21 / 10 / 13
OUGD502 / CONTEXT OF PRACTICECONSUMERISM.
SEMINAR 2.
MAIN POINTS TAKEN FROM THE LECTURE.
- Manufacture of desire / greed / false need / commodities
- Social control vs. freedom.
- Stratification / inequality / disguised
- People are made to think they are free, however there are so many rules, laws and regulations we dont really have so much choice.
- Consumerism acts as a sedative to make use feel content with live in order to stop us for filling are natural desires as the human race.
- Mass production is linked to the consumerism culture.
- You have to make more commodities to make more profit.
- Advertising and branding emerges through this to promote these commodities in oreder to make th public feel as though they need it.
- Fraud came up with the theory that the human race have hidden animalistic instances and irrational desires and we have urges to act on these feelings.
- Berneys started the trend of brands useing these instincts and attaching them to products in order to make us feel that we are feeding these urges when purchasing commodities, there for we are content when we have them.
-The pleasure principle is the name of this theory and is regarding the consumption of relatively useless objects on the basis that we are told we need them as they benefit out lives.
* * * *
GROUP TASK
JOHN BERGER / WAYS OF SEEING.
Read and discus pages 151 to 155.
Explain to the rest of the group what you feel is being expressed by John Berger with possible examples to annotate and visualise the points being made.
** SCAN NOTES**
STUDY TASK Using quotes from John Berger, wright an analogy on an existing advertisement regarding how this advert is effected by the use of consumerism.
ADVERTISEMENT
J'ADORE FOR WOMEN / DIOUR
ANALYSIS
The focus of advertisements is to entice, persuade and
encourage an audience. Most have the aim to give the consumer a feeling of need
towards the subject of the advertisement creating a belief that ones life will
be better, easier or happier if this specific item is purchased. This is very
much the case regarding my chosen advertisement for the Dior perfume, J’dore
for women.
‘The spectator-buyer is meant to envy herself as she will
become if she buys the product. She is meant to imagine herself transformed by
the product into an object of envy for other, an envy which will then justify
her loving herself. One could put this another way: The publicity image steals
her love for herself as she is, and offers it back to her for the price of the
product.’ - (Berger)
The woman in this advert is set to be the desire of both men
and women, however in different ways. For, men this is through a sexual desire
for this, what we are lead to believe, beautiful woman who is not only acting
in a provocative manner when discarding her clothing, but is also displaying a
sense of power and domination through her confident stride and smashing of
accessories. For women on the other hand, they desire the female subject
through envy which, regarding to Burger, causes the female audience to think of
themselves as lesser that the subject in the advertisement.
‘Being envied is a solitary form of reassurance’ - (Berger)
Women want to be envied as they themselves envy the female
in the advertisement and are lead to believe that this product will allow them
to have this desired status, as long as they purchase this specific item. This desired
status regarding men becomes one of a sexual nature as one becomes the subject
of the ‘Male Gaze’. This desired status regarding women becomes one of hierarchy, which then also leads to
jealousy as one feels they are better than other who have not invested in this
product and are now them selves enviable.
‘Publicity speaks in the future tense and yet the
achievement of this future is endlessly deferred. How then does publicity
remain credible – or credible enough to exert the influence it does? It remains
credible because the truthfulness of publicity is judged, not by real
fulfilment of its promises, but by the relevance of its fantasies to those of
the spectator-buyer. Its essential application is not to reality but to
day-dreams.’ - (Berger)
The female subject is suggested to be wealthy through the
size and décor of the premises she is situated within as well as the clothing
and jewellery she is adorned with. The woman refers to the past when stating
that ‘Gold is cold’ Diamonds are dead’ implying that these once desired objects
are now a thing of the past. In the past these objects were seen as ‘hot’ and
‘lively’, which used to be desired concerning sexual presence and excitability.
However, the statement implies that this is now passé, which in turn forces the
audience to look to a new future, which comes in the form of this product.
‘The power to spend is the power to live’ - (Berger)
The ad is an influence that supplies false truths, which
makes the consumer, feel they need to strive for a lifestyle they still have
not yet acquired. However, according to Berger, this lifestyle is nothing but
an out of reach fantasy, no matter how much you strive. This suggestion can be taken from the fact
that the woman is throwing away and destroying, what is thought to be, desired
and what people usually strive for to then be envied. So even if one has
reached the success, which has then allowed them to be the owner of such
desirable objects, these have now been overtaken by a perfume. Even though this
is not true and precious metals and jewels will always be of high monitory
value, this is the daydream quality (suggested by Berger in the previous quote)
that advertisers use to intrigue and manipulate its audience.
‘Capitalism survives by forcing the majority, whom it
exploits, to define their own interests as narrowly as possible. This was once
achieved by extensive deprivation. Today in the developed countries it is being
achieved by imposing a false standard of what is and what is not desirable.’ - (Berger)
Perfume products are part of a mass market to which we
supposedly have a vast choice of items and brands to choose from. Due to this
range of possibilities that are available to the consumer, purchasing a
specific item makes us feel unique, especially if this product is new to the
market, such as the example perfume would have been when originally released
and advertised. However, ultimately
perfume is simply a fragranced liquid usually in a fancy shaped bottle that do
nothing more then give you a scent. Even though there is so much choice out
there, at the end of the day, they are
all the same thing therefor narrowing the possibilities of what we can have.
The fact that we feel we have more choice makes us feel we have freedom which
in turn makes us content with our lives.
WORD COUNT / 659
QUOTES / 5 / WAYS OF SEEING / JOHN BERGER
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