‘Black Friday’ may well suggest a
lot about our cultural ideals and how we prioritise things as a society, but it
confirms one thing; we are becoming more and more like our American
counterparts that we have previously berated and sneered at.
A few years ago a few
friends and I saw some viral videos posted to Facebook, showing camera phone
footage of a shopping mall in America. This was a one-day event, whereby
retailers would offer price reductions that are unheard of at any other point
in the year. We all laughed at the desperation of the American customers as
they shouted and squabbled, and fully-grown adults came to blows. Ignorant to
our own investment in consumerism, we labelled them crazy, perched atop our
moral high ground. Black Friday seemed an Americanised, trivial reality.
It is now 2016, and Black Friday has
become a more global phenomenon. The fact that people were physically harmed in
quests for TV’s 30% under the recommended retail price indicates that we now
see materialistic goods as more important than humanity. The very notion of
some discounted prices drew millions out of their homes and into packed
supermarkets, where consumer hungry customers were ravenous and ruthless in
their quests for cheap goods. Countless videos have been uploaded of people
fighting, mothers with their children being pushed out of the way to grab a
cheap Xbox one. Green eyes of envy turn to black eyes and bruising.
The Americanisation of Western Europe
has become, and will continue to be, a cultural aspect of life in a capitalist
society that operates on the premise of consumerism. For us to maintain a
healthy economy, we must spend money. This means that all the big business and
cooperation’s inevitably benefit off of our willingness to spend. The dominance
of these companies allows them to do as they wish in terms of advertisement and
marketing at Christmas time, with customers more willing to spend than ever.
Marketing strategies from the big players in the festive season regularly
eclipse the million pound mark, demonstrated by the John Lewis advertising
campaign this Christmas costing a nifty 7 million pounds.
Whilst Black Friday is a great way for everyone to
save a bit of cash, it seems that all of the hysteria and childish behaviour
that it causes completely contradicts the common themes of Christmas -
kindness, giving and best wishes. Festive music is drowned out by arguments;
the season to be jolly subsides, whilst hostility and violence prevail - even
if only for a day. I think that if people took a minute and watched their
behaviour on camera, some would be ashamed of their actions. Consumerism will
always thrive at Christmas, but a plan to at least restrict black Friday to an
online fiasco would probably be in the best interests of everyone.
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