Consumed By Consumerism
There was a time in my life when I had a curious eye, always searching my surroundings for something intriguing. That was during my early childhood, around the age 6. After then, I no longer appreciated my environment as I used to. The turning point was the fact that I learned to walk to the toy shop and supermarket with my own feet, along with small amounts of money my parents granted to me.
Before I was able to consume anything, I was a very naive child. Even very small changes to my ordinary life had fascinated me. For instance, my mom told me that the first time I watched Tom and Jerry, I had been babbling about it all day long. I played with whatever item that was around me, even with frying pans. When I was told a short anecdote, I could imagine and think about it for hours. Whenever my parents tell me stories about my childhood, or rather, babyhood, I am amazed at every episode for I was so naive and innocent, without materialistic greed but pure curiosity.
Naivety cannot last long, however. As I began shopping for toys and school supplies with the money from my wallet, I no longer appreciated the small things in life. If I was dissatisfied with playing with a toy I had, I could simply discard the toy and go buy a new one, instead of finding a way around to play with it. I was not so rich, but still, I was mostly able to consume what I wanted to, since what all I had been interested in were everyday school supplies. The more frequently I entered the stores, I started to face reality. There were no such imaginary fun toys full of magic that I had seen in cartoons. Every product had similar shapes and functions. I was losing the wing that allowed me to think out of the box Gradually, I became a typical modern day consumer who lost creativity but chose from a limited number of products.
While watching the short film "Pencil Face", I was reminded of how I became consumed by consumerism, because what the pretty girl in the film had gone through was parallel to my experience. Before the girl meets the pencil, she freely roams the field. Although she seems to be somewhat bored, she could be having fun like I did during my childhood. There can be countless ways of having fun with a metal bar. However, as she meets the pencil, she changes. After seeing phantom-like images of a cake and a kite, she uses the pencil to purchase it. In an attempt to purchase a lollipop, she uses the pencil again, but this time, a vortex appears that sucks her in. The pencil is like the turning point I faced in my life. It changed the girl in her natural state into a consumer, limiting creativity and filling her heart with greed. The vortex of consumerism had trapped her regardless of her will.
Before I was able to consume anything, I was a very naive child. Even very small changes to my ordinary life had fascinated me. For instance, my mom told me that the first time I watched Tom and Jerry, I had been babbling about it all day long. I played with whatever item that was around me, even with frying pans. When I was told a short anecdote, I could imagine and think about it for hours. Whenever my parents tell me stories about my childhood, or rather, babyhood, I am amazed at every episode for I was so naive and innocent, without materialistic greed but pure curiosity.Naivety cannot last long, however. As I began shopping for toys and school supplies with the money from my wallet, I no longer appreciated the small things in life. If I was dissatisfied with playing with a toy I had, I could simply discard the toy and go buy a new one, instead of finding a way around to play with it. I was not so rich, but still, I was mostly able to consume what I wanted to, since what all I had been interested in were everyday school supplies. The more frequently I entered the stores, I started to face reality. There were no such imaginary fun toys full of magic that I had seen in cartoons. Every product had similar shapes and functions. I was losing the wing that allowed me to think out of the box Gradually, I became a typical modern day consumer who lost creativity but chose from a limited number of products.
While watching the short film "Pencil Face", I was reminded of how I became consumed by consumerism, because what the pretty girl in the film had gone through was parallel to my experience. Before the girl meets the pencil, she freely roams the field. Although she seems to be somewhat bored, she could be having fun like I did during my childhood. There can be countless ways of having fun with a metal bar. However, as she meets the pencil, she changes. After seeing phantom-like images of a cake and a kite, she uses the pencil to purchase it. In an attempt to purchase a lollipop, she uses the pencil again, but this time, a vortex appears that sucks her in. The pencil is like the turning point I faced in my life. It changed the girl in her natural state into a consumer, limiting creativity and filling her heart with greed. The vortex of consumerism had trapped her regardless of her will.
Although the film can have many different morals, it does convey the message how powerful and scary consumerism can be. A reminiscence about the ld days surely reflects what monsters we have become. "Pencil Face" is a powerful video that helped be realize this fact and learn my lessons, that I am also trapped like the girl.
This reflective essay is a response to the video "Pencil Face":
Very nice post. That pencil is simply demented. I like this short film but IT IS very creepy.
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