American Consumer Culture Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

American Consumer Culture - Research Paper Example This leads to the many topics which arise when studying American consumer culture. One of the major impacts of American consumer culture is its association to materialism. The critics and the advocate of the American consumer culture believe that materialism, which has a close association to the culture, has the disadvantages and advantage respectively, on the economy. The realization of materialism as a major topic in American consumer culture makes it inevitable to discuss the roots of materialism and its impact throughout the American history. In his book, Lawrence Glickman asserts that consumerism has been treated as excessive materialism classified as a moral danger and a popular culture (Glickman, p. 1). Materialism refers to the act of individuals in the society stressing on the importance of the physical possession than they do to the spiritual. The major thesis statement for the article, American consumer culture causes individuals to care more about their personal possessio n than their internal well-being. Impact materialism in American history Benefits The impact of materialism is much evident in the American society where consumer culture has a strong foundation. History shows that materialism saved America from overproduction. It is true that America is one of the strongest economy in the world hence it is easy to associate it to materialism. Materialism can thrive in the economy because there is much resources to support the needs of the consumers. Consequently, materialism proves useful to American economy since the consumers have the urge of purchasing more and more allowing supply and demand to occur naturally. In chapter 5 of Lawrence volume collection, Durning asserts â€Å"materialism is caring about things and taking care of them meaning it isn’t necessarily a bad thing† (Glickman, p. 78). Durning is right owing to the present state of America which consumption drives it current economic system. Further, materialism have also contributed to the American economy being self sustaining and self regulating since the consumers are much interested in buying the products in the market. It is true that a product can only exist in the market if the consumers are willing to buy hence the benefit of materialism. History shows that after the World War I American society feared the emergence of overproduction since the consumers had no desire in buying the products . The only remedy was to train the society into being materialistic with subsequent desire to buy the products. There was need for shaping a new mentality whereby the desires of man would overshadow their needs hence the birth of materialism (Bussinessinsider, 2013). It is acknowledged that consumer culture is a very important recipe for economic growth, it make the people to perceive spending as a way of obtaining happiness and satisfaction that can be very helpful in the times of economic recession as they will continues to spend cushioning the economy f rom experiencing the pinch in a significant way. Consumer culture makes spending be a bonding experience, for example doing shopping together with the friends, peers, and age mates, it brings about a strong bonding culture (McLaren, and Torchinsky 57). Drawbacks One of the major disadvantages of materialism arising from consumer culture is its effect in causing poorer well-being. The people with high materialistic nature often appear to possess goal orientation that may ultimately impact the society negatively. Don Campbel in