Randy O. Frost And Gail Steketee: An Analysis

In her essay “Stuff is Not Salvation”, Anna Quindlen speaks on the topic of Americans’ ridiculous addiction to purchasing products. Quindlen believes that this addiction is a bigger issue than losing jobs, and even homes. She explains how American’s tend to frequently replace undamaged items and leave old items to gather dust. With the use of credit, one can now purchase items without physical money, resulting in the accumulation of debt. Important things, such as bills and medicine, are often put behind the wants of new items. Her conclusion is that salvation, or happiness, cannot and will not come from purchased items. With the use of various aspects within her piece, Quindlen makes a valid argument towards her statement of “stuff is not

“But the prospect of an end to plenty has uncovered what maybe a pernicious problem, an addiction so out of control that is qualifies as a sickness.” (paragraph 2) In the famous essay “Why Stuff Is Not Salvation” by Anna Quindlen, Quindlen denounces the consumer values of the modern century. She states in paragraph 6: “Now much of the country is made up of people with the acquisition habits of a 7-year-old, desire untethered from need, or the ability to pay.” This quote unveils that a large amount of the United States population spends more money on desired items, that they can’t afford, rather than necessities. This addiction shoves consumers down a rabbit hole of debt and bankruptcy. With this, she expresses her opinion that people would

I agree with Hill’s argument that one tends to buy more than what they use. I, for instance, am one of those individuals. Hill mentions this by saying “Members of every socioeconomic bracket can and do deluge themselves with products” (Hill 1). For instance, I remember when I received my first payment from babysitting. I was thrilled with the idea of finally being able to rely on myself to buy all the things I wanted. So, I headed towards the mall and went on a shopping spree. As a result, I arrived home with bags of merchandise as I unloaded them I became aware I had bought a lot of things I didn’t need. As the days passed I became conscious of how I didn’t use much of what I had bought but bought them because I liked the idea of being able to buy whatever I wanted without having anyone tell me what I couldn’t buy. Not only does Hills argument make sense but also makes an important

Judith Levine wrote the book “Not Buying It’’.It is a nonfiction book about Judith Levine,along with her friend Paul,to go 12 months(1 year)without shopping . Levine researched consumerism and anti-consumerist movements.Judith Levine was led to write “Not Buying It’; because she thought it was “the confession of a woman any reader can identify with.Someone who can’t live without French roast coffee or SmartWool socks,but someone who has reached their limit with our consumption,and its effects on the earth and everyone who dwells here”.

In the essay Stuff Is Not Salvation by Anna Quindlen, she criticizes consumerism and materialism. She claims that people constantly waste their money on “trifles” they want yet do not necessarily need (Quindlen Par. 9). Her goal is to encourage her audience to see that, as her title states, “stuff is not salvation” (Quindlen Par. 10). Her claims are intriguing, but are slightly weak. Part of the evidence she uses are unsuitable comparisons that can be offensive to her audience and make her seem biased. She also makes predictions about the future instead of facts or events that have already happened. On top of these issues, she uses mostly personal experiences and not information from reliable outside sources. While consumerism is a major problem in American society, there is a more effective way to go about discussing it.

The first way we got a jump start was through the article summary assignments based on articles pertaining to contemporary culture. In all honesty, some of them did cause me to look at things with eyes I had not used before. One article in particular that sticks out in my mind, is Stuff is Not Salvation, by Anna Quindlen. Through her use of Ethos, she really brings to light how Americans have this ridiculous obsession with buying stuff. She notes how we are trying to use junk to make ourselves happier, but in the end, as Anna puts it, “The happiest families I know aren’t the ones with the most square footage” (Qtd in Perspectives pg 503). Before reviewing this article, I considered myself someone who didn’t necessarily NEED stuff, but as the assignment went on, I realized how bad it really has gotten for us as a society.

The focus on external objects that have no meaning is unhealthy to people's relationships and connections with others, and can replace our meaningful aspirations into meaningless time wasters. People are so obsessed with materials that they put their human interests, relationships and kindness towards each other aside. Human traits, like compassion or respect for each other is lost because people replace their love for others, with love for objects and when people stop them from being with their possessions, they get hostile and become trapped in this cycle of obsession with things. "'It’s only two thousand dollars,' she replied. ' And I should think you'd consider me sometimes.

In Bookmarks, Possessed by Our Possessions, Diane Cole states, “But never has hoarding been so visible as it is today in westernized societies. Perhaps the abundance of inexpensive and easily accessible objects makes it the disorder of the decade” (Cole 3). This quotes is very relevant to my views on how and why America seemed to be consumed by consumption. This isn’t just a coincidence but, an action that has turned into an emotion. Buying items used to be dependent on necessity but now it is based on the feeling. To buy items people enjoy themselves and it turns into a leisurely activity. Because of the emotion shopping creates, individuals who suffer from depression use this as an outlet and tend to buy at

Everyone enjoys material things, whether they want a brand new car or even a phone; these items do not provide any necessity for survival, yet they make people’s lives much easier, and even more

People chase wealth and prosperity so they can buy items they think they need and will enjoy, whether it be an iPod or latest game console. Eighner’s idea of the transience of material living is that in the end material possessions are meaningless. Eighner has learnt through his loss of these items that life experience and knowledge will outlast any tangible item, he states “some material things are white elephants that eat up the possessor’s substance” (568). Eighner argues that materialistic objects themselves are not as important as the sentiments behind them. The fact that Eighner can survive and live happily off others’ waste effectively persuades the reader to reflect and ask questions of themselves.

The text states, “Our books are a burden to us, our pictures have destroyed every restful wall-space, our china is a care, our photographs drive us mad, our programmes and alpenstocks fill us with loathing.” This quote proves why and in what way owning too much can backfire on the owners. Items can fill up your house, make you mad, be a burden to you, and more. Ray Bradbury once said, “Too much of anything isn’t good for anyone.” The author agrees with this quote as she pointed out why having too much isn’t

Author Anna Rosenberg gives a vivid example of a life story. When Rosenberg talks about Judith Levine, author of Not Buying: My year Without Shopping, she show enough evidence to prove that shopping addiction is a real problem in society and not only that, but the type of products customers spend their money on. Anna Rosenberg took her time to analyze the problem afterwards she also give some advice on her article Field Guide to the Materialist: She’s Gotta Have It. Some of Rosenberg’s suggestions to consumers were, to ask themselves when buying something if I really need it? What is the real reason I want it? What are the disadvantages of buying it? and to not beat themselves with those

As you can see there is no picture of Cheryl, keeping it this way so she does not out her son as transgender so he can live a normal life! Wife, mother, friend and author. Cheryl B. Evans was born and raised in Canada. She has been happily married to her husband for more than twenty-three years and together they have raised two wonderful children, one of whom is transgender.

Have you ever gone to the store and just had to buy that article of clothing or those sweet Nikes? How about when you’re grocery shopping and those donuts look too good not to buy? How long has it been since you last picked up your phone or other electronic device? That is materialism. People can grow attached to objects and have a very hard time getting rid of things. This can become a serious issue when left unchecked and in some rare cases can lead to a person's death.

Hoarding is defined as the acquirement of, and inability to discard worthless items even though they appear to have no value. Hoarding behaviors can occur in a variety of psychiatric disorders and in the normal population, but are most commonly found in people with obsessive-compulsive disorder. Those people who report compulsive hoarding as their primary type of OCD, who experience significant distress or functional impairment from their hoarding, and who also have symptoms of indecisiveness, procrastination, and avoidance, are classified as having compulsive hoarding syndrome (www.ocfoundation.com). An estimated 700,000 to 1.4 million people in the United States are thought to have compulsive hoarding syndrome.