Consumption is a way of life. Our economy, although now in a recession, demands us to consume. They produce and we buy. We wear it, eat it, burn it, use it and immediately or eventually chuck it. Our economy needs this and we as individuals do too. Jonathan Bell exclaims that ‘Products have been reduced to transient objects that reflect fads and fashions rather than actual needs and demands.” This statement generates the question: Do we really need all of what we buy? Has it become our religion and obsession? We seem to seek happiness and fulfilment from buying and there’s no sign of us slowing down. The predicament is that we are constantly being inundated with messages in a variety of forms, telling us to go out and buy the latest or greatest products. They grab our attention and our money, without us realising. It truly appears that there is no way back from this. The option is to either slow down, or try and use this consumption as a way to benefit the world in an alternative way.
i think that even though so many things in this world grab our attention it is up to the person to spend money or not. I doubt that a sign that says give me this amount of money would encourage to do that in any way. Yes, there are signs and billboards and this and that but in the end it is the person's decision on wether to send the money or not. So a person may buy new things every week and eventually have to through it away BUT this is the world we live in at the moment. When going abroad into different parts of the world it may be the complete opposite and people share their clothes because they may not have enough.
ReplyDeleteI do think that what kind of family you get born into does reflect on what you spend money on and the amount of money. some people may think a new pair of shoes every month is crazy but for others it is something they want and can have and has no advertising influence.
philipp faehndrich