I found an interesting BBC documentary on how the modern day consumerist culture has developed, called The Century of Self. I think it’s really fascinating. If anyone is interested in western culture, or just in this sort of thing, then I’d highly recommend watching this. I think it’s a real eye opener. It details how using Sigmund Freud’s techniques of psychoanalysis, and inspiration from First World War propaganda, Edward Bernays revolutionised the idea of associating products with how people ‘irrationally’ felt rather than what they rationally knew they needed.
That’s just the beginning however, there’s a whole lot more to it, and it goes from the twenties all the way to the modern day. I personally think it’s very insightful.
It’s in four episodes: ‘Happiness machines’, ‘The Engineering of Consent’, ‘There is policeman inside all our heads, he must be destroyed’, and ‘Eight People Sipping Wine in Kettering’
Ah, very interesting. I love documentaries like this that highlight how people are controlled. I don’t necessarily always agree with the theories behind them (I prefer sociology to psychology), but still worth watching for anyone likes things like this.
I’m surprised there aren’t more replies to this. Or maybe people have more interesting things to do on their summer holiday
Yeah, I can see what you mean, it’s hard to take psychology as solid knowledge as the human mind/brain is so complex, but in this case it’s kind of a mix of psychology and sociology as it’s about how Freud’s theories has affected society, and the fact that his ideas being used in marketing has been so highly successful, it could be argued as clear evidence of their success.
Though I haven’t really read his theories, as far as I know from the documentary, he believed that beneath ‘rational’ logical thought, there are dangerous ‘irrational’ desires within everyone. These ‘irrational’ desires are a pretty accepted existence nowadays of course.
