the addictive virus
The term “addiction” is often times associated with the use of tobacco, drugs or alcohol, however, many normal everyday people are addicted to the one thing everyone partakes in everyday, shopping. Whether it is buying lunch, a new outfit for a night out on the town with the girls, or even a cup of coffee, shopping has become American’s way of self fulfillment. In a piece titled The Addictive Virus, John Da Graff, David Wann, and Thomas H. Naylor examine how in today’s society happiness is often times measured on materialistic ideals or more simply put, how much “stuff” a person accumulates. They examine the reasoning behind why people shop and what impact it has on the individual person by using logos, ethos, and pathos throughout their writing. The thrill of shopping for many Americans has been compared to that of heightened sensations or even an orgasm. Psychotherapist Oliva Mellan states at the opening of the piece, when people shop “the urge sweeps over them like a tidal wave. They go into a kind of trance, an addictive high, where what they buy almost doesn’t matter.” Graff, Wann, and Naylor compare this idea of addiction to stuff to the addiction to things such as caffeine, drugs, and tobacco.