The Commodification of People

Lost Art

Individuality is tough to come by these days.  I mean true individuality.  I actually wonder if that's even possible goal since we are surrounded by so many influences.  But, the main point is living within one's self (being true to one's essence) seems to be a lost art. Why? The commodification of people: turning people, once entities of essence, into items that are bought and sold.  Instead of presenting one's self as is, with the purest intention of living out one's life or going about one's business, we as a society have forced ourselves to sell ourselves to the world.  It has become increasingly difficult to simply be the person one innately is.  Instead, you have to be acceptable; people have to buy you (or into you).  We have to dress a certain way, talk a certain way, think a certain way, all in hopes of finding acceptance from our peers--from our society.  Obviously, not everyone falls into this style, but it is almost a necessity for the survival of prosperity in one's life.  For instance, often the only difference between a designer item and a regular item is the name and the price.  The functionality most often remains the same, and the quality does not vary too much.  However, people still purchase these high end items because it shows their value to others; it allows people to see them as worthy makes.  This instance of using items to portray our worthiness works on multiple levels.  For instance, how you look--whether it be for a job interview or a first date--draws instant criticism from others.  It is the gateway to success or failure, regardless of your deep down qualities.

Not Just with Items...

Interestingly, we don't just sell ourselves through materialistic items, but how we act as well.  While it is certainly possibly, and likely, that people act true to their essence, many people act differently depending on the situation for acceptance.  They have to sell who they are to ensure others will buy them.  Someone may really like a song, but to fit in with a group of people who don't believe in singing or in fear of being judged on vocal talents that individual may pretend to not know the lyrics.  This example may be weak but it gets the point across.  Similarly, one might have a different persona for each scenario.  While I understand different situations call for different behaviors, certain behaviors seem fake.  I ask, why can't we be who we are? Why must we strive for acceptance of others? Wouldn't we want to be accepted by others for who we really are?

Society or Us?

To me, the most interesting part of this commodification is a lot of it starts, or has started, from within.  We have to find ways to accept ourselves.  People always talk about the pressures of society, which are present, but what we fail to recognize is that we make up society.  We hate the things society does, but it is a self-inflicting pain the stems from within.  We look at the mirror and believe we are not attractive enough, smart enough, decent enough, etc. Since we cannot accept ourselves we project this lack of acceptance onto others. Suddenly, a domino effect has taken place, which caused us to sell our images.  Now,  companies have taken these insecurities and used them to make profit while simultaneously growing our deprecation.  They feast on weakness; they feast on created flaws.  These companies afford us solutions to problems that we never knew existed.  They want us to believe we should strive for a perfection.  The irony is that seeking perfection quixotically makes us climb a never ending ladder.  Furthermore, the selling never stops--each day the process begins over again.  At the end of the day, those imperfections are still existent, they've just temporarily been covered.  Why are we hiding from these innately human qualities?  While we all have differences, this imperfection really seems to be the one commonality.  If we were perfect, we wouldn't need companionship.  That's we have others in our lives--to fill the voids.  Selling ourselves superficially does nothing to our character.  Looking the part or acting the part foretells nothing about your true essence.  While someone may buy the product you have become, you will eventually reveal your true self.

So?

This commodification is a tough predicament because we are seemingly stuck in a rut.  The only way to change society is to change yourself.  Hopefully, be becoming a model for individuality you can enlighten and affect those around you.  We are society; we can change.  It takes guts and mettle. Recently, Dove came out with a video that exemplifies this constant feeling of ineptitude, but shows maybe we don't need to sell ourselves.  Importantly, the self images are much uglier than the perception of strangers.  Maybe we can discover we don't need to buy ourselves, and can thus accept others too.  People are eventually going to reveal who they are.  Makeup washes off.  Beauty fades.  Acts end.  We don't need to be commodities.  It stems from within.  Confidence is sexy--people are attracted to it.  Own yourself. Be you.