Object Analysis : IPOD

Essay by kylemcspecialCollege, UndergraduateA+, December 2006

download word file, 2 pages 5.0

Downloaded 105 times

In Andy Warhol's "30 is better than 1", "The Mona Lisa" is poorly reproduced thirty times. In this simple visual work of art, Warhol depicts that American culture values quantity over quality. This characteristic continues to be represented in our obsession with Apple's I-pod. It's no secret that America is obsessed with being bigger and therefore "better" than all others. We constantly strive to be better, and have nicer things, than our neighbors and friends. Even once we have the latest and greatest product available the manufacturer will undoubtedly come out with something better three months later and therefore force us to upgrade or be inferior. This leads to America, as a whole, never being satisfied.

When the I-pod was first released many people wanted one out of curiosity. Now that Apple's take on a music player has become a cultural icon, people that rarely listen to music are purchasing them just so that they can "keep up with the Jones'".

The act, or should I say mindset, of "keeping up with the Jones'" is brought on by the fact that Americans, as a whole, feel the need to be better than their neighbors and friends. The I-pod plays perfectly into this weakness. By coming out with upgraded versions of the I-pod every three months, Apple forces the American public into purchasing them by nothing more than their own need to be better. Each day more and more people are buying Apple's I-pod. Almost every day you will see a forty-something soccer mom jogging with her pink I-pod mini or you will see her son in school tuning out a boring history lecture by plugging in his nano. In almost every household you will find at least one person with an I-pod product. This is simply because as the I-pod...