Introduction
Modern society’s way of life is interesting and detached from how people lived in earlier eras. Mass production in the industrial age has facilitated the market, allowing consumers to live in the right place; they can have virtually anything they need. Concentrating in a consumerist society means gathering as many things as possible.
The status in this world is determined by how much one has and how much the products cost. It is a reality in America more than in other nations, given the huge resources and considerable control the US industry has over the global economy. The ideology is materialistic and compels people towards higher consumption of products or services than is required. Consumerism in America is supported by producers who do their best to sell their goods by encouraging Americans to purchase more products (Bennett 10). The overemphasis on consumerism in the US has contributed to a moral bankruptcy that, in turn, neglects disadvantaged people in favor of wealthy people.
The Rise of Consumerism and Its Cultural Impact
Production increased in the era of consumerism, and consumerism shaped the American marketplace, spreading from cities to rural areas. Americans currently consume more than other nations globally, because they continuously take, and there should be a reason for it (Koshta, et al. 52). Overconsumption may contribute to immoral and unethical conduct in individuals, as privilege can lead to an obsession with having all that comes and breeds bitterness. Since Americans have a higher rate of consumption, and it can have dramatic effects on the issue with the principles of people, it stands to reason that Americans are experiencing the problem of consumerism (Bradshaw and Ostberg 452). The obsession with materialism should be analyzed further to assess the assertion that consumerism must be acknowledged as an American cultural value.
Industrial Revolution and the Birth of Consumer Culture
Consequently, before the Industrial Revolution, Americans lived in comparative scarcity; they appreciated the small things offered and had to work within their limitations. However, after the technological advancements and the industrial revolution that began with World War II, Americans were transformed into a new era with more fashions, medicines, and technologies being created. It was more than they might sustain in their lives. Subsequently, they had the ways and the will to work geared towards having a passion for these things (Bradshaw and Ostberg 459).
Hence, consumer culture was developed as marketing, and advertising strived to create people wanting all the factory-made products. This created a new American lifestyle, in which everybody aimed at having a house with a white picket fence, a speedboat, a dishwasher, and many other things. The idea was established that every American was inspired/they attain. Therefore, reaching their goal, people had to work harder, prices declined, and production approaches were enhanced to make products cheaper as income increased, making it easy to get products that approximately every American citizen could purchase (Copeland and Boulianne 11). Nonetheless, this has contributed to a decline in values along the way.
Fashion and Identity in Consumer Culture
Furthermore, the trend of consumerism extends to the apparel people wear in the US. People are obsessed with clothing and fashion. US consumerism has given itself to a clothes-purchasing culture that appears backward in its presumptions of what people need or why they need it. In the consumer culture, some trends create an image of poverty, for example, expensively shopping for distressed, ratty clothes at luxury stores (Khan, et al. 142222).
It is one of the symptoms of American consumer culture, and utility has ceased to be an issue, although consumerism is associated with prestige and social status. People yearn to have more as it elevates their social status, and this equals shopping for products that even people do not require (Koshta, et al. 55). People have gone far in imitating whatever new celebrities do on the social ladder for the general public to aspire to, specifically based on the clothing they wear.
Food Surplus and the Super-Sized Lifestyle
Moreover, food production on a large scale has resulted in food surplus in most industrialized countries. However, it has also contributed to a huge increase in obesity among those who can afford this fast food. Food factorization has led to American super-sizing and increased intake of food in America; other than making individuals purchase two regular-sized products, they were discovered to want to purchase one larger product. It has amounted to increasing the proportions to match the American appetite, mostly among children and adolescents, contributing to obesity (LiPuma and Robichaud 265).
American consumerism has embraced it, and the outcome was a stress on value, and they needed more for their money. When people, particularly Americans, believe or know they are having a deal, they will take it, although this may be more than they want or need (Park and Lee 25). It is further proof of the American citizen’s taste for more, resulting in a compromise of current social ideas and principles for the sake of consumption.
Insecurity and the Drive for Excess
Nevertheless, all the trends witnessed in American consumerism emanate from the main idea of the American people’s insecurity, specifically as they stand as the sole superpower globally. Americans constantly dread falling behind and are not content with whatever they have. This has made them consume more to fill the gap they have in their lives without having enough (Soluri 16). It emanates from the exclusively American cultural environment, which is the melting point of various cultures and the general propensity of most Americans.
Consumerism as a Motivator for National Success
Consequently, it must be noted that US consumerism is not as horrible as one might contemplate. It is a drive for things and materials that contribute to the US becoming a world superpower. The country’s excess is the effect of being capable of having so much. The despair of Americans at having inadequate might be the symptom of their push for superiority; they do not want to rest on their efforts and allow the world to overtake them (Park and Lee 35).
Hence, consumerism is central to American culture, and most people’s thirst for accomplishment remains. Americans desire to work harder to have the capability of purchasing things they need and want in life (Koshta, et al. 67). It is insufficient to have much money; one should be capable of getting things with that money to show their family and friends that they have achieved in life.
Corporate Influence and the Loss of Choice
Further, there is a stage at which consumerism and capitalism can go beyond, even once the impression of choice is eliminated from the people and put in the hands of individuals who understand precisely how to press their psychosomatic buttons. It runs from clothing firms that sell lifestyles other than real clothes to the food industries that provide unhealthy amounts of processed products for less than organic food.
The urge to make more profit has resulted in many Americans moving towards habits they find challenging to detach from (Copeland and Boulianne 15). It has contributed to the fear of not having enough and to overtreatment. Consumerism flourishes in American culture because Americans believe they must have what they need or want in surplus (Bennett 17). It has resulted in a circumstance where consumers in the US acquire goods in continuously escalating quantities, from clothes to food.
Economic Benefits and Global Trade-Offs
However, it could be argued that consumerism in America is responsible for the country’s economic boost. As more people shop and spend, the more the producing and selling firms generate revenue and income, which is responsible for their expansion and growth. Further, there are more opportunities for job creation and economic growth in the US due to this notion of consumerism. It makes the lives of Americans secure through the facets of nurturing enterprises, which improves the gross domestic product (GDP) (Soluri 27).
On the contrary, they lower their prices because the firms want to become more competitive than others in the market. It has led people to work for low wages, mostly in developing nations, which is an issue on a global scale. Nevertheless, it is typically an advantage to the side of consumers because they will purchase more goods at a lower price (Koshta, et al. 73). Hence, developed nations such as the US own their wealth to the idea of consumerism as it creates job opportunities, grows their economy and offers relief of stress to the working group.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the uniqueness of the American consumerism brand is considered a typical destructive factor in the lives of people who encounter it. The life of surplus that a persistent search for materials and resources contributes to may appear to develop a sense of emptiness and melancholy. It results in people having the means of looking for more to fill that emptiness, and searching for potential solutions is challenging. Essentially, it would end the “more things” mindset that infiltrates most of American culture.
Works Cited
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