Restoring The American Way Of Life

In our world of instant gratification, people got to save money any way they can. People that shop online need to wait 48 hours before making an impulsive purchase. They are spending too much money on clothes, shoes, and accessories. One can start by cleaning out closets and sell the items that not being worn. In 7 Things Young People Are Spending More Money On These Days, Sam Becker states,This has led many to think that they are a bunch of entitled brats who refuse to grow up. But we have to take into account that millennials are saddled with more debt than any other previous generation, have grown up in a post-9/11 world of perpetual war, and entered the workforce during one of the worst economic stretches in American history. It hasn’t been all beach trips and Mike’s Hard Lemonades, though things are getting better (Becker, sec. 3). He says, The millennials

In today's society, having the biggest and best products is valued above everything else. From new technology, to homes, and even automobiles -nothing is off limits to our ever-growing expectations. This growing trend of owning bigger and better things without being satisfied is more apparent in today’s society than ever before, and it doesn't seem to be ending anytime soon. The need to have the newest products is“stuffing us up” and creates a problem for future generations. The article “Swollen Expectations”, written by John De Graaf, David Wann, and Thomas H. Naylor, provides some interesting insight into the standard of living in past generations. I also conducted an interview with my father, asking him a series of questions about life when he was younger, material possessions, and how he has seen it all evolve throughout the years.

Today, Americans live in a world where we are constantly encouraged “to keep up with the Joneses” whether it be from advertisment, longer shopping hours, or multiple other factors. A surprising statistic you can find in the book, Affluenza: How overconsumption is killing us--and how to fight back, where it states that “70 percent of us visit malls each week, more than attended houses of worship” (15). Shopping has become so convenient in recent years due to online stores, as well as the growing number of shopping centers, that it’s become a problem. Kalle Lasn, co-founder of the magazine Adbusters and starter of the Occupy Movement, believes that, “Overconsumption is the mother of all of our environment problems” (197). Consumers have come to see shopping as a fun activity while spending time with friends or family. When really over consumption of material goods ultimately leads us to unhappiness, the unsatisfied desire to want more, and possibly put you into debt.

We are people, we have a focus on living life. We were made for a reason. Everyone has the right to live with life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. What is America today, what can we do to improve life for us and everyone around us. For us to be the best and do the best we have to be ambitious, set up purpose. As being ambitious you need to meet the standards of society also the standards that you make for yourself.

The “American Dream” is based on the fundamental idea that one’s social status, and ultimately their happiness, is deeply rooted in their financial success and the material items they possess. It is often believed that mass consumerism has become an indicator of one’s ability to participate as an elite member of society and ultimately complete the pursuit of happiness. However, groups also object these views of happiness and suggest that happiness is based on far more than material items. One’s perception on the correlation of materialism and the pursuit of happiness is dependent on an individual's experience as a consumer.

Measuring the work ethic of the participants showed a decline across the years as the rise for materialistic possessions increased. As individuals are becoming more materialistic, they are losing their work ethic which shows a sense of entitlement in the participants that they should not have to work as hard to own highly materialistic possessions. This is believed to be effected by the decline in socioeconomic statuses which can be linked to insecurities in the individuals as well as an increase in the amount of advertising individuals are exposed to towards the end of the study. These insecurities have shown to increase the desire for material items in order to create a more ideal self while declining the desire to work for the things they want (Twenge & Kasser, 2013).

In the world buying the things you want compared to buying the things you need is a consist problem for many people in America. Depending on a person’s financial situation, they might never be able to buy the things they want and just focus on the things they need. Most middle class Americans focus on paying for essential things such as: food, water, housing, and transport. My views towards consumerism is that people should focus on quality overbecause there are some moments in life that lower quality things will have negative effects.

In Gary Shteyngart’s novel, Super Sad True Love Story, consumerism and the need to purchase shapes how the people of the fictional America live. Juliet Schor, author for the Boston Review, describes one way of spending in the real-world America as “competitive consumption”, meaning that American’s purchase items as a way of characterizing rank within the influence of a group they wish to be like. This in turn drives American’s compete toward a similar status of a specific group of people, also known as an “aspiration group”, which was once the individuals in your neighborhood, but has become the glamorous individuals observed in the omnipotent media. These aspiration groups consist of the affluent and beautiful, of which the American’s of the

In the United States of America, the top 1% of the population controlled 37% of the wealth in 1922, during Weber’s time. By Bourdieu’s time, in 1976, the wealth controlled by the richest 1% of the American population had shrunk by almost half, down to 20% (Dornhoff, 2012). This means that the middle class had gained more buying power as we headed into the 1980s and 1990s, the era of conspicuous consumption heightened by the growing wealth of ‘dot.com’ billionaires in which consumption of luxury became a common narrative of who we are based solely on our ability to display costly symbols. Today, add in the East Asian market, new Russian oligarchs, oil-rich Saudis, resource-rich South Africans, and the ‘face’ of luxury as we once knew it is

America currently has the highest rate of resource consumption in the world. Things are being bought faster than money can make it to the bank. With technological advances, including social media and online shopping websites, the purchasing goods and services constantly fills the thoughts of Americans. In an essay by William Zinsser, he explains that “advertisements and TV commercials are a hymn to American success.” He goes on to say that “magazine articles are a toast to people who made it to the top.”

Americans live in an era of out of control spending that is driven by materialism. Children at a young age become well acquainted with the idea that owning the newest and best puts a greater amount of value into one’s life. Unfortunately, for many, this negatively translates into adulthood. Materialism is the root of millions of American citizen’s insurmountable amounts of debt. People have the desire to appear to their family and friends as though they are living lifestyles of luxury, when in reality, they are simply digging themselves a hole of debt they will never escape. But not only is trying to keep up a wealthy persona costly, it also entails a vicious, draining cycle that constantly leaves the consumer

American culture changed since the turn of the 20th century at the foot of consumerism. Americans pre 20th century did not focus on the development of consumption, buying only the necessary items to sustain livable conditions. With the start of the industrial revolution rose mass consumption leading to Americans purchasing extravagant items like beauty, home decor and entertainment type products. Mass consumption blurred the socioeconomic classes and developed an identity that Americans in the working and middle class expressed similarly. With the rise of mass consumption came the selling of all those items that targeted specific groups of Americans and has developed into the advertisement we see today. The articles and movie provided addressed how mass consumption in America has changed and developed in the 20th to the 21st century by bringing about extravagant items, blurring the lines between the socioeconomic classes and bringing rise to target and creative advertisements that make up a lot of mass media we see today.

The latest consumer must haves always seem to stare out from their perch, chanting swipe the card, swipe the card. The swoosh of the plastic heard as it glides through the reader, is done for one purpose only. This purpose is the satisfy the spender at that moment in time. How handy it seems to have a plastic card with your name, that can pay for all of the “necessities” that a modern consumer needs now. Looking around, it is seen that America is a society filled with people who work to spend. Their earned paycheck soon becomes dollar signs displayed on their eyeballs, as they browse through the mall. These dollars are most often spent on items whose value fades over time. Due to selfish reasons, the general bourgeois bohemian spends to

In today’ society, one’s standard of success is grounded off one’s material possessions. The consumer state of mind is, “we want more, we need more’. The constant push of getting the newest, fastest, shiniest item, along with the mentality of bigger is better, is consistently being pushed as well as feed to every person on a daily basis. These items start to appear as needs in one’s life, when in reality it is a want, which the joy and satisfaction quickly dissipate and the need for more develops. “The process of moving ahead materially without any real gain in satisfaction is often called ‘the treadmill of consumption’” (Roberts 124). According to Robert, society is trapped on this consumer treadmill, but individuals can make the choice to get off the consumer treadmill through retraining ones thought process, gaining appreciation of the simple possessions along with educating the youth about financial responsibility. Behaviors and habits are taught and observed from our earliest years of life, thus shaping one’s perspective, thoughts, and experiences, which means one has the ability to change one’s views and perceptions, thus getting off the consumer treadmill.

Secondly, the society has grown more materialistic. It has been reported that up to 1.2 trillion, 11.2 percent of consumer spending, is consumed on unnecessary products. Even for the products which may be necessary, the more costly ones seem to be preferred over the less costly. For instance, people will tend to buy bigger cars despite the fact that even small cars may serve them well. Being materialistic may help one to live comfortably. Further, gathering more wealth is also seen as a signal of success in the society. Therefore, one needs to work for long hours in order to meet the materialistic expectation of the society.