The Consumer as Worldview

The Consumer as Worldview

Nuanli Chen

ENV 100H1

Simon Appolloni

In 1962 Rachel Carson observed the destructive effect man was having on his environment. Carson noticed life was shaping the environment in which it lived rather than the other way around (Carson, 1962). The speed of change has as well as the pace of society in general has accelerated. Everywhere we look we are being told to change, to buy, and to spend more money. We are influenced by the media and marketing machines; we are convinced the most pioneering technologies, fashion and gadgets are of absolute necessity. This all is inherent due to the fact that marketing advertisements are worded to make us believe that if we spend money on trending material items, we will thus gain utility, become more popular, socially engaged, and coherent with society’s social norms. To fit in, human beings are simultaneously increasing the pace of living life and our destruction on the environment. As Carson puts it, “the rapidity of change and the speed with which new situations are created follow the impetuous and heedless pace of man rather than the deliberate pace of nature” (Carson, 1962, p. 7).

Consumerism brings about an initial excitement to the individual through tapping into the immediate gratification of human beings. In the transient moment of purchasing commodity rapidly, the individual is brought to an euphoric high as s/he adopts escapism and flees, in a head-rushed manner, from the gruesome reality of mundane existence.  However, in the long run, this reliance of retaining utility by adopting the Freudian id principle of immediate gratification proves to be like any street drug. Once the consumer stops consuming, s/he enters a depression of drudgery. Thus, by this notion, in the long run many commentators have suggested that consumers are less happy and are more prone to mental health issues and chronic disease.

Similarly, at the inception of the industrial revolution, humans have hailed technological progress and have trapped in our own bubble of desires. The byproduct of such human progression include cell phones, computers, cars, television, which make us ignorant of real world issues. These instruments allow us to indulge in maximized pleasure and trap us to be incognizant of the fact that the Earth may be slowly dying. New animal species and natural habitats are becoming razed by the minute as we develop new land, enjoy the view from our well-furnished and new homes––all in the vain name of human progress. Similarly, we are numbed by our computer and cell phone screens and fail to feel the pain of loss that is happening ubiquitously in our own surroundings. Many of us  live in a virtual reality, separate from nature as our primary focus has been misguided to take in the fast-paced messages of consumerism that are being thrown at us every day—work harder, buy more, spend more money all in all equals more life satisfaction.