stion! Lesson 2: To Buy or Not to Buy? That Is the Que: Lesson Objectives At the end of this lesson, you should be able to: 1. explain the association of self and possessions; 2. identify the role of consumer culture to self and identity; and 3. appraise one’s self based on the description of material self. INTRODUCTION We are living in a world of sale and shopping spree. We are given a wide array of products to purchase from a simple set of spoon and fork to owning a restaurant. Almost everywhere, including the digital space, we can find Promotions of product purchase. Product advertisements are Suggestive of making us fee! better or look good. Part of us wants to have that product. What makes us want to have those products are connected with who we are. What we want to have and already possess is related to our Self. Belk (1988) stated that “we regard our Possessions as parts of our selves. We are what we have and what we possess,” There is a direct link between self- identity with what we have and possess, Our wanting to have and possess has a connection with another aspect of the Self, the material self. Let us try to examine ourselves further in the lens of material self.ABSTRACTION Material Self AHarvard psychologist in the late nineteenth century, William James, wrote in his book, The Principles of Psychology in 1890 that understanding the self can be examined through its different components. He described these components as: (1) its constituents; (2) the feelings and emotions they arouse—self-feelings; (3) the actions to which they prompt—self-seeking and self-preservation. The constituents of self are composed of the material self, the social self, the spiritual self and the pure ego. (Trentmann 201 6; Green 1997)The material self, according to James primarily is about our bodies, clothes, immediate family, and home. We are deeply affected by these things because we have put much investment of our self to them. Self ~ Body Clothes Immediate tary Home Material Self Investment Diagram The innermost part of our material self is our body. Intentionally, we are investing in our body. We are directly attached to this commodity that we cannot live without. We strive hard to make sure that this body functions well and good. Any ailment or disorder directly affects us. We do have certain preferential attachment or intimate closeness to certain body parts because of its value to us. There were people who get their certain body parts insured. Celebrities, like Mariah Carey who was reported to have placed a huge amount for the insurance of her vocal cords and legs (Sukman 2016). Next to our body are the clothes we use. Influenced by the “Philosophy of Dress” by Herman Lotze, James believed that clothing is an essential part of the material self. Lotze in his book, Microcosmus, stipulates that “any time we bring an object into the surface of our body, we invest that object into the consciousness of our personal existence taking in its contours to be our own and making it part of the self.” (Watson 2014) The fabric and style of the clothes we wear bring sensations to the body to which directly affect our attitudes and behavior. Thus, clothes are placed in the second hierarchy of material self. Clothing is a form of self-expression. We choose and wear clothes that reflect our self (Watson 2014). Third in the hierarchy is our immediate family. Our parents and siblings hold another great important part of our self. What they do or become affects us. When an immediate family member dies, part of our self dies, too. When their lives are . in success, we feel their victories as if we are the one holding the trophy. In their failures, We are put to shame or guilt. When they are in disadvantage situation, there is an urgent urge to help like a voluntary instinct of saving one's self from danger. We place huge investment in our immediate family when we see them as the nearest replica of our self.e, Home is where our ome. / eriences inside the home ur hi terial self is 0 The fourth component of mi se ge Wa Our expt heart is. It is the earliest nest of our selfhood. d things i i tension were recorded and marked on particular parts and INO Os an ox an old cliché about rooms: “if only walls can pa vel of self, because in it, we can directly connect o ee dt Having investment of self to things, made us ni we identify ourselves ‘more investment of self-given to the Particular thing, the The collections in different to it. We also tended to collect and possess properties. James (1890) described degree of investment of self, becomes part of the self. eh Wes possessions then self: “a man’s self is the sum total of all what he CAN call his. become a part or an extension of the self. We Are What We Have Russel Belk (1988) posits that “...we regard our possessions 28 part of ourselves. We are what we have and what we posses.” The identification of the . Self to things started in our infancy stage when we make a distinction among self and environment and others who may desire our possessions. As we grow older, Putting importance to material Possession decreases. However, material possession gains higher value in our lifetime if we use material Possession to find happiness, associate these things with significant events, accomplishments, and People in our lives. There are even times, when material Possession ofa person thatis closely identified to the person, gains acknowledgment with high regard even if the person already passed away. Examples of these are the person, which ‘some of the bereaved family members let go of because that vehicle is Very much identified wit away; the favorite pet or book, among others that the oO these favorite things are symbols of the owner, have a difficulty to sell or h the owner who passed wner placed a high value, The Possessions that we dearly have tel ll something about self-concept, our past, and even our future, who we are, our