4) In agricultural societies of the past, farmers were mostly self sufficient.

They worked hard but consumed little. Today we consume so much that the
Q1/2- oceans are filled with trash. What changed?
when it Rising Disposable Income
began A great deal has happened. To begin with, rising global affluence following the
and how Industrial Revolution put a lot more money in people's wage packets (1). The
proportion of pay being spent on non essentials like food and shelter declined,
leaving a surplus of “disposable income”.
This had several important consequences. Social mobility took off. Workers
began using their disposable income to communicate social success and
status.
This could be one reason that the bulk of disposable income is devoted to
leisure activities. Of course, such activities are also pleasurable in
themselves, from enjoying sunshine in a vacation spot to fine dining, or driving
luxury vehicles.
In feudal societies there had been minimal social mobility and a luxurious
lifestyle was the exclusive preserve of the landed elite. How far
we've
This scenario changed profoundly with the rise of the middle classes following come...
the Industrial Revolution. Some scholars argue that the lives of ordinary is this
people in developed countries today are more luxurious in material terms than good or
those of the most sybaritic monarchs of the past (such as Louis 16th of bad?
France) given the variety of consumer goods available (2).
Example The Rise of Consumerism
s for Social mobility preceded the steam-engine-based Industrial Revolution. Cloth
Q1/2
manufacturers “put out” their orders, or subcontracted them, to cottage
weavers. Using tallow candles that shed a bright and steady light, cotters
worked night and day to fill their orders and saw a modest increase in their
standard of living (3).
Due to rising wages, a person could save to buy a better home, or better
furniture, or more elegant clothing. With social mobility, every person was
responsible for their own station in life. Keeping up with the Joneses was
Example born.
s for The period preceding the factory production of cloth is aptly named the
Q1/2
“Industrious Revolution (3).” It was accompanied by slow but steady economic
growth culminating in the modern era of cheap global shipping and runaway
consumption.
When living standards rise, beneficiaries are never really content with where
they are. There is always someone else who has a better home, a better car,
better furniture, or sends their children to better schools, or spends more on
cosmetic surgery.
Q2- the societal
pressures that make
us consumers
 Aspiring to lead a more luxurious life is a treadmill that keeps consumers in
debt and constantly working harder to get where everyone else seems to be.
This is a positive climate for businesses. Example
Media, Advertising, and Artificial Needs s for
The desire for more goods and services is enabled by modern communication Q1/2
technologies. This played out following the introduction of television to towns
in the US West. The rise of petty thefts that followed was motivated by
dissatisfaction of viewers with their standard of living compared to that
depicted on the small screen (4). In marketing terms, demand for many Example
consumer goods was created overnight. s for
Q1/2
The same phenomenon occurs on the Internet where users are exposed to
luxurious living by celebrities around the globe. Of course, Internet shopping is
the ultimate enabler for luxury goods because they are rarely more than a few
clicks away.
The desire for luxurious, and status-signaling, products is a powerful motive
for workers. Indeed Thorstein Veblen, an early sociologist, argued that
“conspicuous consumption” is the main reason that people with money Q3/5- individual
choose to spend it (5). benefits and
The carrots of consumption may well be more potent than the sticks of motivation
management in boosting work effort. Ordinary consumers today behave rather
like the elites of the past with the key difference that elites don't need to work.
Even the poorest segment of our society give in to cravings for luxury goods
Q4- being from designer watches, shoes, and sunglasses to electronic devices and cars.
oblivious and article continues after advertisement
not taking Modern societies are something of a rat race where people work hard at
responsibilityconsuming during their off time and work even harder during their hours on
the job so that they can earn enough to pay their bills. The irony is that
although we live like the kings of history in terms of material standard of living,
we do not recognize this reality (1, 2).
The flavor of this discontent is captured in the witticism that a rising tide lifts all
yachts (rather than all boats). Improvements in living conditions in developed
countries are real, substantial, and historically unprecedented, although
pessimists cannot accept this and focus upon the unequal distribution of
wealth.
Life expectancy of US residents doubled in the 20th century, for example, but
this fact is lost today in concern over the fact that rich people live longer.
We would also like their money and avarice is a cruel master. Despite having
too much, we are tormented by the desire for more knowing that other people
are a lot better off than we are.

Q2/3- selfishness and

wanting to seem
better/competition