Commentary Essay On Shopping And Other Spiritual Adventures In America Today
Commentary Essay on Shopping and Other Spiritual Adventures in America Today The American people are focusing more on materialistic items, people are shopping for pleasure more than necessity. This article comments on how people are shopping to release stress or to gain pleasure. Even though the article was written in 1984, it is still pertinent to modern time. In Shopping and Other Spiritual Adventures in America Today by Phyllis Rose, varied sentence length, different point of views, and anaphora are utilized to prove that society is becoming consumed in materialism. The sentence length is varied throughout the article; long sentences connected by commas and short, simple sentences are frequently found in the article. The long sentences are used to relate similar thoughts and exaggerate points. She uses a plethora of commas to create the illusion of a long list, as if the idea or scenario continue indefinitely. She does this when she describes that “some people may find it dull to cross the country and find the same chain stores with the same merchandise from coast to coast, but it means that my town is as great as yours, my shopping mall as important as yours, equally filled with wonder.” These ideas are similar so she uses commas to continue the thought, there is not a …show more content…
Before the anaphora she explains what “shopping” is, then uses anaphora to provide the different reasons one may shop. These reasons show that shopping is not about obtaining necessities, the modern day has transformed shopping to provide many other benefits. It demonstrates that some people are becoming reliant on shopping to attain benefits such as decision making, be apart of society, or to cheer themselves up. These other benefits display why people enjoy shopping and are becoming more
Analysis Of The Article 'Honestly, You Shouldn T Have'
367 Words | 2 PagesMany Americans love shopping, especially during the holidays, with its captivating discounts and sales, which lead to uncontrollable splurges on irrelevant things. According to Quindlen, this is an example of America’s crazed consumerism and it is absolutely absurd. In her article, “Honestly, You Shouldn’t Have”, she states that there is currently an assumption that purchasing American merchandises symbolize an act of patriotism and at the same time, build a strong economy. She also states that we, as Americans, need to acknowledge important spiritual values such as friends and family rather than material goods.
Transcendental Life In Modern Day America
86 Words | 1 PagesAlthough some might think it is easy to just go drop everything and live in the wild, it is not possible to live a transcendental life in modern day America. Most of the pillars of transcendentalism are not possible because of the media and the illusion of “perfect.” However, a few of the pillars are easy to live out like self-reliance and understanding the importance of nature. In sum, it is nearly impossible to live a transcendental life in modern day America with no strings attached.
Body Ritual Among The Nacirema By Horace Miner Summary
767 Words | 4 PagesAccording to Clugston (2007) consumption is a self-induced and societal disorder-- a societal addiction. Every American is addicted to excessive consumption; we are all living beyond our means – most of us individually. Seeing how the Nacirema focuses so much on their physical appearance, it shows how too self-absorbed they are and how they are never contented with what they have. Sorman (2011) defined liberal economics as a body of thought based on Adam Smith's ideas about the forces of supply and demand in the marketplace, emphasizing the social and economic benefits when individuals pursue their own self-interest. Liberal economics can be directly related in such a way that in the culture of the Americans, they would buy products which are meant for self enhancement and for the betterment of their well being like make-up, toothpaste, facial cleansers, etc.
Malcolm Gladwell Vs Paco Underhill
175 Words | 1 PagesThe art and craft of shoppers is no longer just running to the store to get some necessities. Shopping has evolved into much more than just a thirty-minute trip to the one local market in your area. Shoppers nowadays have more power in where they choose to spend and what they choose to buy. Because of this, the shoppers and companies have evolved with the expanding consumer pastime that is shopping. Anne Norton focuses on how retail companies have evolved in order to manipulate consumers into buying their product while Malcolm Gladwell uses a consultant, Paco Underhill, to explain how retail companies can analyze and influence human behavior in order to sell their goods; the combination of these articles creates a chess-like game between
Consumer Nation: How Consumerism Changed America
1315 Words | 6 PagesJoshua Shavel Consumer Nation 10/5/17 How Consumerism Changed America America is often described as a nation of consumers. This description usually has a negative tone, implying that Americans are materialistic, and in comparison to the majority of other countries, this is true. Many people accuse Americans of having a level of consumption that is actually wasteful in a lot of ways. Finding the difference between “needs” and “wants” is difficult in a consumer nation, where options are almost limitless. Consumerism can also bring about positive change, though, and this is especially true in the United States.
Summary Of Rachel Sherman's A Very Expensive Ordinary Life: Conflicted Consumption
776 Words | 4 PagesNevertheless, the interviewees frown upon being labelled as someone that values luxury over reasonable spending. Hence, they expressed their emphasis on the importance of needs over wants, and that practicality should triumph over extravagance. They see “limited” consumption as a form of self discipline, where excessive spending was only justifiable when it is spent on the family and invested in the children. If
Materialism And Happiness In The Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald
145 Words | 1 PagesWe have all been guilty of wanting more, when we already have plenty. Whether it’s another piece of cake, a fourth pair of converse, or a few extra phone covers, we don’t consciously think about everything we’ve accumulated in the short span of our lives. Instead, we think ‘why not?’ and add it into our collection of stuff. But does buying more, owning more, and having more, necessarily guarantee happiness?
Summary Of William T Cavanaugh's Being Consumed
1404 Words | 6 PagesWilliam T Cavanaugh (2008), wrote Being Consumed: Economics and Christian Desire which is a philosophical book, which focus on four (4) economic life matters that addresses the consumer culture within society. These four economic life matters are free market, consumerism, globalization and economic scarcity. In order for this topic to be discussed on a theological point of view, the author draws the reader’s attention to human life, the ends of life in God. The key question in every process is whether or not the transaction contributes to the flourishing of each person involved. In order to address these questions the author points to concrete examples of alternative economic practices in which Christians participate-: business, co-operatives, credit union, practices of consumption which marks the vision for Christian economic life.
Sioux Empire Mall Seizure Analysis
711 Words | 3 PagesThe passage “Grand Mall Seizure” is the mall’s habits from a shopper’s perspective on the mall. Daniel Alarcon explains what it is like to be in a mall with over 500 stores. Alarcon explains that it is chaos, everyone is scrambling around and it is loud. Alarcon says, “Shopping centers that not only served a community’s physical needs, but its civic, and social needs as well.” (Alarcon, 293)
Consumer Class In Canada
993 Words | 4 PagesIt’s from this addiction to happiness that results in consuming greater than I may need to feel more involved. When I feel intimidated I need happiness, to cheer me up and my way out of it is to consume, for some people its cigarettes to deal with stress, for me its consume to be pleased. Therefore, we consumers all share a common view about consumerism which is work, bring in money, and consequently, spend money. We all have an addiction to consume to bring us what we think is our happiness, occasionally this addiction even consumes us entirely and we have nothing left.
The Science Of Shopping Summary
1124 Words | 5 PagesThe article “The Science of Shopping” written by New Yorker staff writer Malcom Gladwell, is based on retail anthropologist and urban geographer Paco Underhill. Underhill studies the shopping characteristics through frequently watched surveillance tapes to help store managers improve the setup of their goods and services. Through those footages he evaluated his observations and the statistics to help define his theories with the purpose to make sellers conform to the desires of the shoppers. Underhill, an insightful and revolutionary man, provides a view of science to displaying merchandise and creates a positive experience for both the buyer and seller. I agree that Underhill’s scientific theories; the Invariant Right, Decompression
Is The American Dream Attainable?
762 Words | 4 PagesIt should not be about buying a house, car, boat, etc. Why materialism made a sudden leap in this era, I would think the media has something to do with that. It’s understandable to work up to those additions, but they should not just be the “goal” that one works up for! Somewhere along the way, the pursuit of pleasure started taking hold of the dream. Life should not be shallow.
Stuff Is Not Salvation Analysis
511 Words | 3 PagesIn Anna Quindlen’s essay, Stuff is Not Salvation, she argues that one cannot determine how “better off” they are, by the amount of belongings they possess. Quindlen states that Americans have, “an addiction to consumption, so out of control that it qualifies as a sickness.” However, she is not just referring to an addiction to buying meaningless items, but the idea that people are purchasing items when they have no money. Quindlen validates her argument with the tragedy of a walmart employee that as trampled to death on Black Friday, and the concept that many people have lost their sense of appreciation and gratefulness. She also argues that there are indeed things we need, however, a large majority of people’s perception of want and need are obscured.
Thorstein Veblen's Conspicuous Consumption
2901 Words | 12 PagesVeblen calls such types of consumption ‘conspicuous consumption’ and ‘conspicuous leisure’. A thorough summary of Veblen’s fourth chapter ‘Conspicuous Consumption’ will first be given. The Encyclopedia Britannica defines ‘conspicuous consumption’ as a “…the practice by consumers of using goods of a higher quality or in greater quantity than might be considered necessary in practical terms” (Phillips, 2014). The aim of such a practice is to advance, establish or maintain one’s reputation in order to achieve a higher social status or prove that you belong in one.
Commodity Fetishism In Consumer Culture
1584 Words | 7 PagesMarx’s theory of commodity fetishism defines the dangers of a capitalist society that is controlled a by a small group of bourgeoisie owners that seek profit through a narrow selection of products. More so, consumers are often unaware of the dangers of these products and the addictive properties of a commodity that dominate their lives. In this manner, a sociological analysis of Karl Marx’s commodity fetishism has been analyzed within the problematic issues of an American consumer
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