The Woodland Mall Escapade

              On Saturday, my friend and I went to Woodland Mall.  Both of us were feeling rather lazy, and neither of us had anything in particular that we needed to buy.  However, we both ended up buying something.  Why?  Was it the pressure to look fashionable like the models in the many advertisements we came across?  Was it the huge “SALE” and “CLEARANCE” signs visible to us wherever we looked?  Was it just out of habit—going to the mall and buying something for the mere fun of it?  Perhaps it was a mixture of all three. 

            In addition to giving in to the vices of consumerism, I did notice several things that we had discussed in class concerning The Persuaders and the Jon Pahl reading.  Before even entering the mall, I realized how many entrances there are to the mall.  Just like some religions, malls “accept everyone” and cater to the desires of many different clientele.  While in the mall, I became aware of signs promoting loyalty or membership cards to particular stores—especially the larger stores like JC Penney, Sears, and Macys.  When it was time to leave the mall, I could not remember exactly where I had parked my car.  My friend and I then began to discuss how disorienting malls can be—a concept we had mentioned in class.

            Before this class, I had never before thought of malls as competing for my allegiance.  I never paid much attention to the various ads, oblivious to how much they actually did influence me by promoting the message that owning this or wearing that would make me happy, pretty, or cool.  Now that I am aware of this, I feel like I will be able to (possibly and hopefully) make wiser decisions concerning future purchases.