse their wants with their needs. With new advances in technology, as well as the help of advertisers, people are provided with easy access to new products that seem essential to their everyday life, even though they have survived this long without them. People cannot live without food, clothing, and shelter. But realistically, according to people's different lifestyles, more than food, clothing, and shelter are needed. Most people need to work to survive. Unless a job is either in their own home, or within walking distance, a means of transportation is needed. Whether it be a vehicle, money for a taxi-cab, or a token for a ride on the subway, money must be spent

Consumerism has been increasing all over the world for decades. In today’s rapidly growing environment, new products are put out onto the public market everyday with new ideas following right behind them. It is one’s instinct to work towards obtaining these materialistic objects. Unfortunately, in recent years, consumerism has become increasingly excessive, leading towards a negative lifestyle. The articles “Waste” by Wendell Berry, “Shop-Happy” by Joan Smith, and “The New Consumer” by Juliet Schor analyze the reasoning as to how Americans have acquired today’s consumerism.The American consumer's preoccupation with social status, careless spending, as well as susceptibility to marketing and advertising strategies have resulted in an insatiable desire for acquiring materialistic goods.

Some people argue that it is acceptable for people in the United States to consume at high levels because their consumerism keeps the world economy going. What are the weaknesses in this idea? Although America’s consumerism may seem to help the economy of less fortunate countries, this rampant depletion has become financially and ecologically unsustainable. Globally, 86% of consumption expenditures comes from the 20% of the world’s people in first world countries, while the poorest 20% account for only a meager 14%. It seems that consumption has become a function of our culture. Only by generating and selling goods does capitalism currently work; and the more produced and purchased the more we have progress and prosperity.

The dominance of capitalist countries has facilitated the conformity of global civilization and cultural environments resulting in an increase of consumer cultures (Sarmela, 1977; Chaney, 2004). As capitalism experiences a natural and unavoidable expansion, consumers engage with consumer culture creating invisible products such as social status, identity, cultures, and ethical relationships (Sternberg, 2017). There are two sides to consumer culture that are the values held by society; those who conform and those who rebel (Turow & McAllister, 2014). All participants of society align with either submission or resistance to dominant ideas, values, and social structures. However, as a result of continued progressive diversity and fragmentation, the distinction between submissive and resistance are blurred. Nevertheless, those who resist and rebel are still participants of consumer culture. Instead they instead form sub cultures in society with alternative beliefs, values and ideas that challenge the mainstream (Chaney, 2004). In order to better understand the relationship between consumption practice and the resistance of consumer culture, theories of reflexive project of self, prosumers, lifestyle commodification, and incorporation will be analyzed in relation to the vegan movement.