WEEK 2.2: REFLECTION ON ‘ANTI-CONSUMERISM AND ADBUSTERS MAGAZINE’

Anti-consumerism is a sociopolitical ideology that is opposed to consumerism, the continual buying and consuming of material possessions. It is concerned with the private actions of business corporations in pursuit of financial and economic goals at the expense of the public welfare, especially in matters of environmental protection, social stratification, and ethics in the governing of a society. Also, it arose in response to the problems caused by the long-term mistreatment of human consumers and of the animals consumed, and from the incorporation of consumer education.

One of the examples that we studied from Adbusters Magazines is psycho, The advertisement showed the difference between society (poverty and wealth). It‘s a sarcastic way that people nowadays become realistic, blindly pursue material life instead of helping the poor with their treasure.

Other than that, the fashion slashin is the poster what we interested in. Adbusters takes the ads produced by popular companies and then uses them against the company itself by drawing consumers’ attention to the problems with consumerism of being addicted to shopping. Everyday women don’t look like that and if they did, they would be extremely eager for a meal. This advertisement parody is attempting to draw consumers’ attention towards the way women are portrayed in the advertising world with the word ‘feed me’.