Consumerism In Brave New World Essay

The text was authored by Judith Simmer-Brown a professor at Naropa University to discuss the issues consumerism is causing throughout the world. In addition, there is a utilization of historical and theological context specifically aimed at how consumerism is taking over the minds of people globally. Simmer-Brown relies on Buddhism to describe how, since ancient times there was always a warning about how human wants can control every aspect society and how interactions occur between individuals as well as interactions between nations. This control she describes has begun with government and corporate operations such as Enron as a specific example. The article takes a stance of anti-corporation and corporations themselves are controlling the minds of individuals even as governments are supposed to protect individualism. The feud between government and corporation was highlighted with her anecdote about Abraham Lincoln in the beginning of the article.

Brave New World’s extreme control mechanisms caution readers of how detrimental it can be. The state conditions its citizens to consume to provide economic stability. From the day citizens are born or should I say produced they are conditioned to extensively maximise consumerism. In Brave New World, procedures are performed to produce the ‘perfect’ citizens, each acclimatized exactly how the state wants them. The World State wants an army of consumers as adults, therefore as children, the importance of the individual is diminished to further the interests of the economy. An example of this is the Bokanovsky’s Process. This allows the World State to produce a large number of “identical machines” quickly. The main drive behind this is the fact that a large number of citizens means more are available to work in a factory as this process means that the “whole of a small factory staffed with the products of a single bokanovskified egg.” This process, therefore, becomes "one of the major instruments of social stability." This illustrates how the only worry of the World State is how something maximises consumption. As June Deery stated “the idea of deliberately disabling a future human being… is surely repugnant.” At the eyes of the World State consumerism is their only concern. Everything and anything that would enable them to maximise consumption is implemented without any consideration to the effects it may have on citizens. Post-production, conditioning also establishes the

Pope Francis urges everyone to challenge their current lifestyle and the market system that promotes “extreme consumerism in an effort to sell its products” (203). He understands that people can get caught up in their own interests. In fact, he goes as far as to say, “When people become self-centered and self-enclosed, their greed increases. The emptier a person’s heart is, the more he or she needs things to buy, own and consume” (204). This statement made by Pope Francis is not one to be taken lightly. When one analyzes the

1) Does consumerism work in a society? Based on the video consumerism is actually what keeps society going. With consumerism an individual buys products from their society. In order to be able to purchase the products they need to work for their money. When the money is no longer there to purchase consumables, then a person may use borrowing money such as a credit card to continue the purchases. A person may buy to fulfill a personal need or a personal want. In many cases people are what they own. As quoting Genesis 2: God created a human and proceeded to give the things he needed. Note: The last word of this scripture says NEEDED not the word wanted. (Wilkens, S. and Sanford, M. 2009)2) What are the extremes?

Consumer Cultures are part of the economy, a “consumer culture is a form of capitalism in which the economy is focused on the selling of consumer good and the spending of consumer money”. (Chron, 2015) a consumer culture can motive the economy and encourage consumers to spend money which will have a considerable effect on the economic growth, however, for the growth to continue it has to be continued – the more consumers buy, the richer the economy gets! Referring back to Adam Smith’s theory on the “invisible hand”, he assumed it was natural and that the invisible metaphorical hand could guide an individual through the economy and capitalism through competition for resources. An egotistic individual exploits their own good, with that being said if the individual interprets “best interest” through trade, the economy will become better off. (The Economic Times, 2015) The “invisible hand” theory is seen as the best solution for the economy, suggesting that government intervention is in fact not needed. Government intervention, helps with rising issues such as maximising social welfare, promoting economic fairness within corporations and reducing problems regarding inflation and recessions from occurring in the service

Consumerism in the economic sense is defined by Merriam-Webster dictionary as the theory that an increasing in consumption is economically desirable. Consumerism is used in sociology as a preoccupation with an inclination toward the buying of consumer goods. The consumerism theory is used in support of Capitalist economies that benefit from citizens buying more goods and companies spending money to make goods in order to bolster the economic standing of a country. After World War II, America influenced many Allied countries including France to take more capitalist approaches in their economic ideals and free trade policy. This led to those western countries experiencing the sociological definition of consumerism. A new world was seen in those countries with an emphasis on materialism and spending more than they were accustomed to. Both

Defining consumerism can be complicated. Consumerism is a term used to describe the effects of equating personal happiness with purchasing material possessions and consumption (Fritsh). In other words, consumerism is the wants and needs of people based upon standards that are set in a given society and how those people acquire wealth. Throughout history, consumerism has evolved drastically since the first records of civilized society were recorded. The evolution of consumerism in the United States can be understood by dividing it into three basic components; trade, monetary policy and the digital economy. These types of economies can also be described as the agricultural economy, the industrial economy, and the

The global society that the world has is a blend of production, exportation, and consumption. In moments of crisis people believe a solution is to go and buy things and take part in a consumer system, these beliefs are reinforced by advertisements, and as a result America and other capitalist societies have become addicted to consumption. But have these people ever wondered what over consumption is really doing to the world’s economy? Or how it affects everyone by leading to economic inequality and poverty!

According to the State of World (2004) report, China, UK and Western Europeans have had a bar on untenable over- consumption for decades. Roughly 1.7 billion people globally now fit in to the "consumer class" the group of people distinguished by diets of extremely processed food, yearning for bigger houses, better and bigger cars, higher level of revolving credit, and lifestyles dedicated to hoard unnecessary goods. Today nearly half of global consumers dwell in developing countries like India and China. As we enter the dawn of the new century this consumerist appetite is dejection the natural systems that the humanity has been relying on and making it difficult for the majority of this world to meet their ends meet. It's a chaos out there. Every men and women are trying to at least look better, superior and wealthier than the other one. People are neglecting their basic needs and spending more on flashing gadgets and expensive hand bangs just to look 'cool' walking down the street.

According to the State of World (2004) report, China, UK and Western Europeans have had a bar on untenable over- consumption for decades. Roughly 1.7 billion people globally now fit in to the "consumer class" the group of people distinguished by diets of extremely processed food, yearning for bigger houses, better and bigger cars, higher level of revolving credit, and lifestyles dedicated to hoard unnecessary goods (Whittaker 2003). Today nearly half of global consumers dwell in developing countries like India and China. As we enter the dawn of the new century this consumerist appetite is dejection the natural systems that the humanity has been relying on and making it difficult for the majority of this world to meet their ends meet. It's a chaos out there. Every men and women are trying to at least look better, superior and wealthier than the other one. People are neglecting their basic needs and spending more on flashing gadgets and expensive hand bangs just to look 'cool' walking down the street.

Consumerism is deeply embedded in our culture and heavily influences our day-to-day behavior and interactions with others. Examples of consumerism include the fashion industry, our obsession with getting the newest technology, and why we purchase a certain type of car. The downside with our obsession of constant buying is that there are so many negative side effects that impact the environment, worker’s lives (working conditions, low wages, poor living conditions) and our own relationships with our families, coworkers and friends. There is a lot of evidence of these side effects, and yet we keep buying into this cycle. We should know better, and yet it seems like it will be very hard to get us to change our habits. The works of Richard Wilkinson and Kate Pickett, Phillip Bauman, Julia Pugh in, and Pierre Bourdieu in attempt to explain why we continue to practice consumerist focused lifestyles.

The technological age of humanity is regarded as one of the most crucial aspects of the advancement of the human race. Breakthroughs in important fields have without a doubt fortified the strength of our species; however, every action has a consequence. As the world becomes more intuitive about the role humans have in society, the economy, and the environment, concerning the products and stuff they own, there has been a focus on the role of consumerism. Throughout history, there has been a movement towards adding and consuming things as a status of wealth, happiness, and power. This notion is associated with the terms consumption and consumerism. Consumerism describes the shift in American culture from a producer-oriented society in the nineteenth century to a "consumerist" society in the twentieth century (“Consumerism”). Additionally, the concept of having a “standard of living” emerged alongside the shift from societies living with limited money and resources to an era of sustained growth with a more consumer based society.

In today’s society, “keeping up with the Joneses” has become a widespread lifestyle for many families and individuals.  In other words, consumerism has become a way of life for most people because of the constant technological advancements of today.  As consumerism has grown immensely, it has become a very controversial topic; some people feel as if it has corrupted the world, and others feel as if it has improved it.  However, with all the hardships and issues in the world today, it is safe to assume that consumerism is the underlying problem.  Consumerism has affected the world negatively by creating a social hierarchy that is ranked by possessions, causing environmental deterioration, and causing a loss of integrity.

Consumerism can be seen as nothing else but a mere egocentric obsession of acquisition that has become the organizing principle of the American lifestyle. It is a belief that personal wellbeing and happiness are dependent on the level of material possessions and consumption. While society frowns upon excessive purchasing, they themselves are also wasting millions upon millions to satisfy their unending means to consume. Consumerism can be conceived as an institution or system, in which it becomes a custom, a practice or a behavioral pattern. Those habits without recourse would gradually become the central component of a community or society that solidifies consumption as being of the utmost importance since it is an established and sustainable solution to organize daily social life. People view themselves as entitled individuals while fulfilling their consuming role in a materialistic society with their own selfish interests at heart, conceiving it as a daily task to meet the needs. While the line between consumption and consumerism is somewhat fragile, the difference is as clear as night and day. To further elaborate, it is necessary to refers to Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of human needs. At the base of the hierarchy are the demands for basic necessities and comforts - safety, shelter, food, clothing, healthcare, education- once these are sated, more needs are drawn from affection, self-esteem and, finally, self-actualization. As long as consumption is solely focused on

Consumerism impacts every aspect of human life. Humans have consum in order to survive and succeed in life. However a new form of mass consumerism has taken hold of society and convinced us that no matter how much we consume, we never can be satisfied. The need to consum is instilled in us from the infant stage in life when we are first exposed to the mass media. Media influnces us from infancy, from our first exposure to the world to create desires for products to consume rather than needs. This level of consumerism has been discussed throughout history and critised by many as a result of the capitalistic state we currently live in.