„We have become a world of consumers.“

We live in a world where wanting has become needing. Whenever people see a SALE sign they are drawn to it and walk into the store without thinking whether they really need to buy something or not. After walking through the shops, scavaging through things, they make their way to the cash regiser and a fairly large amount appears on the screen. It does not matter though because they have just bought a years amount of supplies half the price, and are extremely satisfied. But does consumerism equal happiness?
According to a research by World Bank Development Indicators in 2008, statistics show that the world’s richest 20% consume 76.6% whereas world’s middle 60% consume 21.9% This is so probably because the rich can afford to consume that much and the rest mostly consume according to their needs. Although, another reason people consume is to be defined and to feel that they are not worthless. An artist, Barbara Kruger, has also made a piece on the matter called ’I shop, therefore I am’ which is exactly what people seem to think. They shop for clothes, make-up, accessories, go to the hairdressers and nail salons, all to make themselves look more attractive, noticable and acknowledged.
















As we live in the era of technology, some of the things helping define one’s status in society are the latest gadgets. For some reason people find that they always need to have the newest versions of everything because they are promised to be better, easier to use, ecofriendlier and so on. In that case people often do not care how much it costs, you are assured to get your money’s worth. In that process a great part is played by advertising and mass media, whose aim is to make services and items appealing to everyone. Also advertised are credit cards and they allow you to spend and pay for the bought goods later. What people usually do not think about is that they are spending money they do not have and have to pay it back later with intrest.
Over the past few years global warming has been a widely debated issue. Humans are said to be the cause of the global warming and we contribute to it even more by consuming and not recycling. Although recycling has been made compulsory in most developed countries, people still often do not do it. If this continues, the world will not last much longer. If people would sort their trash, give unwanted objects to charity and go to a nearby shop on foot instead of going by car it would help even in the slightest. Sadly, the majority seems to think that they would be the only ones to do so and that their small acts will not change anything.
The fact is that consuming is something humans are bound to do in order to survive. However, consuming too much may result in debt, global issues, economical crisis and maybe even madness. People should consume according to their needs, and reward themselves occasionally with something they do not necessarily need, but will have use for nonetheless. They should also do their share of recycling and giving back to society. Here, Neil Armstrong’s words could be used – „That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.“