Analysis Of Tony Hoaglands At The Galleria Shopping Mall

In the span of one visit to the mall you can witness a lifetime of loneliness developing. When contemplating the meaning behind Tony Hoaglands poem, At The Galleria Shopping Mall we are presented with a culture that exists to acquire material items. From the beginning to the end of our lives we are enveloped in a cultural machine that methodically raises us to spend our lives purchasing. From the perspective of the author we see someone that is witnessing events unfolding at a local mall. The speaker witnesses the progression of not only their niece Lucinda, but of all young Americans trying to find their cultural identity. Her baptism through materialism is chronicled in the poem and helps to explain the process that many Americans undergo