American Consumerism And Blade Runner
Submitted by tj2384 on 06/30/2008 05:21 PM
- Category: History Other
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American Consumerism And Blade Runner
Madonna's famed song "Material Girl," best describes the mentality of the American citizen of the 1980's. Bigger and better was the attitude of the manufacturers as product after product hit the shelves. Technology appeared to be limitless, but no one was putting a boundary on how far advances would be allowed to persist. Ridley Scott's Blade Runner is a film that depicts the outlandishness of American consumerism.
From the Cabbage Patch Kids to the Rubik Cube, fads were going even faster than the time frame in which they came. It is during this period that Nintendo and Walkman name brands become colloquial terms. Individuals were beginning to own personal computers. Most importantly, computers began to acquire jobs that were once operated by human beings. Why was technology progressing at such a phenomenal rate?
"Reganomics" is the key to understanding the mindset of the firms and consumers. President Ronald Regan believed that the economy could be stimulated by giving a tax cut to those tax payers in the higher income brackets. While, this theory was not based on any economic principles, the idea was that by lowering taxes, citizens would be less likely to evade their taxes, and the money they were saving could be spent in the American market. This speculation proved incorrect. Yet, the concept of increased spending held up, and businesses found themselves constantly advertising new products to keep up with society's demands.
A new class emerged known as the yuppies. Standing for young urban professionals, these individuals were noted by their materialism. Every company's dream, the yuppie was the paradigm of a modern day Gatsby. Blade Runner illustrates the lack of substance in this attitude when Deckard visits the wealthy Taffy. The club where Taffy is amusing himself is full of beautiful people. In accordance with the American Dream, every nationality is present in the room to show that anyone can acquire prestige. Cigarette smoke...
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