How is the city written, by consumerism (focus on Shopping and Essay

How is the city written, by consumerism (focus on Shopping and fashion) - Essay Example Consumerism has created a mass market by bringing millions of products and changing the perspective of people in relation to how the city is written (Warde, 1996). This paper seeks to discuss how the city is written by consumerism. In addition, the paper will present argument on consumerism in fashion in industry in London. â€Å"If there is one agreement between theorists of modernity and those of post modernity, it is about the centrality of consumption to modern capitalism and contemporary culture. To thinkers as different as Werner Sombart, Emile Durkheim and Veblen Thorstein at the turn of the twentieth century, consumption was a decisive force behind modern capitalism, its dynamism and social structure† (Trentmann 2004, p.373) According to Richards (1990), consumerism has undoubtedly defined the existence and modernity of today’s metropolitan cities. London, being a focal point of Europe, has been a home to people from all around the globe. While commenting on con sumerism as a phenomenon, Stearns (2001) regards a consumerist society in which many people formulate their goals in life partly through acquiring goods that they clearly do not need for subsistence or for traditional display (Stearns 2001, p.9). According to Mullins, Natalier, Smith & Smeaton (1999), the theoretical propositions, of how a city is written by consumerism, in relation to the concept of consumerism are largely classified as pessimistic views and liberal views. The pessimist point of view considers consumerism as a byproduct of capitalism whereas the optimistic view states that consumerism allows people to improve their objective and subjective well being, with opportunities being available to enhance leisure freedom and to facilitate the pursuit of happiness in writing the city (Mullins, Natalier and Smith 1999, p.44). In its literal meanings, Warde (1996) implies that the diversity of patterns involved in consumerism is expressed more openly than before and relating t his open expression to London, one can say that the city has dwelled on this notion quite substantially. The ever increasing consumerism in London has come in many facets beginning from history to the current times, and the most prominent among them was the historical exhibition. The Great Exhibition in 1851, which expressed consumerism in every way possible through displaying the intent of consumerism, which was to promote the living standards of people in the city by increasing income through the buying and selling in the exhibition. As Peter Corrigan (1997) describes, the London’s culture on consumerism can be traced back historically during the period of Elizabeth I (Jayne 2006, Beer, 2007), however, consumerism has greatly changed from history and is particularly different in the way people consume products. The fact of the matter is that London’s metropolitan face was emphasized through the display of its potential and advancement (Auerbach and Hoffenberg 2008). However in the past, it has grown due to industrial revolution, and therefore resulted in the different practices such as impulse buying (Eade 2000). The aristocrats among the people living in the city of London updated their consumerism concerns through regulating their