Essay --

Consumerism, the key tool of social manipulation is considered a child of globalization and represents a set of beliefs, and values that owning material goods is placed very high on the list of priorities. Earlier value system through which we concluded what people really need in life is slowly replaced by the advertisements that people dictate what is fashionable . We no longer know who lives the way he wants to live , and who lives according to " rules " and norms of what is proclaimed in the media . Without adequate personal value system , the question is how our needs may indeed be real and not subject to consumerism . Simply put , today's society has become a consumer society in which no one is happy and by spending money people are trying to fill their lives with joy , a feeling that they are strong , powerful and lead their life the way they want . Is it really so , or is it all a well organised illusion in the minds of marketing professionals ? Consumerism became a force in only a few decades. It started to move the social and economic development of the world , and the only question is in which direction . When talking about this concept , it is certainly not new , but dates back to ancient Mesopotamia , and the first hint of today's practices come in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries in Britain, where the middle class wants to copy their idols at royal functions. Buying only out of necessity becames not important. More important is to have the things that the rich one has. Consumerism has its roots also in the British society of the time after war. Shopping and enjoying financial freedom was at that time in Britain a relaxation for men who returned from the battlefield . The thought they deserve to make up for los... ...British people. Routine that teaches that it is not important to know , but it's important to spend. People spend seeking acceptance in the community, knowing that society rejects those who do not want or do not have nothing to spend. Thus , it appears that the thesis " money can buy happiness " is slowly becoming a reality . This is supported by the fact that all the greater importance is placed on material goods and the value system of the people changed . It is interesting , however, that although obsessed with consumerism and supplied with money , the British are not the happiest people in the world . Statistics show that the happiest people are in Pakistan , Bangladesh , Vietanam and even Kosovo, where everyone has the time for their families and themselves. However, the modern man is not worth as much as his knowledge, but as much as he has and he can spend.