Is America a Nation of Shoppers?

What does it mean to a nation when after a major disaster its leader urges its people to go shopping? That’s what President George Bush told the American public shortly after the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. Was the president merely reassuring Americans by suggesting that the nation was secure enough to resume everyday life, or was he actually implying that shopping is now equivalent to everyday life, that the more we shop the more normal life will seem? President Bush’s remarks were picked up throughout the media, as many journalists wondered: Has consumption become to prevalent today that we have become a nation of shoppers?

This is the subject of Linda Kulman’s short essay “Materialism: Our Consuming Interest.” Kulman observes that consumption has reached such a level today that we “shell out more for garbage bags than 90 of the world’s 210 countries spend for everything.” Noting that “America has double the number of shopping malls as it does high schools,” she cites several recent studies that explore the trends behind the nation’s obsession with spending and accumulating. This uncontrollable need to consume is then examined in the following two essays. In the first, “My Little Shopping Addiction,” a Manhattan writer and poet, Nikki Moustaki, describes how she began to view her compulsive shopping sprees to such New York department stores as Bergdorf’s and Bloomingdale’s as an addiction: as she puts it, “credit cards were my drug of choice.” Then, a Tufts University student takes us into his own consumer consciousness as he impulsively purchases a pair of expensive shoes he doesn’t need. In “Why Do We Buy? Is It Branding or Brainwashing?” Luke Brown warns that the “clothing we consider stylish is usually the result of decisions over which we have little control,” a point of view wryly illustrated by New Yorker cartoonist Matthew Diffee.

After the 9/11 attacks, why did President Bush urge us to shop rather than to make sacrifices? Is shopping now the only way most citizens can express patriotism? In “America Then…1940s,” we look at posters that took a different view of patriotism, one that asked Americans to conserve material goods instead of consuming them.

“Our Consuming Interest” [usnews.com, June 28, 2004

Linda Kulman

Before You ReadDo you like to shop? What are your favorite things to shop for? Do you spend more time looking than buying? Do you think that you are too materialistic?

In the fall of 1783, having vanquished the British and delivered his farewell address to the Continental Army, George Washington's thoughts turned toward his Mount Vernon home--and his pressing need for a new silver coffee and tea service. The conquering hero preferred to buy American for items he could get "on tolerable terms," and he made a point of wearing an American-made suit to his swearing-in ceremony as president. But Washington's devotion to all things made in the U.S.A. paled when quality was lacking. "He demanded the best, and it was a matter of honor," says Richard Bushman, author of The Refinement of America .

So just weeks after the United States and Great Britain inked their peace treaty, Washington sent to England for "1 large plain beaded plated Gallon Tea Urn" and other silver pieces. "He's the father of our country," says Carol Borchert Cadou, curator at Mount Vernon. "But he was also a shrewd consumer."

Though not America's first. His countrymen's need to consume was awakened nearly a century earlier as part of a drive toward gentility. It's the same desire, economists say, that today motivates us to supersize our television screens, splurge on a Kate Spade handbag, and line up at Starbucks for $4 lattes. Says James Twitchell, author of Living It Up: America's Love Affair With Luxury: "Consumption has become our currency and the lingua franca."

Although the phrase "conspicuous consumption" was coined by social critic Thorstein Veblen in his 1899 book The Theory of the Leisure Class, the idea that you are what you own began to spread in late-15th-century Europe, gradually fanning out to Britain and its provinces. By 1690, mansions had begun to dot the colonial landscape, and with them, Bushman writes, came "new modes of speech, dress, body carriage, and manners." Though the lives of the upper crust were polished to a high gloss, even the "middling people" could count a silver spoon among their possessions. By the mid-19th century the rising middle class were acquiring carpets, mahogany furniture, fine fabrics, books, and other trappings of refinement. "You have to have a market for capitalism," Bushman says, "and the aspiration to gentility provided that market."

As America became the economic leader around the turn of the 20th century, it also took the lead in consumerism. By 2003, personal consumption accounted for 70 percent of the nation's gross domestic product. Columnist Robert Samuelson points out in the Wilson Quarterly that Americans register a high level of personal spending partly because we foot the bill for more health and education costs than our counterparts in other advanced countries. We also work longer hours. "We're opting for income over free time, and that income gets translated into consumer goods," says Juliet Schor, author of The Overspent American . And if income falls short, Americans satisfy their wants by incurring debt, which now accounts for about 110 percent of personal disposable income.Garbage. We are a nation that believes in having it all. In 1950, American families owned one car and saved for a second. In 2000, nearly 1 in 5 families owned three cars or more. And while some other countries pride themselves on thriftiness--any French cook worth her salt has the knack of transforming the leek in the back of the refrigerator into a bowl of vichyssoise--Americans shell out more for garbage bags than 90 of the world's 210 countries spend for everything. Indeed, America has double the number of shopping malls as it does high schools.

Why is our appetite for stuff so insatiable? For one thing, we have come to think that buying is an essential expression of freedom and individualism. As the old fast-food jingles went: "Gino's gives you freedom of choice," while Burger King lets you "have it your way." David Brooks writes in Bobos in Paradise: The New Upper Class and How They Got There : "You become the curator of your possessions . . . the Bernard Berenson of the mantelpiece . . . each item you display will be understood to have been a rare 'find.'"

Consumption is a competitive business, with a constant ratcheting up of expectations. We no longer measure ourselves against the Joneses next door but against people we know only from the media. Our friends on Friends lived--in spite of poor to middling incomes--in fabulous New York apartments Lucky is a women's magazine about shopping. J Lo's left hand is weighed down by an 8-carat diamond, which makes our own finger jewelry look puny. The piling on of such images gives us a sense that we need more and we need it sooner: Longing for the sensation of wealth, college students put pizza on the credit cards they are offered the first week of freshman year.

The normal pattern is "you get more money, you spend more money," says Cornell economist Robert Frank, the author of Luxury Fever: Why Money Fails to Satisfy in an Era of Excess . And yet since the mid-1970s, when almost everyone's income stopped growing, our spending patterns have kept expanding. "It's not as if anybody is consciously trying to keep up with Bill Gates," Frank says. "He's not in the set we compare ourselves to. [But] it trickles down one step at a time." And it's difficult to drop out of the contest, Frank says. Real-estate values are tied to the quality of local education, so parents stretch on housing for fear that if they don't, their kids will fall behind.Trading up. Those who have it often flaunt it. "We were always very fluid about [class] because we never had the same deep ancestry as Europeans," Twitchell says, "but up until the 20th century, we used what we had." That's changed. "Objects are now carrying the status weight that blood and religion and pigment used to carry." Which is to say that Americans not only "buy up" but wear their wealth on their sleeve--or chest. Indeed, with the coming of the Lacoste shirt in the 1930s and Ralph Lauren's Polo shirt in the 1970s, labels no longer hid discreetly inside the collar. Today Tommy Hilfiger's prized name can take up most of the shirt.

Much of our ferocious consumption arises simply from the sheer number of goods available. But, says Twitchell, mass branding also spurred us to shop. Take, for example, Ralph Lauren's description of the Polo philosophy: "What began with a tie . . . has grown into an entire world that has redefined how American style and quality is perceived." Now, says Twitchell, to curb our acquisitiveness we would have to debrand: "It's a scarf; it's not an Hermes scarf. It's a car; it's not a Lexus. You put it around your neck or on your feet or you drive it. It's carrying more freight than it really needs to."

And yet small luxuries help us feel that we've gotten at least a bite, if not a slice, of the pie. You don't have to buy an S-Class Mercedes, starting around $75,000. You can own a C-Class for under $30,000. You don't have to buy a vacation home; you can spend two weeks in Bermuda on a time share. You can spring for Godiva instead of Hershey, while you buy your toaster at a discount store like Target.And after you get all the loot home, then what? Just as American as the need to buy, social observers say, is buyer's remorse. The backlash against American consumerism dates nearly to its conception--Henry David Thoreau got away from it all by retreating to Walden Pond. And then there was that countercultural movement of the 1960s. These days, our ambivalence and need to purge come in slick, packaged form: a magazine called Real Simple that specializes in unclutter. It can be yours for just $3.95.

Discuss Main Point and Meaning1. According to some experts, what motivates Americans to spend? 2. What normally happens when people get more money? Why does it happen?3. According to Kulman, what do Americans express when they shop? 4. What does James Twitchell say can be done about excessive consumerism? Do you think that is a practical solution?

Examining Sentences, Paragraphs, and Organization1. Examine the strategy of the first two paragraphs. Does the essay open in a surprising way? If so, what’s the surprise?

How does it relate to Kulman’s main points?2. Kulman writes, “If income falls short, American satisfy their wants by incurring debt, which now accounts for about

110 percent of personal disposable income.” What does this number suggest about Americans’ level of debt?3. At the conclusion of her article, Kulman mentions a magazine that can help people unclutter and then writes, “It can be

your for just $3.95” (paragraph 13). Why does she mention the price of the magazine? What does this suggest about consumerism?

Thinking Critically1. To illustrate American consumerism, Kulman points out that Americans spend more on education than those from

other advanced countries. She adds that many Americans spend as much as possible on housing to provide what they perceive as better schooling for their children. If education is a consumer item, in what ways is it similar to material commodities such as houses, cars, and electronics? In what ways is it different?

2. Does Kulman think that Americans are too materialistic? Point to specific passages to support your view and look especially at her word choices, tone, and organizational structure.

3. Are there benefits to American consumerism that Kulman does not mention? If so, what are the benefits? Do the benefits outweigh the drawbacks?

In-Class Writing Activities1. Write an essay in which you answer the following question: Are Americans too materialistic? Draw from both your

own experience and Kulman’s article as you develop your response.2. Citing concerns about excessive consumerism raised by Kulman’s article, a local newspaper editorial has proposed

that people under twenty-one-years old should no longer obtain credit cards. Write a letter to the editor in which you support or oppose this proposal. Refer to Kulman’s article as you develop your argument.

3. Using your own experiences and ideas from Kulman’s article, consider the ways in which “you are what you own.” IN what ways is this true? In what ways is it false? Have you ever thought one way about someone based on what they did or did not own but later changed your mind about them? What happened? How much to we tie our sense of ourselves and others into what we do or do not own?

“My Little Shopping Addiction” [JANE/ March 2004]

Nikki Moustaki

Before You Read:Do you think that shopping can be called an addiction? Is it similar to such well-known addictions as drugs and alcohol?

My UPS guy confronted me about my little shopping addiction. The nerve. “Hey, girl, whatcha got in the bag this time?” the man who sells me coffee at the deli asked me nearly every day. I

hugged my Bergdorf’s bag closer and said, “Oh, nothing interesting.”Then the following afternoon, the creepy guy with the stringy white hair who sits on my stoop said, “Damn, more

shopping bags? What did you get?”“I didn’t buy anything,” I insisted. “I’m just carrying something for a friend.” I slammed the door. I was so sick of people

pawing my bags and asking me questions about my daily shopping trips. Did I want to be judged for having bought $200 worth of costume jewelry I might never wear? I don’t think so.

What made it worse was that my shopping sprees made people think I actually had money—despite the fact that I live in a tenement in New York’s Hell’s Kitchen, which should have made it clear to everyone that credit cards were my drug of choice. I was just very good at revolving one credit card balance into another with lower interest. But it was getting hard to refuse Creepy Guy a dollar while walking into my building overloaded with bags from Bloomie’s. That’s when I knew I had to take my habit underground.

The next day, I explored eBay and the whole wonderful world of Internet shopping. Finally, I could splurge in peace. I ordered everything from dog raincoats to ruffled panties, platform boots to trash cans, blue topaz nose studs to “miracle knives.” Deliverymen would show up with all my goods discreetly boxed. It was beautifully anonymous.

A few weeks later, I found I couldn’t stay off eBay for more than an hour. The shopping made me feel good and distracted me from things like…oh, real life. I used a fake name for my eBay purchases which didn’t seem strange until I started thinking about it. It’s like using a pseudonym at a crack house. Sure, the other patrons don’t know your real name, but they can still roll you for your wallet while calling you “Crazy Pete.”

As a full-time freelancer, I was always home to hear the buzzer, which to me came off as less like a psychotic telephone and more like “Angels We Have Heard on High.” And I started to recognize the sound of the UPS truck approaching, even from the fourth floor. One day, I heard it stop for the fourth consecutive day. The UPS guy buzzed and said, “Pizza delivery!” Our little joke. I buzzed him in.

“What’s up with you?” he asked. “I’ve been here every day this week. I mean, are you okay?”I didn’t know what to say. I felt limp and stared at the box in his hands. “Well, that’s a Juice Fountain,” I said, avoiding

his eyes. “It makes 12 cups in under three minutes.”“I see,” he said. “So, you’re buying things you don’t really need?”And it was only Thursday. There were still two delivery days in the week to go. I hoped he was the only one who had

noticed my new pastime. My UPS guy didn’t even know about the FedEx guy, the postal carrier and Airborne Express (I didn’t like FedEx guy, by the way—he always complained about walking up three flights).

“Oh, well, I’ll stop you when you start buying exercise equipment,” UPS Guy said, scanning the box’s bar code.I dragged my juicer inside, a clammy sweat starting on my forehead. The moment was like when someone says to an

alcoholic for the first time, “Hey, maybe you drink too much.” Year, you knew that those one-person kegger parties might be a tad on the excessive side, but until someone said something, you thought you had it all handled. If no one noticed, there isn’t a problem, is there?

On Friday, I went to see my therapist and admitted my compulsive shopping habit. She told me she’d known for a while that I had a problem, but that she was waiting for me to become conscious of it. She’d noticed the shopping bags I came in with and said she’s never seen me with the same hat twice.

“Yes, well, I buy a hat every Friday after therapy,” I told her. “I have no idea what that means, and I’m not ready to explore it.” She said she might raise my fee, so that every time I wanted to shop I’d remember those extra bucks and think twice. I was not amused.

I’d like to say that I'm going to stop shopping, but that kind of lie in print would wear on me. My credit cards are hot, my UPS guy is limber, and cyberspace holds so many glorious things for him to bring. I’ll pace myself. That’s it. And maybe next week when the concerned UPS boy delivers the plush duck puppet that quacks “Old MacDonald Had a Farm,” I’ll open the box

and show him how great it is. But that ThighMaster I just ordered? I think I’ll have it delivered to my best friend’s address instead.

Discussing Main Point and Meaning1. Why does the author point out several times that she is not wealthy? Does it make a difference to the reader whether

she is or isn’t? Explain why or why not it makes a difference.2. Why does the author turn to eBay for her shopping? What does she prefer about it? What problems does eBay

eliminate for her? What new problems does it introduce? 3. What do we learn from the author’s visit to her therapist (paragraphs 15-16)? How does the author respond to the

therapist’s threat to raise her fee? In your opinion, why does the therapist make the threat? 4. What is the UPS guy’s point about “exercise equipment” in paragraph 13? Why does the author refer to it again in her

final sentences? 5. What do we learn from the essay’s final paragraph? How important is that information to our understanding of the

author’s problem?

Examining Sentences, Paragraphs, and Organization1. What is the effect of the essay’s opening sentence? Why does the author use the word “addiction” right off? Why do

you think she uses the adjective “little”? How do you interpret “The nerve”? How do you think the author wants you to hear that phrase? How upset is she with the “UPS guy”?

2. Go through the essay and note how many paragraphs are linked by time. How often can you find the passage of days and weeks? How does the passage of time help the author structure her essay?

3. Besides the temporal organization, how does the author unify her essay through the use of imagery and metaphor? For example, how many words and phrases suggesting addiction can you find in the essay? Look closely at paragraph 14, for example. What imagery in that paragraph links it to the author’s overall theme?

Thinking Critically1. How would you describe the author’s tone of voice throughout the essay? How serious does she sound? Do you think

she wants her readers to feel that her condition is critical? 2. Where in the essay do we find criticism of the author’s behavior? Where does that criticism come from? How does the

author respond to it? How critical do you think she is of herself? 3. Despite her humor, do you think the author makes a convincing a case that compulsive shopping is a serious

addiction? In what ways is it similar to drugs and alcohol? In what ways is it harmful?

In-Class Writing Activities1. In a short freewriting exercise, try playing the role of the author’s therapist. Make a list of some questions you would

like to ask your patient.2. If compulsive shopping is truly a serious addiction, what personal and social factors might cause it? Try writing a few

paragraphs in which you make a stab at some of the reasons people would become addicted to shopping.3. Imagine that the author decided to break her shopping habit. Rewrite her final paragraph so that it concludes with her

quitting rather than continuing.

Why Do We Buy? Is It Branding Or Brainwashing?

[The Tufts Daily, Tufts University/ February 23, 2004]

Before You Read:How would you describe the style in which you dress? Do many others share your style? Have you ever changed your style? If so, how?

When it comes to fashion, it sometimes seems that the apparel-wearing public is at the mercy of prominent designers and established retailers. When a dominant trend appears, almost everyone jumps on the bandwagon—making it nearly impossible to find clothing beyond the current “in” look. In order to stay current, stylish individuals must build an interesting wardrobe within the parameters set by the season. It has been said that such a system is the result of corporate brainwashing. Whatever the reason, the fact remains that the clothing we consider stylish is usually the result of decisions over which we have little control.

We have all seen the outrageous clothing high-fashion brands showcase in their runway collections. You may have thought, “Who actually wears that?” Truth be told, these sensational displays are little more than publicity stunts to drive up the brand’s name recognition. Brands rely on name recognition to sell their much more realistic “ready-to-war” collections. By the time the fashions you see on the runway hit the trendy shops, they have been reworked into much tamer styles. In fact, there may be nothing special about the clothing besides the name. The ubiquitous “logo tee-shirt” is the most obvious example of this brand phenomenon.

Given this rather bleak assessment, it’s no wonder that many people rely on well-known designers to make their fashion decisions for them. This is why labels are so emphasized in popular fashion. After all, if Gucci says, “It’s hot,” it has to

be, right? The answer to this, of course, is no. Unfortunately, too many people end up looking absolutely ridiculous simply because they fail to question the authority of a prestigious label.

For example, several weeks ago I decided to venture into a downtown mall in search of a pair of casual black shoes. I noticed a very discreet 60 percent off sign in the window of a particularly luxurious-looking boutique, and decided to do a little browsing. Once inside, my fate was sealed. The interior was quit mod with all the shoes lined up on long pedestals like an art installation. At first, nothing caught my eye, but as I surveyed the selection again, I started thinking that one pair might work (it was 60 percent off, after all). The salesperson was very accommodating and suggested I try them on (along with several others). As I examined my feet in the gleaming, full-length mirror (to the praise of my helpful salesperson), I decided that the shoes were actually quite charming and proceeded to purchase them without a second thought. Later, in my rather un-fabulous dorm room, I came back to the real world and realized that my shoes were surprisingly strange-looking, far too expensive, and, sadly, un-returnable.

With all the clever marketing these days, it can be quite difficult to separate the product from the brand trickery. Having fallen prey to this, I have come to the conclusion that the most dangerous place is the store itself. It is here, among the sleek display fixtures, suave salespeople, and sassy techno-music, that ugly, overpriced clothing can become remarkably attractive. While I eventually got over the shoes, I shall never forget the important lesson they taught me: Don’t be swayed by labels promising unwavering good taste. The only style you can really depend on is your own.

Discussing Main Point and Meaning 1. Identify the author’s thesis in the first paragraph.2. What is the relationship between the clothes that runway models wear and the clothes that most people buy?3. According to Brown, why do many people dress ridiculously? 4. Why does Brown call the store “the most dangerous place”? (paragraph 5)5. In the cartoon, how would you describe the attitude of the young woman who is sitting? How does the caption relate

to her body language?

Examining Sentences, Paragraphs, and Organization1. Examine the transition between paragraphs 2 and 3. What does the term bleak assessment (paragraph 3) mean? What

does this term describe? 2. What is the relationship between paragraph 4 and the rest of the essay? Does the author’s personal experience seem

relevant to his argument? 3. Examine the author’s use of parentheses in paragraph 45. How would you describe the type of information that he

puts in parentheses? Does he put this type of information there for a reason?

Thinking Critically1. Brown suggests that “there may be nothing special about the clothing besides the name” (paragraph 2). Do you think

that this is mostly true? Do brand names and labels serve any meaningful purpose? Do you value any specific labels or brands? If so, why?

2. Brown says that he learned an important lesson about shopping and will change his behavior. However, sometimes people have difficulty changing their behaviors and after a while revert back to their previous behaviors. Do you think that Brown has changed his way of shopping for good? Why or why not?

3. Do you think that it’s better to shop alone or with someone? What would Brown say? What does the cartoon suggest? What do you think?

In-Class Writing Activities1. Your local campus newspaper has asked you to write a column in which you warn first-year students about the

hazards of shopping and offer some tips and strategies about how they can become better shoppers and more savvy consumers. Be sure to explain the reasoning behind your recommendations.

2. Describe a time when you bought something that you thought was good, but later discovered that it was not. Why did you want to buy the product? Where did you go or what did you do to get it? What were you thinking as you were buying the product? What happened after you bought it? What did you learn from this experience? What are the similarities and differences between what you learned and what the author learned?

3. Describe the physical environment of a store or business that you know. How are the design and layout of the store constructed to induce you to buy?

4. Brainstorm a list of merchandising strategies that stores and businesses use to help sell their products. Which ones do you think work? Which ones do not? Do you find any especially annoying? Are any especially clever?

Matthew Diffee [The New Yorker, March 15, 2004]

Additional Readings: bedfordstmartins.come/americanow, Chapter 5. Read articles about the psychological effects of marketing from the June 2004 issue of Monitor on Psychology, published by the American Psychological Association.