Sociologist Richard Stivers makes an interesting observation about the choices given to consumers. He writes:
Is Technology Ruining Your Life? Take A Quick Quiz To Find Out By Clicking Here.
“There is nothing voluntary about consumption in modern societies. Advertising provides the commands to consume under the guise of the freedom to achieve material well-being: Buy; Consume; Enjoy. There is freedom of choice about what to consume, but only within the larger demand that we approach life exclusively as consumers.” (1)
(1) Richard Stivers, The Culture of Cynicism: American Morality in Decline (Blackwell, Cambridge, Mass., 1994), p. 132.
