Applicability of Baudrillard’s views on Consumer Society to the Contemporary Sri Lankan Society
Most of the time, postmodernism is defined in terms of culture and consumer society. Although there are other philosophers who have already discussed about postmodernism and culture along with the consumer society, in this study the priority has given to discuss the impact of the ideas of Jean Baudrillard. According to him, postmodern society is a consumer society which governs through consumerism. The life is defined as a means of consumer goods and services. Relations of human beings have been limited to consumable requirements. For Baudrillard, what has happened in postmodern society is that it has governed through consumerism. In other words, it has taken the dominance in the postmodern society. Demands are created by the mass media and it is obviously a seduction of objects/products. However, it has created a prevailing consumer society. Baudrillard has used a functional analysis of objects, a Freudian analysis of the lives of the objects and a Marxist analysis of the consumer society. The objective of this study is to analyze Sri Lankan consumer society through Baudrillard’s Consumer Society.
Today, reality has been replaced by sign systems. Media is giving a particular way of reality. It has already shaken the postmodern society with its dominance. For instance, some furniture reflects a sexual meaning whereas food and drink reflects far beyond meaning form their actual use value. In addition, today reality has been mediated by the models and simulacra. They are the most fundamental concepts of hyper reality. In other words simulacra and simulation are separate entities that are connected to the hyper reality. A simulacrum is an image without resemblance. The false icon for God can be considered as a classical example of this whereas Disneyland is considered as a modern example. The imaginary Disneyland is neither true nor false. In other words, Disneyland is a place where nothing exists except fantasy.
Mass media use signs or symbols as the agent of representations. Baudrillard starts his The System of Objects by discussing about artificial objects. By the term ‘signs’ he says that what we are buying is not just a product, but it is a product of language that communicates the individual status of a person. The choices that we make when purchasing a product would reflect our internal desires. In postmodernism, products are used as signs of happiness. That happiness cannot be fulfilled. If there are unhappy consumers, the unsatisfied consumers, then what they have to do is to consume more products with the desire to find the fulfilment.
Moreover, in the postmodern societies, the consumer exhibits their consuming goods in order to show their social differentiation. A kind of a social conflict occurs to buy objects which are supposed to make a social differentiation. In the present society, there cannot be identify classes as bourgeois class and proletarians. The class system of the postmodern society is also hierarchically formed by the consumer goods. The social recognition of an individual depends on the objects that they buy. However, according to Baudrillard, the individuals have been alienated because of consumer goods. The consumer does not buy an object, but he buys the sign that is displayed by the object. The market is therefore, not a place where objects are sold, but a place where the sign is dominated rather than the object.
The postmodern changes that happen in Sri Lankan consumer society are discussed with special reference to the changes that was taken place in the contexts of media, advertisements and fashion.
Electronic media has taken its dominance in Sri Lankan consumer society. Basically, those media’s target group is the youth of the country. Actors and actresses (Nowadays there is a trend to use cricketers for such cases) are used in such cases to get the spectator’s attention. For instance, when promoting food and beverages, popular young people are used to get the attention of the youth (Coca Cola, Cream Soda, Dew, EGB, etc). This urges people to buy these products.
Furthermore, the role of the woman has been objectified. When it is discussed with Baudrillard’s perspective, the role of the woman is used as a sign/ symbol. That is the reason why a pretty woman is used even to sell carwash, tire, vehicles, etc. The purpose of using such women is to increase the number of consumers. It is an obvious fact that women are using to promote men’s items (perfumes, shavers, shirts, etc). There are programs which are telecasted to control the life of the house-wives. Such programs show the ideal ways to cook, sew, arrange the house perfect, etc. As such, media creates an unreal, vaguely resemble and fantastical existence of such things. The brands that the chefs use in the cookery programs are encouraged to buy as the media display an unreal importance of such products. This shows how the consumers are being controlled by the media.
Cosmetics are another highly demanded product. There are programs that have been created with the purpose of selling cosmetics. The beautiful girls who appear in such programs reveals us that they have been used the particular product that they are promoting for a long time and that product was the secret behind their beauty. A particular girl is used as the ‘model. But that ‘model’ does not have a prior reality. But it creates a new reality; ‘a hyper reality’. The Health is another prominent theme in the context of media. Such programs are conducted with the purpose of selling exercise machines, medicines (tablets that are believed to improve beauty of people, shape-up tea, etc). The people who look good are invited as ‘models’. They encourage people to buy whatever the product that they promote.
In the postmodern period consuming is given the prominent place rather than manufacturing. If we observe the advertisements, we may able to find out that we are covered from a wide range of consuming goods and consuming system. The media and the advertisements are two sides of a coin because the advertisements bring the sponsors to the programs. Advertisements are created according to the Sri Lankan culture because in order to popularize a product, it should be able to get in touch with everyone in the country. That would be much easier if the cultural values are used when creating the advertisement. When popularizing milk powder, the role of an ideal mother is being used. Advertisements say that if the mother loves her children, then she must give this particular milk powder to her children. They carries attractive slogans that can be influence the consumers. The traditional belief of the conflict between the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law is used to promote milk powder. The advertisement says that the conflict between them would be solved by this particular milk powder.
Not only in the media and advertisements, but also in the fashion industry these sign-values and hyper reality have been used. Moreover, the slogans like ‘on your way home’ which is displayed in advertisements, have made an ideological change in the minds of people. Therefore, people go to such shops even to buy a small thing because it gives us the belief that we are in a socially differentiated upper class. The images of healthy, good-looking happy children are showed when promoting food and beverages in order to encourage parents to buy them for their children. The short eats which do not contain nutrition, pretends that they contain much nutrition in the advertisement (Noodles). The advertisements that are based on soap, makes a fantasy world. Mainly, Indian actresses are used to emphasize the effectiveness of the soap. The advertisement says that even Indian actresses use this particular soap to be beautiful.
It has proved from Baudrillard’s views on consumer society that consumers are under the control of consuming goods. Therefore, people are trained to buy everything that the media and advertisements suggest without buying selected items that are capable of covering our needs as consuming gives us a social differentiation. It is a part of capitalism. But we are not aware that we have been mislead by the capitalism. Baudrillard’s perspective reveals that sign, communication, media, simulacra and simulation have made man an escapist. The consuming products symbolize more than we think.
The perspective of Baudrillard has taken the reader towards a sense of a loss because in the consumer society there is no way that we are able to fulfil our consuming desires. However, the consumer society has given freedom to choose whatever social classes they are belong to. That means we are responsible for our choices and those choices make our image to the world. In conclusion, it can be stated that Baudrillard’s views on signs, simulacra, simulation and hyper reality have been discussed with related to the consumer society and defining postmodern consumer society should be considered as one of his great contributions towards postmodernism and Sri Lanka has also influenced by postmodern consumerism.
Baudrillard, J. (2017). The Consumer Society. SAGE Publications Ltd.
Baudrillard, J. (2006). The System of Objects (9 ed.). (J. Benedict, Trans.) Verso.
Clarke, D. B. (2003). Consumer Society and the Post-modern City (1 ed.). Routledge.
Sarup, M. (1988). An Introductory Guide to Pst-Structuralism and Postmodernism. New York: Harvester Wheatsheaf .
.
Today, reality has been replaced by sign systems. Media is giving a particular way of reality. It has already shaken the postmodern society with its dominance. For instance, some furniture reflects a sexual meaning whereas food and drink reflects far beyond meaning form their actual use value. In addition, today reality has been mediated by the models and simulacra. They are the most fundamental concepts of hyper reality. In other words simulacra and simulation are separate entities that are connected to the hyper reality. A simulacrum is an image without resemblance. The false icon for God can be considered as a classical example of this whereas Disneyland is considered as a modern example. The imaginary Disneyland is neither true nor false. In other words, Disneyland is a place where nothing exists except fantasy.
Mass media use signs or symbols as the agent of representations. Baudrillard starts his The System of Objects by discussing about artificial objects. By the term ‘signs’ he says that what we are buying is not just a product, but it is a product of language that communicates the individual status of a person. The choices that we make when purchasing a product would reflect our internal desires. In postmodernism, products are used as signs of happiness. That happiness cannot be fulfilled. If there are unhappy consumers, the unsatisfied consumers, then what they have to do is to consume more products with the desire to find the fulfilment.
Moreover, in the postmodern societies, the consumer exhibits their consuming goods in order to show their social differentiation. A kind of a social conflict occurs to buy objects which are supposed to make a social differentiation. In the present society, there cannot be identify classes as bourgeois class and proletarians. The class system of the postmodern society is also hierarchically formed by the consumer goods. The social recognition of an individual depends on the objects that they buy. However, according to Baudrillard, the individuals have been alienated because of consumer goods. The consumer does not buy an object, but he buys the sign that is displayed by the object. The market is therefore, not a place where objects are sold, but a place where the sign is dominated rather than the object.
The postmodern changes that happen in Sri Lankan consumer society are discussed with special reference to the changes that was taken place in the contexts of media, advertisements and fashion.
Electronic media has taken its dominance in Sri Lankan consumer society. Basically, those media’s target group is the youth of the country. Actors and actresses (Nowadays there is a trend to use cricketers for such cases) are used in such cases to get the spectator’s attention. For instance, when promoting food and beverages, popular young people are used to get the attention of the youth (Coca Cola, Cream Soda, Dew, EGB, etc). This urges people to buy these products.
Furthermore, the role of the woman has been objectified. When it is discussed with Baudrillard’s perspective, the role of the woman is used as a sign/ symbol. That is the reason why a pretty woman is used even to sell carwash, tire, vehicles, etc. The purpose of using such women is to increase the number of consumers. It is an obvious fact that women are using to promote men’s items (perfumes, shavers, shirts, etc). There are programs which are telecasted to control the life of the house-wives. Such programs show the ideal ways to cook, sew, arrange the house perfect, etc. As such, media creates an unreal, vaguely resemble and fantastical existence of such things. The brands that the chefs use in the cookery programs are encouraged to buy as the media display an unreal importance of such products. This shows how the consumers are being controlled by the media.
Cosmetics are another highly demanded product. There are programs that have been created with the purpose of selling cosmetics. The beautiful girls who appear in such programs reveals us that they have been used the particular product that they are promoting for a long time and that product was the secret behind their beauty. A particular girl is used as the ‘model. But that ‘model’ does not have a prior reality. But it creates a new reality; ‘a hyper reality’. The Health is another prominent theme in the context of media. Such programs are conducted with the purpose of selling exercise machines, medicines (tablets that are believed to improve beauty of people, shape-up tea, etc). The people who look good are invited as ‘models’. They encourage people to buy whatever the product that they promote.
In the postmodern period consuming is given the prominent place rather than manufacturing. If we observe the advertisements, we may able to find out that we are covered from a wide range of consuming goods and consuming system. The media and the advertisements are two sides of a coin because the advertisements bring the sponsors to the programs. Advertisements are created according to the Sri Lankan culture because in order to popularize a product, it should be able to get in touch with everyone in the country. That would be much easier if the cultural values are used when creating the advertisement. When popularizing milk powder, the role of an ideal mother is being used. Advertisements say that if the mother loves her children, then she must give this particular milk powder to her children. They carries attractive slogans that can be influence the consumers. The traditional belief of the conflict between the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law is used to promote milk powder. The advertisement says that the conflict between them would be solved by this particular milk powder.
Not only in the media and advertisements, but also in the fashion industry these sign-values and hyper reality have been used. Moreover, the slogans like ‘on your way home’ which is displayed in advertisements, have made an ideological change in the minds of people. Therefore, people go to such shops even to buy a small thing because it gives us the belief that we are in a socially differentiated upper class. The images of healthy, good-looking happy children are showed when promoting food and beverages in order to encourage parents to buy them for their children. The short eats which do not contain nutrition, pretends that they contain much nutrition in the advertisement (Noodles). The advertisements that are based on soap, makes a fantasy world. Mainly, Indian actresses are used to emphasize the effectiveness of the soap. The advertisement says that even Indian actresses use this particular soap to be beautiful.
It has proved from Baudrillard’s views on consumer society that consumers are under the control of consuming goods. Therefore, people are trained to buy everything that the media and advertisements suggest without buying selected items that are capable of covering our needs as consuming gives us a social differentiation. It is a part of capitalism. But we are not aware that we have been mislead by the capitalism. Baudrillard’s perspective reveals that sign, communication, media, simulacra and simulation have made man an escapist. The consuming products symbolize more than we think.
The perspective of Baudrillard has taken the reader towards a sense of a loss because in the consumer society there is no way that we are able to fulfil our consuming desires. However, the consumer society has given freedom to choose whatever social classes they are belong to. That means we are responsible for our choices and those choices make our image to the world. In conclusion, it can be stated that Baudrillard’s views on signs, simulacra, simulation and hyper reality have been discussed with related to the consumer society and defining postmodern consumer society should be considered as one of his great contributions towards postmodernism and Sri Lanka has also influenced by postmodern consumerism.
References
Baudrillard, J. (1994). Simulacra and Simulation (The Body, In Theory: Histories of Cultural Materialism) (14 ed.). (S. F. Glaser, Trans.) University of Michigan Press.Baudrillard, J. (2017). The Consumer Society. SAGE Publications Ltd.
Baudrillard, J. (2006). The System of Objects (9 ed.). (J. Benedict, Trans.) Verso.
Clarke, D. B. (2003). Consumer Society and the Post-modern City (1 ed.). Routledge.
Sarup, M. (1988). An Introductory Guide to Pst-Structuralism and Postmodernism. New York: Harvester Wheatsheaf .
.
Comments
Post a Comment