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Online Shopping On The Internet

Decent Essays

One particularly interesting way that our identities are formed through consumption is on the internet. Consumption online is unique in that the items we purchase, the items we view and do not purchase, and our purchasing habits are all compiled as data. Our identities as online shoppers are summarized by not only the purchases we make online, but everything else we consume on the internet. Browsers store internet history and calculate what we are likely to consume next. This data is a form of identity that we have complete control over, but little awareness of. Online shopping not only builds identities for individuals, but gives producers additional opportunities to market towards us, further shaping our identities. These identities are …show more content…

These identities are, in turn, used by society to draw conclusions about our character. This is not to say that our personal identity and the identity others associate with us as are the same, but rather that judgements places on us by others are based on the way which our identities are presented.
Society’s utilization of personal identity to form judgements of others is extremely apparent in the social hierarchy that is created in schools. In adolescence, we are categorized in groups. Every school has a popular group and an athletic group. Descriptions such as hippie, nerd, and goth are attributed to social circles. It is impossible to avoid these categorizations as a student, which makes the way we present ourselves to our peers especially important to our identity. My entire life, I have been known as a nerd. As a child, I was praised by my parents for my academic achievements, so I have, for the most part, always positively reacted to being categorized as such. By embracing this identity, I have caused myself to seek ways to reinforce it. I believe my academic success as a young adult is greatly attributed to the work I have exerted to reinforce this identity. I value my grades and am disappointed when they do not meet up with what I believe a ‘nerd’ should receive. I make an effort to associate myself with people who value their education and careers, so that I might be influenced by them to

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