It has been said; you are what you eat. It therefore may be said also, you are what you consume, and as such are defined by the advertisements that pull your little heartstrings of desire; the window into our very souls. That may be pure conjecture on my part; probably, but given the state of advertisements in this country, and the fact that we have evolved into a consumerist society, they; advertisements, indeed cater to our definitive selves. Or, more darkly, we define ourselves by the perceived qualities that those products that appeal to us, consciously or subconsciously; allow us to project, both outwardly and inwardly, who we want or wish to be. A bit of a mouthful to be sure. The other side of the coin is what these advertisements say about us as a society. I bring this up because I have deep concerns, alright maybe just facile concerns, about what commercials and ads say about the prototypical American here at the dawn of the Twenty-First Century.
The most prevalent common denominator, certainly as far as men are concerned, is that we are a nation of idiots; that we are immature, if you are a young adult; or racked with maladies if you are older. The only time you're on the ball is when you are a child; and, not surprisingly, you are also manipulative and devious. Plus, you're wise beyond your years.
Then you lose it!
Look at the characters in beer commercials. Coors Lite lauds itself as the coldest beer; note that quality of taste is not mentioned. Naturally if a beer is very cold the first thing you'll notice is not the taste, but that your tongue has gone numb. What does that say about someone who consumes this beer; I don't care about taste so long as it's really cold. Then there's the new Heineken commercial where the women are squealing over the big new walk in closet, while the men are squealing over a walk in fridge filled with beer. Doesn't exactly exuded confidence in the future of humankind. Now that Miller has thrown down the gauntlet on the " high life "; that it's for the common man in all his glory, so long as that doesn't include $10 burgers served in ritzy restaurants, sky boxes where no one knows the score, clueless barbecuers, and VIPs ensconced behind velvet ropes, I'm waiting for another beer company to declare itself the beer for the extra special man, or woman. Beer specifically brewed for when you're behind velvet ropes with other extra special people. One can dream.
Then there's the time worn idiocy that all a man needs to be a hit with the ladies; to " slay the babes ", is to use the right cologne, after shave, body spray, razor. Once a complete loser; now never at a loss for female companionship, and not just any female companionship, but hot, sexy babes just ready to give you anything you want. Who falls for this stuff? Never mind that the men in these commercials are good looking; imagine the outcry if fat, hairy, middle aged guys were used. No one would buy it because we know it's bull. It's like the beauty aids foisted onto women to keep them looking young and beautiful, and the models are at a age, early 20's, where they don't need the stuff and have very little body fat. Where are the middle aged women for whom the product is geared? Evidently, no one wants to see that either. More to the point, what does it say about the people who buy into this stuff? Is there anybody who actually believes any of this? Yet it's normal business practice to do customer surveys, etc, to gage the marketplace, one would think, before putting these products into stores. Someone confessed to believing they needed these. Cynically, I guess it's possible they lies for the money, but not everyone gets paid to do surveys.
Old guys, or mature men, if you prefer, seem to suffer from any number of life threatening maladies; grey hair in their beards ( never mind their balding heads; little or no hair seems to be the rage these days regardless of age ), weak urinary stream; there's nothing better than sitting through commercials of bromances ( surely the truest sign that the Apocalypse is upon us ) interrupted by multiple potty breaks, and, of course, erectile dysfunction or ED ( which I always thought stood for Emergency Department ). Despite the fact that most men who suffer from these problems are sedentary, overweight, diabetic, and have heart and or circulatory issues; or some combination thereof, the men in these ads are active, trim, and attractive. The only thing that surprises me is that they don't use young guys in their ads, as mentioned above for women's anti-aging cosmetics; maybe that's a little TOO cynical.
I did note a number of blogs ago that I'm certain we're sliding into our own Wall-E world, and the idea that people are deluding themselves into believing they will not only cure the ailment, but turn the user into a stud muffin or hot babe if they use the products, does little to dissuade of that notion. Unfortunately I don't think that'll include a spaceship to cater to our every need until the Earth is remade ( they didn't even get that in the film ).
It's been noted that the earlier you subject an individual to the idea that there is a perfect way to look or behave, the earlier they begin to obsess on their flaws and limitations, and the lower their opinion of themselves. We fear aging. We long for a kind of idealized image that's manufactured for us by entities that have ulterior motives.
Is this the point of our lives? Is this the extent of our existence? Solipsistic consumers chasing something just beyond our reach?
I need a beer. Only which one is me?
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