by Viola Gonzalo
“Old Hat, New Hat”, a short story written by Stan and Jan Berenstain seems sure to confirm itself as a story that rebels against contemporary consumerism In today’s society, the liberal prevailing motto is “your are what you have”. In this way, the liberal market tries to force people to get new possessions for the sake of large company’s wealth. Therefore, the unconsciously transmitted message is “buy something new to cope with the latest trend, otherwise you are old-fashioned and not being up to the latest tendency is not right”. This is a direct message given by the invasive information people receive all the time, which psychologically affects children’s behaviour in such a way that makes them compulsive shoppers by asking their parents for new toys all the time. They grow up with a subconscious message printed in their minds: that of buying new items without really taking into account whether they are necessary or not.
In the story for children “Old Hat, New Hat”, a rat is walking on the street he suddenly spots a notice that reads “New Hat”. At that very moment, he shows an urgent desire to replace his old hat for a new one. He enters the shop and tries different models but is not satisfied with any of them. From the moment this little rat enters the shop, he is totally excited about the idea of getting a new hat. His excitement is so intense that he forgets his old one. Finally, he sees his old patched hat which he had left on a chair, and realizes he doesn't need a new hat, his old one will do.
What is really important in this story is the fact that it helps children not to have their minds receiving consumerist information all the time, as it teaches that you do not need to spend your money on something unnecessary to be happy; you can still be satisfied with something you have, no matter how old or bad-looking it is.
Therefore, the reading of this story to transmit some ideas that go against neoconservatism in a world that is intoxicated with commercial and marketing purposes is clearly demonstrated.
This story does attempt to create awareness of the psychological brainwash children are exposed to. This so-called brainwash is clearly seen when the character enters in a state of trance by the spotting a new and luxurious object which does not allow him to realize he is about to waste money on a needless item he already has. At the end of the story, the character realizes he does not need a new hat to be happy. At this point, the character rebels against modern-day commercial promotion and consumerism.
In conclusion, the idea behind this story is to transmit anti-consumerism values telling a simple story for children. Most of today’s stories aim at making children compulsive buyers. A story like this one shows a rebellion against standards of marketing, trying to place focus on anti-capitalism.
No comments:
Post a Comment