Entry 6: Respond to "Consumption, Narcissism...."

Quote: "(Commodity production) creates a world of mirrors, insubstantial images, illusions increasingly indistinguishable from reality"(35). The thing that I agree with the most about this is that insubstantial images are created by consuming. There is this constant idea that there is always something better than what you have, which makes people feel less than substantial. I don't think consuming causes this whole idea in people, but I do believe it contributes to it. The strange thing is that I don't think people are actually judging others on their possessions, but somehow not having certain things can make people feel incomplete. This is sort of addressed in the quote where "a world of mirrors" is created. I think possessions carry with them more self-perception. I don't think people really notice any changes in people when they have certain things.

"The consumer lives surrounded not so much by things as by fantasies. He lives in a world that has no objective or independent existence and seems to exist only to gratify or thwart his desires" (35). Although we would all like to think that our world doesn't revolve around the things we buy, all of our milestones in life seem to revolve around major purchases and endeavors. We purchase a college education, a wedding, a home, a car, your child's education, a retirement package. All of our cultures milestones seem to center around some major purchase or another all so we can achieve a certain "fantasy" or meaning with that purchase. We buy a college education to get a better job and a nice home and car to keep up with the wealthy family down the street. With our major purchases we are attempting to build what advertising tells us is the perfect existence--a nice home, car, smart and beautiful children. If you think about it, most purchases we make are to aim for the perfection they tell us will make us happy.

“Commodities are produced for immediate consumption. Their value lies not in their usefulness or permanence but in their marketability. They wear out even if they are not used, since they are designed to be superseded by “new and improved” products, changing fashion…” (35). I think that I find myself falling victim to going shopping every time there is a new fashion. It’s not that my clothes are worn out, but advertisers have become so successful at influencing one’s emotions, and therefore decision-making. I most definitely do not need to go shopping, but it has almost become a hobby and somewhat of an obsession, merely to keep up with changing styles. The impulse buy is instant gratification, and then it wears off by the time the next trend comes around.

"They appear to assume that moral values can no longer be taught or transmitted through example and persuasion but are always 'imposed' on unwilling victims. Any attempt to win someone to your own point of view, or even to expose him to a point of view different from his own becomes an intolerable interference with his freedom of choice... They make choice the test of moral and political freedom and then reduce it to nonsense," (p.38).

Stepping back from our own percieved "realities" and attemping to see "freedom", personal choices, individual lifestyles and society for what they really are definately devalues their function. A catch 22 is created: We are allowed all of these choices and "personal freedoms", but it is a phenomena that simultaneously restricts our freedom and happiness. If someone else is allowed freedoms that encompass values in opposition to yours, your own are in a way repressed because there cannot be room for both of you to exercise your freedoms to the full extent without encroaching on their own. Furthermore, the ideals, personalities and character traits expressed as a reflection of our "choices" have in actuality been shaped as a reflection of our intake of the media and politics managed and ruled by a small group of elite.

“Commodities are produced for immediate consumption. Their value lies not in their usefulness or permanence but in their marketability. They wear out even if they are not used, since they are designed to be superseded by ‘new and improved’ products, changing fashions, and technological innovations. Thus the current ‘state of the art’ in tape recorders, record players, and stereophonic speakers makes earlier models worthless (except antiques), even if they continue to perform the tasks for which they were designed, just as a change in women’s fashions dictates a complete change of wardrobe”(pg. 35).
I completely agree with this quote and I know most girls specifically are prey to this “fashion cycle.” A fashion trend is spotted and every single girl will go out and buy the product, which will only last as long as the trend continues, the durability of the product is of no concern. This is only the basic step in this “cycle,” obviously designer items will make you look better, wealthier, and thus will give you higher status. Now, I do not necessarily like to spend hundreds of dollars on a purse that is currently in style and that will be on sale within a few months (and lose more than half of its value), but I do think it’s okay to splurge once in a while. Splurging on what you like the most is essential for full satisfaction in ones life.

"Technology thus comes to serve as an effective instrument of social control- in the case of mass media, by short-circuiting the electoral process through opinion surveys that help to shape opinion instead of merely recording it." If this statement is indeed true, which it may well be, it dilutes the integrity of the political process. Politicians want to be elected for a variety of reasons and have been notorious for doing whatever it takes to achieve this goal. If politicians simply mold their positions to appeal to the majority in the polls, all will appear relatively similar and there will be no diversity in opinion. As mentioned, this absolute adherence to public surveys also dilutes the integrity of the political process and the politicians themselves. We might as well have robots running and the most handsome/beautiful robot wins because all have similar positions on all topics- those that appeal to the majority.

“Here again we find an explanation of the modern “identity cirisis” that confuses identity with social roles and concludes…that “persistent feelings of discontent” are the price people pay for freedom. Instead of assigning individuals to a preordained identity or social station, the argument runs modern social arrangements leave them free to choose a way of life that suits them”.(pg 38)
To some extent I disagree with the author in this passage. I do not think that considering social roles in a discussion of identity is a misinterpretation of what identity is. We are social beings and our social roles are indeed intertwined with our identity as an individual. I also think that the author brings up a point of irony in today’s society. He talks about our society as one that does not assign individuals to social levels which they are unable to move in and out of. However, I do believe that our consumer culture creates a kind of caste system that is incredibly rigid. Everything we own speaks to our economic (and often therefore social) situation; this includes the car we drive, the clothes we wear, the house we live in, even down to the computer or phone we own. These become visible markers of our economic class and make it easy to separate classes from one another. The “freedom to choose” becomes a decision to declare which class we are in, and can be a constant reminder that despite this “freedom”, we are trapped in that class.

"Commodities are produced for immediate consumption. Their value lies not in their usefulness or permanence but in their marketability. They wear out even if they are not used...Articles produced for use, on the other hand, without regard to their marketability, wear out only when they are literally used up." This quote caught my eye because I think it exemplifies what consumer society is all about. New products are consistently created not because they are needed (because life was all right circa 1995 right?) but to be marketed to people who are looking for something to catch their attention and improve their lives. It also is really the perfect way for companies to continue to thrive over the years...why not keep coming out with new models and versions that render the old ones obsolete, if they are guaranteed to make a big profit from it. It may not be in the best interest for the consumer, but most people seem all too happy to "buy" into it.

"The study of mass culture thus leads to the same conclusion prompted by a study of the mechanization of the workplace: that much advanced technology embodies design (in both senses of the world) a one-way system of management and communication. It concentrates economic and political control-and, increasingly, cultural control as well- in a small elite of corporate planners, market analysts, and social engineers. " (pg 26 of article)

Though this isn't a direct correlation with what this particular quote was discussing, I couldn't help but draw similarity between the one-way managerial system allowed by advanced technology discussed and the way that the UC system is run. As a UC student and a participant in protests and demonstrations against the injustices of the UC, I quickly made this connection. The UC system is essentially controlled by a small group of elite corporate and economic analysts who, mind you, are not elected. They are appointed individuals who do not even pretend to listen to the suggestions and woes of their consumers: us the students. Several demonstrations, thousands of demonstrators and countless hours are seemingly wasted whilst this group of elite sit in their offices making decisions that directly affect us, while only keeping in mind how best to fill their own pockets. How systems of management such as this come to be, I am unsure. I do, however, believe that some heavy scrutiny and revision is necessary to correct it. The mere existence of the uni-lateral system, especially in a collegiate atmosphere in which we are taught and encouraged to criticize, is simply ridiculous.

“they testify to the prevailing pressure to see themselves with the eyes of strangers and to shape the self as another commodity offered up for consumption on the open market” (35).
I find this quote very interesting because it really gets at the connection between identity and consumerism. The author is arguing that who a person is inside no longer carries the most about weight. Inside is no longer necessarily the true real. If someone else cannot see it then it does not have any real value. In a mass society only things carry weight. So you may think of your identity as an unchanging internal personality but it is not. A person’s identity is just another thing that they own. They can buy different things and change it. Who they are is motivated by external cues and can be influenced by the open market. This is the point that I think the author is getting at. I personally believe that there is a lot that is true about this argument but that there is also some stable characteristics of a person and those can not be changed.

"But the conditions of everyday social intercourse, in societies based on mass production and mass consumption, encourage an unprecedented attention to superficial impressions and images, to the point where the self becomes almost indistinguishable from its surface" (30)

We have become preoccupied with presenting ourselves in a certain light to live up to the expectations set by society. However, at some point all of the pretending that we are doing becomes our view of our own self. Take the example of Dexter Morgan on the television show Dexter. He is a serial killer who attempts to live a normal life. He was taught by his father how to indulge in his urges without getting caught. However, as the show goes on he begins to question the intensity of his urges and whether he could survive without indulging them. Dexter spends his days conforming to the acceptable behavior of society. He has a girlfriend, a successful job (ironically working for the police department), and a great relationship with his sister. As he enters Season 3 Dexter begins to merge his pretend self with his actual self. Thus fulfilling Lasch's argument that eventually we will not be able to separate who we are from the person that we want the world to see.

"The consumer lives surrounded not so much by things as by fantasies. He lives in a world that has no objective or independent existence and seems to exist only to gratify or thwart his desires." (35)

In today's world, we do not care so much about the goals that we set for success. Instead, our goals are the things that we can buy. For example, someone might not become a doctor for the purely intrinsic motivation of helping people. Rather, they become a doctor for extrinsic rewards - money and the things they can buy with that money. There was a study done with children where they were either rewarded or not for doing puzzles. When they were left alone with a variety of activities, those children who had not been rewarded for doing the puzzles were far more likely to do them. Because we are so often rewarded by things we can buy in our consumer society, a lot of things we do become extrinsically motivated. So, some things that we call our objectives, or goals, are in a sense empty. They are filled with the fantasies we create about things we can buy.

"He learns that the self-image he projects counts for more than accumulated skills and experience. Since he will be judged, both by his colleagues and superiors at work and by the strangers he encounters on the street, according to his possessions, his clothes, and his 'personality' - not as in the nineteenth century, by his 'character' -- "

I think this quote is again, more evidence of how much outer appearances has to do with our perception of individuals. If you were to cultivate a successful image, people would immediately think you were competent even if it was only a facade and you were completely incompetent. However, if someone fails to participate in maintaining their facade, society would immediately ostracize them.

Commodities are produced for immediate consumption. Their value lies not in their usefulness or permanence but in their marketability (35). I think this thought is the reason why consumer society makes empty-self. And the main marketability is advertising like we read some articles.

"Commodities are produced for immediate consumption. Their value lies not in their usefulness or permanence but in their marketability. They wear out even if they are not used, since they are designed to be superseded by 'new and improved' products, changing fashions, and technological innovations."
I think this is an important part of consumerism. The fact that, theoretically, one can live with a small amount of goods for a long time is made up by the companies designing their products to be outdated after a certain time. I'm certain that technological products could be far more advanced than they are right now, but the manufacturers deliberately don't use up all of their available resources so they can keep coming up with new products. And even though we don't need these new products, commercials and society in general makes us believe that they are necessary to "keep up with the times" and to be completely satisfied - until the next "revolutionary" gadget comes out a few months later.

"Both as a worker and as a consumer, the individual learns not merely to measure himself against others cut to see himself through others' eyes."

This quote summarizes the mirror theory the author presents, as the main reason for consumption. The consumer has been trained by mass media made possible through advancements in technology to consider what he will purchase will represent him. The theory promotes the idea that irrational consumption is made possible as the consumer seeks to constantly validate his status to another individual. I believe this theory may have truth to it as I recall the the reference to unnecessary computer updates.

“Both as a worker and as a consumer, the individual learns not merely to measure himself against others but to see himself through others’ eyes. He learns that the self-image he projects counts for more than accumulated skills and experience.” (34-35)
The author brings up a really interesting point for me because I have never really thought about consumption this way. It is interesting to think that consuming items is more for the benefit of others than it is for yourself. This idea that whenever you go to the store to buy something you are subconsciously thinking about what others would think of it as well as consciously thinking about if it is better than what someone else had. This idea really affirms the thought of a narcissist society as consumers are consuming in order to impress and one up someone else. They are no longer buying things just for their own internal satisfaction, but rather to gain the satisfaction that they have something better than someone else.

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