In Sharon Zukin's essay “Attention shoppers...” she explains that Americans shop because their trying to chase their dreams; weather they be, higher social status, greater education, the ownership of a home,...etc... She also explains that in the last one hundred years or so Americans have been taught to shop from birth, and, that Americans no longer have the basic survival skills of making and growing things for themselves. She also explains that shopping habits change from child, to teenager, to adult. All of which are different aspects of consumerism; which, in and of itself the pursuit of more. Consumerism is a wheel of repetition; in which, Americans seek happiness,wealth, and stability.…
Dave Barry is a Pulitzer Prize-winning humorist whose syndicated column appears in more than 500 newspapers. Barry’s published works, totaling more than 25, include ‘Stay Fit and Healthy until You’re Dead’ (1985), ‘Dave Barry Hits Below the Beltway’ (2001), and ‘Dave Barry’s Complete Guide to Guys: A Fairly Short Book’ (1995). The preface to Barry’s book ‘Dave Barry’s Complete Guide to Guys: A Fairly Short Book’, ‘Guys vs. Men’, is his perspective on the difference between “Guys” and “Men.” While both words no doubt bring to mind an image of a human male, they are very different in there description of that male. First, guys like to buy “neat” things that they don’t really need. Also, guys like a really pointless challenge. Last, but not least, guys are not very good at communicating their intimate feelings.…
Men and women are different in their consumer behavior when shopping in a Best Buy store because men typically love technology and like to play with it while women are looking for people who can answer their questions in a simple manner.…
Anne Norton’s The Signs of Shopping starts her essay out with shopping at the mall. Shopping at the mall briefly describes what the mall is and who is there, for example, she explains that the mall is the only place where young and old of different cultures come together in one place. She goes on discussing how women use the mall to escape the household and for a sense of dependency. Thus more, surrounding themselves with women and simply enjoying their time with each other at the mall. However, she moves on to shopping at home, how people don’t need to go in the public place surrounded by the different cultures of individuals, it can be all done in solitude. The catalogs take up for all that a person misses from not going to the mall and tv…
Having a mom that constantly drags me to the grocery store with her at least four times a week for "bonding time" has allowed me to observe the different types of shoppers at my local grocery store. Usually, I end up buying Starbucks inside and sit observing the different ways people behave while shopping. It is quite interesting watching the way people walk down the isles and how they portray themselves. My observations have allowed me to distinguish three different types of shoppers that definitely caught my eye: the bargain shopper, impulse shopper, and the multitasker.…
Dave Barry (b. 1947) is a syndicated columnist for the Miami Herald, where he won a Pulitzer Prize for commentary in 1988. He is the author of twenty-three humor books, including Dave Barry's Complete Guide to Guys (1995), the introduction of which is included here. Despite its title, "Guys vs. Men" is not a comparative study of these two basic types of…
I felt that Dave Barry’s “Guys vs. Men” was a very humorous essay, but in some ways, it was also informative. Whether or not a person (especially a woman) wants to admit it, this essay’s content was pretty correct. Although I do not feel that guys are quite as simple as Barry tried to make them out to be (for instance, “And think how much happier women would be if, instead of endlessly fretting about what the males in their lives are thinking, they could relax, secure in the knowledge that the correct answer is: very little,” p. 381), I do feel that for the most part, guys are more relaxed and carefree than women, as this essay points out. Furthermore, I agree that there are two types of males: men and guys. However, I think that every male possesses about half and half. For instance, when a male sees another male hitting on his girlfriend, he might want to fight the offensive male. At this point, he would fall into the “man” category. However, only moments before the fight he might have been sitting at a bar with all of his friends seeing who could burp the most letters in the alphabet. Burping males certainly fall into the “guy” category. Even though I am a female, I do see myself possessing some of the “guy” characteristics, like wanting “neat stuff.” I am the type of person who will buy anything that looks impressive. My purchases range from a wireless cordless phone system that is far too sophisticated (and expensive) for my lifestyle to the perfect pancake maker (as seen on TV!). Yet I do not feel that I am a guy, so I guess there is a female counterpart to the guy. I suppose we could call it being a chick. However, I am not sure exactly what the characteristics and requirements for being a chick are. I do know, though, that if you ever witness a large group of females together, you can observe some of these less womanly characteristics. Dave Barry did an excellent job of making all people, male and female, question, observe, and understand both their serious…
Shopping is an activity most people have done at some point in their lives and enjoyed. It is something done at leisure and can be done positively or negatively. A person can walk out of a store satisfied and content with their purchase or dissatisfied and unsure of their purchase. This partly depends on how assertive the person is when shopping and what they are shopping for. For instance, in my latest shopping experience, where I went into the Apple store to glance at new products, and left the store with a very expensive, new iPhone 5s for three reasons: being attracted to the phones display, assertiveness of the staff, and popularity of the item in my society.…
According to Underhill, knowing and understanding the demographics of shoppers is very important. Women tend to move slower through stores and will be more likely to shop for fun, rather than make an actual purchase. Men typically prefer to move quickly through a store and are less price conscious than women. Therefore, it is easier to make a sale to men than women. However, men are less likely to ask for help or for the location of a product (Underhill 104). I noticed this while observing shoppers at J. Crew, none of the men stayed in the store for very long nor talked to the sales associates. I noted that unlike the men, a group of women stayed for at least thirty minutes and were not only consulting the sales assistants, but also discussing their purchases with their friends. Even after all of this, the women only ended up buying one or two of the items they tried on. To help get men to stay in the store longer and make more purchases, J. Crew could have other male assistants reach out and offer their…
The article titled "Girls Against Boys," published in the 30 January issue of The Nation magazine by author Katha Pollitt, brings to light pressing issues of gender discrimination and how this nation's education system has changed over the past forty years but still isn't up to par with where it needs to be with issues of gender equality. Pollitt exposes the views of conservatives toward feminism in the school systems of today. This article describes how changes in society are taking place, and what the future may hold for men and women in the world of employment and education.…
Social class is a set of people who are considered nearly equal in status or…
The majority of the individuals came into the store, browsed the racks of clothing, pulling out clothing, trying them on, and making purchases. I notice many of the women would look at the price tags of the garments before they made the purchase. I browsed some of the racks as well and noticed some of the items I would be able to afford as well. I also notice many of the women were using charge cards to pay for his or her purchases. Not many of the women used cash. Several of the women were socially conscious and were conscientious of other needs. They waited patiently until the sales representative finished with the customer ahead of him or her. I also encountered the arrogant, entitled, obnoxious, attention-seeking individual who is very impatient and wants she needs met immediately.…
Shopping also allows time for a woman to have a change of atmosphere and to have a moment to socialize with peers, which can alleviate stress. Many women call a girlfriend to go browsing the mall or window-shopping. This reinforces a woman’s sense of belonging to something other than the typical mother/wife role.…
The most important thing to me when shopping is not the things I buy, but what I get for my money. There are many things to keep in mind as I shop. I have to think of the things I need, if I’m shopping wisely and not get caught up in all of the TV ads and if I am within my budget. But with a little focus and discipline, I know I can do it. After all, I come from a long line of generations before me that have done just that.…
Shopping at a store can be convenient if you want your items fast. You won’t have to deal with shipping and handling charges. Plus you won’t have to worry about getting a defective item in the mail and then having to go through the hassle of shipping it back. When you shop at a store, you can try on clothes before you buy them so you know they fit you perfectly. Plus when you buy in store, you get your items right away instead of waiting for it to be delivered.…