The merchants of cool

Laura Schoenherr

Mr. Holmes

English SL

August 29, 2011

How do I rebel if the corporate world owns everything I think is cool?

Do the worldwide succeeding companies, the corporate world own everything that we think is cool? As a teenager getting influenced by 3 000 adverts a day and 10 000 000 by the time they are 18, I would say yes. Yet the 20% of the teenagers also called early adopters are the ones giving the basic of “cool”, which the corporate world doesn’t own until trend hunters discover it and sell it to the greatest runners of today’s economy, the adolescents. Spending $ 100 Billion a year with an add-on by their parents of $ 50 Billion. Through this change of correspondence between media and the new generation companies are able to sell right back to them what they determine as cool. In fact they do own everything that we think and want that is cool, but is there a need to rebel? It would be possible but purport less.

Rebelling as an individual would be after the definition of cool- cool. Since everyone is not doing it, it’s actually not considered as cool but as soon as everyone would, it’s immediately defined as uncool again, therefore it is cool. If you rebel as an individual, it will be unnoticed as the corporate world rules everything. But why would you rebel in the first place, if you spend your money on items that are created by the corporate world, things you like and make you enjoy life.

Seeing the variety of companies and their different styles, gives the teenagers space to choose their own direction of interest. There is not only one way cool is defined, for example skaters have their own cool brands while rappers choose their matching brands. It is not that the corporate world tells one’s what to wear you have the option to define your style. It is nearly impossible to have no no-name brands this states the fact that the corporate world owns everything you want and assume to be cool, no matter what. The companies specify themselves on an age range and style to supply their costumers. The only way to rebel this is to design own wants and needs, which would be clothes, electronics, special food, such as candy, soft drinks and so on. But why do that, if the companies contribute everything the way you want it? Don’t the corporations sell to the society what they already have instead of giving them what they want and need in terms of marketing? That’s why I don’t see a point to rebel.

In my personal opinion I don’t see a reason to rebel if I identify myself with the basics of cool, no matter if everyone wears it or not, as long as I like it.  I go a long with the trend and it doesn’t bother me if the corporate world owns everything. If something is cool and I like it, why shouldn’t I buy it? Easy as that, if I don’t like something I just don’t buy it. The worldwide companies are there to supply me with my needs and wants, that’s the way of economics, what to produce, how to produce and for whom.

All in all being rebellious is not cool since you oppose yourself from the rest who are going with the cool and they consider themselves as cool. A part from that who cares if the corporate world owns everything someone has to. Teenagers are the biggest and wealthiest market; therefore they are in the focus of the companies, they try to get as many teens under their influence and make them buy. There is no way to come around all the ubiquitous adverts, which influenced us, the teenage generation, to buy the latest things: the cool.