The Truth The Mall Sells

Growing up in the Philippines, a country where there are malls beside malls, I’ve come to the conclusion that the most popular reason people go to the mall is to cool off and to hang out with friends. Going to the woodland mall and observing, I realized a few things that apply everywhere.

Upon reaching the middle of the mall I recognized what Pahl wrote about the lighting of the mall. There is adequate lighting but there are no windows, making it seem like they want to keep you in, not knowing what time of the day it is. Also it is only in the middle of the mall that there is a large glass roof letting natural light in. The mall also has plants making it inviting and a bit more pleasing to the eye.

I saw the many advertisements that filled the mall, from store windows to the signs they put near the rest areas and even banners. They all point to the main “truth” the mall is preaching: “You don’t have enough things, buy more.” or “even if you already have something like this, you know it’ll look good on you.” And I guess it applies more to women than it does to men, but there are also stores that cater to men like video game stores which always entice gamers. One thing I observed is that the mall is sometimes too enticing that it somehow changes the character of a person, more likely to happen to a child. I remember how Pahl’s children were nagging and on the verge of crying halfway through their trip to the Mall of America in want of a toy or something of the sort. And I know that this happened to me before as well. The mall gives the truth in different manners to all types of people so that they can accept it. This “church” of the market gives the people the “truth” of consumerism in a manner that disguises it altogether.