Justin Willoughby Prof. Padgett Engl.

1102 Dec 3, 2013 Materialism And Social Status in Todays Society We as human beings are all guilty of one simple thing, which is showing off for others. In todays society people are more worried than ever about what people think about them. With all of the social media, people think that they should act and be a certain way. It is as if society tells us how we should act, what we should wear, and things that we should own. Some people feel that if they are not doing the things that society says, then that they are not cool, or even in a less fortunate social status. We live in a world where people show off their belongings, where people believe just because they have nice things that they are better than others, and where people buy things that they really do not need. They are searching for some type of happiness that they think is in materialistic things. This brings me to the conclusion that materialism and social status are more important to people rather than the things that they actually need. In todays society, there are many things that we consume ourselves with. Whether it is a nice car, up-to-date fashionable clothes, or something as simple as a new phone, people will find some way to do all they can to show that item off. This is because of the way that our society views itself. We have things such as magazines, T.V. shows, and social media that convey ways that we should act like, look like, and things that we should all have. Today we are more worried now as to what other people think about us and as to what social status we are in according to the materialistic things that we have. This kind of behavior is defined by the term social anxiety. De Botton says in his book, Status Anxiety, that status anxiety is A worry, so pernicious as to be

capable of ruining extended stretches of our lives, that we are in danger of failing to conform to the ideals of success laid down by our society and that we may as a result be stripped of dignity and respect. I definitely agree with Botton on his definition of this phrase. We live in a society where we cannot or will not be ourselves. We are constantly worried about what we need instead of being grateful for what we have. We are worried if someone has something better than what we have, and always try to outdo each other. We are not amused by the little things in life anymore like society has been in past times. Instead we are searching for the success that others have laid out for us, instead of the feeling of success for ourselves. In Stitches by David Small, we see a prime example of status anxiety where Davids parents bought things that they did not need to impress their successful friends, instead of things that they really did need. This caused them more trouble than it did any good because they were always worried about their money situation. This could be relatable to people all over the world. For example, people have nice cars and clothes, but live in little shacks or apartments because they want to show off themselves outside of their homes so that people think they are better than they usually are. They are more worried about what people think about them instead of having things that they really do need, and will make life easier on themselves. This brings me to my next point, where people believe that just because they have nice things that they are better than others. We all knew that snob in high-school that had everything that they wanted because they came from a well-off family, and thought that they were better because they had nicer things. If you did not have the types of things that the popular kids had then you were not in the same type of crowd as they were in. This is very similar to as when people grow up because now you have social status, which tells you which type of lifestyle you live and the types of things that you have to be in the crowd. This is becoming more and more

of an occurrence in todays society because if we know we have nice things, why not show them off? James Roberts explains this point in his book Shiny Objects: Why We Spend Money We Don't Have in Search of Happiness We Can't Buy. Roberts says We are a nation in love with shiny objects. Our homes, our cars, our offices, our purses, and that storage unit we hate to admit to, are all overflowing with our precious belongings. This means that we have all of these nice things that we love to show off, but they are all overflowing with stuff that we thought we needed, and once showed off. It also means that we have way too many things that we do not need. David Smalls book Stitches shows this point very well also. Davids parents bought many things that they did not need at all. They went on a lot of fancy vacations, bought new cars, went on shopping trips, and had many elegant parties. They did not need any of these things to have a nice life, and the only reason they had all of these things is to make them look successful as if they had a nice life. This is how many people are in society today. Everyone has many things, but hardly need anything that they have. One of the reasons that they may have all of these things may be because they believe that it makes them happy, when it really does not. In America, people look for the American Dream. In my own words, I believe the American dream is to find success in yourself and to find happiness in yourself. Many people take this to the extreme and try to find happiness in materialistic things. I think that people should not try to live life by the things that they own or the money they have, just so that they would be in a higher social class, or look like they live in a higher social class. I think that they should try to find happiness in the simple things and just try to have a good, honest, and decent life. Robert Skidelsky defines the good life in his book How Much Is Enough?: Money and the Good Life. Skidelsky says that The good life is a life that is desirable, or worthy of desire, not just one that is widely desired. This means to me that you should do your best in life to do

good for yourself, and to have a good honest means of success, instead of trying to do something that will impress people. Skidelsky makes a good point because he is trying to convey that you can find happiness in yourself by doing what makes you happy. In other words, happiness is not something that you can buy or something you gain from trying to make people impressed. Miriam Tatzel also talks about a form of well-being or happiness in his academic journal "The Art of Buying: Coming to Terms with Money and Materialism." Journal of Happiness Studies. Tatzel says that The range between somewhat tight and somewhat loose with money would seem to hold the greatest promise for well-being. This means that you can have happiness or well-being with money or materials if you have a happy median with them. People go a little bit crazy when they know that they have money because they feel as if they need nice things to show off since they have money. It is in peoples nature to show off their nice things because that is the way that society has made us today. But people have to know how to control themselves and try not to show off as much, and have things that they actually need. There are many different types of studies that show that people who value materialistic items and think that their social status is important are actually unhappier than people that do not worry about status and materials. The American Psychological Association did a study that showed this. Their article Consumerism and its discontents says On average, those who had initially expressed stronger financial aspirations reported lower life satisfaction two decades later than those expressing lower monetary desires. What this means is that people who wanted a high social status did not find satisfaction in themselves. This shows that if you are trying to find happiness with materials and a high social status, that you will be less likely to be content as someone who just wants a simple life. People who only have things that they really need seem to be happier than people who want things that they do not need.

The point that I have conveyed through all of the research is that in todays society people try to live life by being materialistic and show off these things to reach the social status that they want to be included in because it is how todays society has made us. With all of the ways that America has told us how we should behave and things we should have, it has ruined peoples thoughts of what success really is. Success should not be something that you need, it should be something that you want and deserve from hard and honest work. Sadly, America has become this place where you have to act a certain way, think a certain way, and have certain things to become happy, which is the case for many people now a days. People think that it is more important to have nice things and to be of a desirable social status instead of doing and having things that they need to do or need to have, when in reality they are making themselves unhappy by going in debt or spending money on worthless objects that they have no means in really needing for themselves. Many people become unhappy because they cannot achieve the social status that they want and cannot have the things that they want to have, when they are not grateful for all the good things that they do have in life. That is why materialistic things and social status, or appearance, should not be more important to people, but the harsh and cruel fact is that it is actually more important to most people in todays time.

Works Cited De, Botton A. Status Anxiety. New York: Pantheon Books, 2004. Print

DeANGELIS, Tori. "Consumerism and Its Discontents." Http://www.apa.org. N.p., May-June 2004. Web. 3 Dec. 2013. Roberts, James A. Shiny Objects: Why We Spend Money We Don't Have in Search of Happiness We Can't Buy. New York: HarperOne, 2011. Print. Skidelsky, Robert, and Edward Skidelsky. How Much Is Enough?: Money and the Good Life. New York: Other Press, 2012. Print. Tatzel, Miriam. "The Art of Buying: Coming to Terms with Money and Materialism." Journal of Happiness Studies. 4.4 (2003): 405-435. Print.