Ethics: Consumerism

By Michelle Erskine
Staff Writer
Beautiful jewelry, extravagant roses, expensive chocolates, and six dollar singing greeting cards… exactly what you think of when you think of St. Valentine’s Day. We celebrate many holidays that may have, perhaps, lost meaning in society. Retailers ramp up advertising around holiday seasons and push the idea that we have to give the best gifts (I’ve Christmas decorations out as early October). Pressures from retailers and lending services have given society the wrong messages behind holidays with profound meaning.
We need to remember that holidays aren’t about giving the best gifts. If people weren’t so judgmental there would be no need to impress anyone with gifts. One Olivet College student surveyed said, “Retailers take advantage of shoppers during the holidays because they can. People need to buy gifts, and most of the time are willing to splurge more than they normally would in order to please the person they are buying the present for.” From the same survey, which consisted of 81 students, 12 students’ main concern about retail overtaking the holidays was the tactic of high pricing. One student raised concern about specific retail scams: “They try to bring you in with big sales that aren’t really sales - buy one get one for .99 cents deals. You spend too much on the first one.”
“Prices are raised on toys and gift items and then are marked down to make it look like the consumer bought it on sale,” and “they raise prices of everything because they know demand is going up,” were two student responses that raise good points. If holidays are about the exchange of gifts then partake, but all too often, people slaughter the reputation of religious holidays, Christmas, Easter, and Halloween for example. You must know why you celebrate, and be accepting over others’ traditions also. I mean, Father’s Day is about thanking father figures in your life, so maybe a gift would be appropriate, whereas St. Valentine’s Day is about honoring Christian martyrs, not giving long-stemmed roses and visiting the fanciest restaurant. Retail would have less demand during the holidays if we were less materialistic.
Ninety-one percent of students surveyed on campus thought Christmas was too commercialized; 78 percent felt the same about St. Valentine’s Day, and 72 percent responded that way about Halloween. ReligionLink.org states, “Gift giving is a meaningful practice in all cultures and most religions,” so we aren’t saying gifts are bad, but we should examine why we celebrate. Ask your family about holiday traditions and why they are in place. “Who needs 10 pounds of candy on one holiday anyway?” said one student surveyed. Besides our ethical analysis, retailers also needs to take into consideration different cultures and their practices. One student said, “Art Van has a sale for EVERY holiday!”
Despite the high level of consumerism on American holidays, a simple, random survey of students revealed that maybe Olivet College has a better ethical standard or stronger traditions as compared to the rest of society. When asked what one word they associated with Christmas, 20 students responded “family,” six responded “Jesus,” two “noel,” “holy,” “happiness,” “charity,” “joy,” and four mentioned “giving.” Only two students responded “Santa,” and no one responded presents or gifts. To the contrary, Times Online claims society feels Christmas is too taken over by retail. They feel that Christmas in America is, “time to practice the fine art of shopping (a religion in its own right).” In America, I would argue the bigger celebrations are “Black Friday,” the first day of the shopping season following Thanksgiving, and the blessed “Day After Christmas Sale.” According to Theological Studies Journal, “Consumer culture is best diagnosed not as a deformation of belief but as a particular way of engaging religious beliefs that divorces them from practice.”
American poet Henry Van Dyke said, “Gratitude is the inward feeling of kindness received”... not having six new Christmas sweaters, a fruit basket, and stale fruitcake.