The Commodity Self, Culture Jamming and Marketing Coolness

1. What is the commodity self and commodity culture? Find an example of the commodity self or commodity culture used in a movie, a television ad or an internet ad. Explain the commodity culture that the ad/movie targets.

The commodity self is the part of our identity in which we express ourselves through commercial products and aim to associate the things we own or use with the type of person we want to be. The stronger our commodity self is, the more we tend to lose our real self because we become buried in tangible items.

A commodity culture is one that chooses to represent its values through products and tangible items. The more the people of a culture identify with consumer items, the more the culture is represented by consumer items.

The example we found of commodity culture was the product placement scene in "Wayne's World". The purpose of this clip is to portray cultural satire in the way that our culture uses product placement. It seems that almost all forms of media are using products to portray a specific image. In this scene the two main characters are verbally expressing the importance of not "selling out" while using a variety of name brand products crammed in a minute long scene.

2. Marketing Coolness? Find an example of an ad that uses a counterculture or anti-consumerism to sell it's product. Explain the approach of the example.

The ads that we are choosing to represent anti-consumerism are the PETA anti-fur ads. Many of the ads feature celebrities posing almost nude with the statement, " I'd rather go naked" than to wear fur. They are using the theme of "sex sells" to encourage people to support PETA. By using popular celebrities that people look up to, PETA is giving consumers an image to follow.

3. What is an Anti-Ad? What is Culture Jamming? Find an example and explain the strategy of the ad.

Anti-ads and culture jamming take place when people use a pre-existing ad or concept and change it so that it contradicts the original. The example that we chose are the "Truth" ads that are anti-smoking campaigns. These ads offer a glimpse into what it would really be like if tobacco companies told the truth about their products. This ad shows the "cool" cowboys talking about the real consequences of smoking. The strategy is to take an ad that people are already familiar with and alter it to portray the "scary" truth of the product.