1. Name___MinaYamanaka___Date__March, 9_ Period_8_
The Culture of Commercialism: A Critique
A. Directions:Read the introduction to commercialism “Are We Immune to
Commercialism?” on p. 54 of your Media and Culture booklet, highlighting important
statements. In complete sentences, answer the following questions below that are related
to the article:
1. Do advertisements influence us? Explain.
- It is proven by a lot of evidences that the advertisements do influence us. The
clothes we wear, the food we eat, the recognition of brand names…our lives
reflect the advertisements around us.
2. What are the positive aspects of advertisements?
- Advertisements play a vital role for the business community. They provide
information that can be helpful to consumers. They increase our understanding of
the product choices available to us. Thus they also encourage the economic
growth.
3. What are the negative aspects of advertisements?
- Some people feel that the constant message to buy influences us in ways that are
not to our benefit, such as helping each other, caring for our environment, and
contributing to community.
4. Is this article biased? Explain.
- This article is pretty much fairly written, not biasing neither the side that assume
we are immune to ads, nor the side that claims that ads influence us. The article
both admits and talks about the facts that the advertisements do influence us in a
way, and we are savvy enough that we are not to influenced by them too much.
(Turn page over.)
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2. Name___MinaYamanaka___Date__March, 9_ Period_8_
B. Directions:Read the thirty statementsunder “What are the Effects of Advertising and
Commercialism?” on pp. 54-57 of your Media and Culture booklet, highlightingthe most
important statement/phrases in each. Choose 5 of the statement/assertions that you agree
with. Number and write out each of the chosen statements below.
2. Advertising projects false images. For example, some ads imply that you’re not coll
unless you drive an expensive car, that smoking means you’re an independent spirit, or
that to be mature means drinking alcohol.
3. Commercialism contributes to environmental problems by encouraging wasteful use of
natural resources. Over-packaging, disposable goods, and buying things we don’t really
need all contribute to unnecessary se of limited resources. The manufacture and disposal
of the things we buy cause other environmental problems, including habitat loss and
increased air and water pollution. Billboards cause visual pollution.
9. Advertising costs us money. Business pass many of their advertising costs on to us,
also, the price of a product increases when ads successfully cultivate the idea that a
certain product can give us status or a cool image.
11. Ads can be misleading. They emphasize the benefits of products and services and
ignore the drawbacks.
27. Our commercialized culture encourages people to spend money that they don’t really
have. The number of Americans with financial problems has increased steadily in recent
years.
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