Commercialism expressed in society is the exchange of goods and services for a profit. This idea can extend above trading of physical objects into abstractions such as feelings, concepts, wants and ideas. With the concept of Commercialism in mind, resonates an unsettling thought: What known to society cannot be commercialized? And, are there things that exist that should not be commercialized? The theme of commercialism is scrutinized and heavily reflected under two short pieces of science fiction- “The Girl Who Was Plugged in” by James Tiptree and “A Hundred Ghosts Parade Tonight”, by Xia Jia. Both wrestle with the idea of how technology satisfies demand, want, and profit. Elements of body, and frivolousness play into to ideas sold as abstract profit.
First, both stories take bodies of people to be commercialized into consideration, and what abstract ideas underlay this, along with cultural background views. This is …show more content…
This comes into play in “A Hundred Ghosts Parade Tonight,” as the product of idealism and entertainment. In this setting, the dead people have been transformed into “ghost” models that do not properly line up with what they looked like alive. For example, in the text, Xiao Qian was described as: “I've seen a picture of Xiao Qian back when she was alive. It was hidden in a corner of a drawer in her dresser. The woman in the picture had thick eyebrows, huge eyes, a wrinkled face—far uglier than the way Xiao Qian looks now.” The ghosts are used in a consumeristic fashion to fulfill roles that satisfy tourists’
First, both stories take bodies of people to be commercialized into consideration, and what abstract ideas underlay this, along with cultural background views. This is …show more content…
This comes into play in “A Hundred Ghosts Parade Tonight,” as the product of idealism and entertainment. In this setting, the dead people have been transformed into “ghost” models that do not properly line up with what they looked like alive. For example, in the text, Xiao Qian was described as: “I've seen a picture of Xiao Qian back when she was alive. It was hidden in a corner of a drawer in her dresser. The woman in the picture had thick eyebrows, huge eyes, a wrinkled face—far uglier than the way Xiao Qian looks now.” The ghosts are used in a consumeristic fashion to fulfill roles that satisfy tourists’