Preview

Rockwell's Defence in Consumerism - Summary Essay

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
310 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Rockwell's Defence in Consumerism - Summary Essay
Oscar Neyra
Professor Maria Ammar
EN 101S
February 14, 2013

Title
Summary on Rockwell’s Defense in Consumerism

Introduction :
According to Rockwell’s Defense in Consumerism, he argues different points on how the market economy touches all of our lives. Even when people claim that they have too much, consumerism and the market economy is still something that we all need. Eventually, we come to understand that now-a-days we have many choices in our lives. Thesis Statement : I will try to summarize a couple of key points based on Rockwell’s Defense in Consumerism, focusing on choices, demands and quality of life to make a summary of what Rockwell is trying to say.

Body Paragraph I :
Rockwell mentions many different choices in the market for everyone. Ranging from the heating of our homes to the type of water we want to drink. Not only that but many choices on the same product are also available. For example plain water or underground water from Fiji. It’s all about having a choice in our daily lives. Body Paragraph II :
Demands are always there. Rockwell says that demands eventually help make new items available in the market. No matter how superfluous they might be. They open up a market in which everyone could benefit. Most services or goods were first created to meet superficial demands.

Body Paragraph III :
Rockwell argues about the quality life. The impact that consumerism has on the life expectancy now-a-days. Comparing it with the higher rate of mortality in the 1900. While making note that the population has exponentially risen as a result. All thanks to a better standard of living.

Conclusion

Work’s Cited
Rockwell Jr, Llewellyn H. “ In Defense of Consumerism” The Bedford guide for College Writers. 9th ed. Ed. X. J. Kennedy, Dorothy M. Kenedy, and Marcia F. Muth. Boston: Bedford, 2011. 638-40.



Cited: Rockwell Jr, Llewellyn H. “ In Defense of Consumerism” The Bedford guide for College Writers. 9th ed. Ed. X. J. Kennedy, Dorothy M. Kenedy, and Marcia F. Muth. Boston: Bedford, 2011. 638-40. Print.

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    consumerism and suggests a “return to the frugality of simpler times.” He offers that we can…

    • 923 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Docwra's book provides frank views on the course consumerism has put the society on. Docwra takes a serious approach to the aspects of consumerism, the sections in Docwra's book are at first problematic and situational but then become rectifying and provides direction on everything from the effects of consumerism to what is wrong with consumerism resulting in what can we do about consumerism. Docwra informs us on the negative effects consumerism places upon us, but Docwra puts most attention into providing tactics we can use to stop consumerism. He states: "To move away from a culture of consumerism, we will therefore need to challenge the philosophy and values of this current economic system. Essentially, we need a cultural shift in our society…

    • 262 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In “The Ables vs. the Binges” the author, John Verdant, extensively analyzes the effects of consumerism on American society. In his essay, Verdant exposes the way society approaches the market world as consumers. He uses two very different families with similar financial situations to show the negative effects that consumerism has on society and the positive outcomes of effectively abstaining from it (Verdant 152). When comparing the Ables and the Binges he expresses how their differences in consumption and money management set them apart from one another.…

    • 480 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In “Overselling Consumerism with Capitalism”, Benjamin R. Barber describes how consumerism has undermined the principles of capitalism. Barber describes the principles of capitalism as combining “altruism and self-interest” (83). However, the author also states how modern capitalism has catered to the wanting over the needy through corruption of consumerism. cBarber believes consumerism is a lazy, egotistical practice compared to discipline and order. The author also stresses that capitalism now has made consumption too accessible and too short-term gratifying. To justify this, Barber provides an example of how city malls are like a candy store for consumerism, versus a town square that…

    • 228 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    He does not just give his opinion and hope the reader will accept and agree with it. For instance, he takes facts from anthropologists and historians, quotes Karl Marx from The Communist Manifesto, and comments on Max Weber’s The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism. What makes his argument so alluring is the fact that he does not shoot down consumerism completely but views it as misunderstood and a compliment to the problem, not the cause. He does not make the reader feel selfish about feeling the need to buy things to validate where we stand in society but says that “commercialism has lessened pain”, meaning we have more pleasure in our lives compared to discomfort in our lives than most people throughout history. He goes on to discuss another work of literature, Pursuing Happiness, by Stanley Lebergott. In regard to this, he agrees that Americans buy their way to happiness. Also within this book, he remarks on the statistics of American consumption on a wide range of products which the reader can identify with considering everyone has bought something at some point in their lives. Perhaps the most defining argument within his essay is the fact that he believes our consumer culture is so powerful because it frees us from the strictures of social class. Because it is so possible for many Americans to acquire goods, it is hence possible for everyone to be a part of the “in…

    • 982 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    I will never regret the things I did wrong. I will only regret the good things I did for the wrong people.weIn the article "In Defense of Consumerism," author Llewellyn H. Rockwell Jr. produces her opinion in how consumerism in the marketplace has such an impact on Americans. Rockwell mentions the many products that have been introduced to us, and how much we can actually benefit from them. Although many non-consumerist still believe that we do not need a lot of these goods to survive, Rockwell proves these items has changed many lives. By summarizing this article, I could be able to point out the main ideas to help gain a better understanding of the text. In the article "In Defense of Consumerism," author Llewellyn H. Rockwell Jr. produces…

    • 401 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    bruce dawe consumerism

    • 575 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Consumerism as we understand as individuals is the need to acquire objects and possessions often beyond our essential needs, just for the sake of acquiring them. This universal theme is made patent through two of Dawes poems, Americanized and Televistas 1977. Dawe is successful as he discusses and ultimately utilizes the theme of consumerism in a negative, derogatory way. Additionally, Dawes employment of techniques such as metaphors, rhetorical questions, repetition, figurative language and tone further enables the responder to understand themes which arise throughout both poems such as consumerism, capitalism, cultural imperialism and materialism. It is through this utilization that obsessive consumption of material goods can lead people to believe that their lives as well as their social status is determined by what they own and ultimately, consume.…

    • 575 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Best Essays

    ASSOCIATED AUTHORS. (March 29, 2012). U.S. economy grew 3% in final quarter of 2011. Accessed March 29, 2012 at…

    • 337 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Good Essays

    Doll and Consumerism Lures

    • 1061 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Consumerism has to confront people in order for them to actually take action and resist it. The concept of consuming is drilled into us from a young age and as we grow older we see the detrimental effects of it on children. The attraction of consumerism lures people in to the temptation of it without realising and after we have gone too far we acknowledge that we have to resist it. Everyone is affected by texts that force them to encounter the results of consumerism and how it is instilled into us without even knowing it.…

    • 1061 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Jameson, Fredric. 1988. “Postmodernism and Consumer Society.” Postmodernism and Its Discontents. Ed. Ann Kaplan. London: Verso. pp. 13-29.…

    • 1462 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Best Essays

    Cited: Bauman, Zygmunt, and Jerome Roos. "Bauman: Consumerism Coming Home to Roost." Reflections On A Revolution. 18 Aug. 2011. Web. 28 Nov. 2012.…

    • 2205 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Best Essays

    Zygmunt Bauman, argues that we are now living in a predominantly consumerist society rather than an industrial society. Even though both societies show inequalities the ones that become apparent in a consumer society are different from those previously apparent (Hetherington, 2009). In the present day we still have an affluent upper class, who are able to consume more effectively, nevertheless consuming has become an essential part of many peoples identities. This reflects on how people see themselves and how others see them, which is portrayed by the things they buy and services they use. It appears to be more common, as anyone with a secure job or steady income earn enough money to buy more than their basic necessities,…

    • 1541 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Scarlet Letter

    • 2187 Words
    • 9 Pages

    Nathaniel Hawthorne 's novel, The Scarlet Letter, is about the struggle three people face while trying to live their lives and find happiness in a Puritan society. In the early 1640s, Hester comes to the small town of Boston, Massachusetts, while her husband, Roger Chillingworth, settles business in Great Britain. Hester and Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale, the town 's priest, engage in the act of adultery and produce a baby girl named Pearl; though, only Hester knows that Dimmesdale is the father. She makes a promise to Dimmesdale not to reveal his identity. Hester is put on display in front of the entire town to castigate her. So that she might serve as an example that it will deter others from sinning. She is then put in jail with her young child for several months and is forever made to wear a scarlet letter "A," which stands for "Adultery." Hester 's husband, Roger Chillingworth, is captured by American Indians on his way to New England. He is held in captivity for two years before escaping and entering Boston. After learning of what Hester had done, Chillingworth poses as a doctor and vows to discover the identity of Hester 's partner in sin. Hester agrees to keep her husband 's true identity a secret too..…

    • 2187 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    Adolescent Years

    • 1973 Words
    • 8 Pages

    References: Pruitt, Sheila Tucker B.E., Stein, Jane J., Cummings, Benjamin, Blake, Joan Salge, Thompson, Janice, Mel .…

    • 1973 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Consumer Sovereignty

    • 4347 Words
    • 18 Pages

    The consumerism is a relatively recent phenomenon, one hundred years have passed since the commercial economy of the United States was rocked by the explosion for the first time a consumer moviment exasperated.…

    • 4347 Words
    • 18 Pages
    Good Essays