The most frequent type of ostentatious consumption I encounter in everyday life is the constant change of clothes. A person needs several T-shirts and several pairs of pants; everything else is a desire to show how stylish, rich, and beautiful a person dresses. It appears that pricey shoes with a well-known brand’s logo are not necessary for survival. Nevertheless, ostentatious consumption has become so deeply rooted in the culture of the nations that multimillion-dollar fashion houses have been built on it.
Conspicuous consumption can be explained in terms of conflict theory. Capitalism, characterized by enormous inequality and a strong emphasis on social status, currently rules the world. In capitalism, people earn according to their ability and luck. As a result, some people with high social standing make a lot of money, and others with low status make little money. The struggle between the rich and the poor is what encourages conspicuous consumption. However, conspicuous consumption is not just the prerogative of a privileged few rich people. The vast majority of individuals who prefer to seem wealthy are neither rich nor poor. As a result, they are the main force behind the system of conspicuous consumption.
A person with an average salary starts to excessively consume more than he needs, which raises his social standing and makes him appear successful to others. It increases a person’s sense of self and satisfies their need for approval. However, functionalism, which contends that everything humans do has a purpose, is in direct conflict with this occurrence. Inconspicuous spending, people frequently purchase and utilize unreasonably expensive and meaningless goods. Therefore, conspicuous consumption can be used as a counter-argument to the functionalism perspective.