Summary:
In Jack Solomon's Master of Desire, he talks about how the American dream has two sides: the one where of equal opportunities for everyone and of the desire to still be superior. Solomon's example of this is if our society was a high school football game and while most of students are in the stands cheering, deep down they want to be on the field as the head quarterback or cheerleader. Solomon says that advertisers use this idea to appeal to the subconscious emotions of consumers. By looking for signs in advertisements, you can determine the target audience that advertisers are referring to. However, if advertisers are trying to appeal to a broader audience, they play onto the desire to "fit in" or "belong". They do this by using signs such as family picnics, farmyards and small-town life.
Response:
As I read this I realized how accurate Solomon's point still is today. The place where I think of this happening most is with money. As American's we have the opportunity to prosper and succeed, however, we still want to be the richest. We don't just want to make ENOUGH money to live securely, but we want to have more than enough money to buy things we don't even need. Even when it's not about money, this idea applies to life in America. Especially as a girl, growing up in an American society is a steady balance between fitting in and standing out. You want to fit in just enough to not be an outcast or be labeled as the different one. However you want to stand out just enough to be unique and be yourself.
I agree with you Kelsey that a vast majority of people aren't satisfied with making "enough" money. Along with that idea, I believe media plays an important role in why we beleive we need to make loads of money in order to be happy. As you pointed out about girls wanting to fit in yet stand out at the same time, I beleive it is through these flashy ads of women in the latest trends that make us blind. We don't need to spend a ton of money to make our apperence unique. We don't always need the name brand things, because half of the time you can't even tell what the brand is just by looking at it.
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