First published in 1994 by Gerald Grow, this article takes a critical look at advertising, exploring the meaning behind the images. Commercials work not because they sell a product, but because they sell a “state of existence,” or a “way of being” that we find desirable or that we attain towards, but that we can never achieve! In a very real sense advertising, argues Grow, promotes despair and depression because advertising shows us things that most of us can never attain. Are advertisers to blame, then, for the exploding rates of depression and mental illness, eating disorder and pathology, in our “modern” world?

First published in 1994 by Gerald Grow, this article takes a critical look at advertising, exploring the meaning behind the images. Commercials work not because they sell a product, but because they sell a “state of existence,” or a “way of being” that we find desirable or that we attain towards, but that we can never achieve! In a very real sense advertising, argues Grow, promotes despair and depression because advertising shows us things that most of us can never attain. Are advertisers to blame, then, for the exploding rates of depression and mental illness, eating disorder and pathology, in our “modern” world?

I very much enjoyed the money book. Your explanation of economics is refreshingly clear. The concepts you present are particularly important now, since the corporate media are avoiding any critical analysis of the basic assumptions underlying the economic system and any consideration of alternative systems and are focusing instead on the elite insider debate over superficial reforms.
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An educator speaks about pedagogy, critical thinking, and connecting with students. Education is about creating a safe place for exploration, for confronting the hard social, political, and psychological realities of our existence. But it’s also about honesty, exposure, and trust. It is not easy moving beyond the rigid and stereotyped roles of the cardboard educator, but we try to be more than the boxes we find ourselves in.

The film Groundhog Day (1993) puts the protagonist, Phil Connors, in a time warp. Nothing that he does matters because he is stuck in February 2, Groundhog Day, in a small rural town. For most of the film he seems doomed to repeat this day forever. Even without the help of a time warp, are
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You think we live in a functioning democracy? You think you’re a powerful actor in a sea of democratic choice? Think again. According to this psychologist we are nations of people broken by a socialization process that teaches passivity, fear of authority, and a-social competition, a medical process that applies chemical straitjackets to the emotional sequelea of oppression, and a psychological establishment that pathologizes children who refuse to conform.

The penetration of women into academe is growing, but at what cost? Babies get in the way and require valuable time away from a job that otherwise requires intense attachment and commitment, and so if women are to compete and advance at acceptable rates, they choose to postpone family. Do men make the same sacrifices? Is this fair to the children whose parents may be enmeshed in the demands of work and emotionally, even physically, absent. Inquiring sociologists want to know.

Classroom controversies are short and provocative articles designed to encourage classroom debate. They revolve around current, often hot button issues, and are likely to generate considerable classroom dialogue. Please feel free to print as many copies of these articles as you need. To submit a paper or proposal, visit our contact page.

First published in 1994 by Gerald Grow, this article takes a critical look at advertising, exploring the meaning behind the images. Commercials work not because they sell a product, but because they sell a “state of existence,” or a “way of being” that we find desirable or that we attain towards, but that we can never achieve! In a very real sense advertising, argues Grow, promotes despair and depression because advertising shows us things that most of us can never attain. Are advertisers to blame, then, for the exploding rates of depression and mental illness, eating disorder and pathology, in our “modern” world?

Socialism for the rich, capitalism for the poor. As Timothy McGettigan points out, the ideal of free market capitalism being good for the economy, and good for the world, is largely a myth. Nowhere is this clearer than in the case of health care. When compared against, for example, Canada’s health care system, the US private system is more expensive and less effective. And despite the rhetoric, the US GOVERNMENT spends almost twice as much per capital on its “private” health care. In fact, the US spends more per capital on healthcare than any other developed nation despite its efficiency rhetoric! So why does a privately funded medical system cost more for the US taxpayer than a publically funded Canadian system? Inquiring minds want to know.