I believe that the media has displayed life in such a way that the only thing that matters anymore is how successful we are. Supposedly, if we have a high-paying job or if we are worth a lot of money, it means that we have succeeded in life. If we succeed in life, then that therefore means that we will be happy with our lives. Materialism is the theory or attitude that physical well-being and worldly possessions constitute the greatest good and highest value in life or also a great or excessive regard for worldly concerns. This is not the case, as I believe that money leads to bitterness. Such a true reality this is that we see how far people will go to reach the cultural norms set before us.
The love of money will cause people to do many different extreme things. An example is the show Survivor; the contestants in that television show live through extreme heat and lack of food and water while competing against each other for many weeks, draining their bodies physically and mentally. All this for money. Had they known that the payoff they will receive is very short term, they may not have participated in it in the first place. Now that they know what it is like to have a large sum of money at once, they will futilely want more. This is like giving a shark a taste of blood and then starving it. Interestingly, the show's appeal to North American's comes from how it provides a fake sense of a relationship to each of the characters. A one way, no effort, fake relationship is created between the viewers and the cast members which is entertaining for its relationship value.
Possessing wealth leads to the need for more and more money, until life for that person has become a struggle for gaining wealth while missing out on the joys of live. That person will never be truly happy; he or she will just want more and more and will never be satisfied, missing out on such joys as finding a spouse or even making good friends. When your goal in life is to become rich and own a large business, who will you turn to when you have family troubles? If you have neglected to make friends, then you are on your own, and that's a horrible feeling. Along the road to attempting to achieve true happiness through money and success is stress. Stress also comes from a materialistic point of view. If you are trying your hardest to make a few extra bucks, stress will set in and makes you feel worse than you had when you set off on this journey towards happiness. In contrast to this, there is the option of relaxing and accepting your current employment and spending your time with those whose company you enjoy. Instead of staying up late at nights working on something to impress your boss, get to bed and feel better about yourself. Make sure you spend some free time with friends and family for a more balanced life.
The key to happiness lies in our relationships with others. It is a reflection of your daily life. If the relationship with your parents is filled with hatred or violence, that will show in your everyday life. If you are dating the partner of your dreams, you will be much happier than otherwise. For the religious, a healthy relationship with God is very pleasing and encouraging. The media wants you to believe that wealth is the way to success and happiness so that they will end up with making the money that you have spent on them after making your bundles of cash. A materialistic view implies that possessions will bring happiness, which is far from the case. Possessions bring the need for more and more possessions which ends in bitter envy. Rather they bring temporary happiness but will not fulfill what you are looking for. However, a middle ground is very important. Whereas all of your attention focused on making money will leave you bitter, you have to be satisfied with your job and show it attention also. It is crossing the line when all you think about is your job leading you to more money leading you to what you have been told is happiness, but in reality is bitterness.
The media wants us to believe that possessions bring us happiness so we will go out and buy more and more stuff so that they can make more and more money. Recent events, such as the stock market recession, are caused by the materialistic views of wealthy men and women. Our greedy society is making one or two people very rich while hundreds of others lose their jobs. If it were not for the view given to us by our precious media, these few individuals would not be compelled to force many people to be laid off for their own temporary pleasure. At best, wealth provides you with instant but short-term gratification. In the end, it leaves you feeling empty.
Materialism is therefore a belief pushed upon us by the media with the motive to make more money. When you get caught up in earthly things, then you miss out on the more important aspects of life, such as family and friends. You will soon find out that the higher priority that you give your family and friends and the less priority that you give your job and money will leave you happier and more easy going. When the focus is changed from possessions to relationships you will notice that your stress decreases and you will be happier.
Joel Anderson, an English paper, Spring 2002, Posted July 8, 2004