Jessica Dang

Why do we buy stuff？ Not everything we buy is useful， so there must be other reasons why we work so hard to buy things.

Maybe its because we find a sense of happiness or satisfaction when we buy something new， but we all know that that feeling soon fades （even though we almost never remember this every time we buy something new）.

Why we buy stuff has less to do with the object itself than with ourselves. When we buy expensive clothes， the newest gadgets2 or a flashy3 car， its because we believe it will give us recognition from the people around us—well “show” them how successful we are so that theyll accept us， or even love us.

Humans crave4 recognition. To be part of a group， or at least not be in some elses shadow， most people are more influenced by what other people think of them than what they actually want themselves.

Think about it—if everyone in the world disappeared tomorrow and you were the only one left （apart from the upset you would have from losing your friends and loved ones）， what would you do now that you could have anything you desired？

You could just walk into someones mansion5， even the most beautiful castle， and have it all to yourself. You could pick and choose anyones finest clothing and jewelry， even put on the crown6 if you wanted to！Drive a Ferrari， swim in bank notes， have hundreds of iPhones. But after a while， what would happen？ With no one to impress， the chances are that youll find somewhere more convenient and easier to maintain than a huge house， youll wear clothes that are more comfortable， youll drive something more practical and youll get bored of the latest gadget.

Things you thought were worth a lot wont matter as much any more. Youre the last person on earth. Theres nothing left but to find something worthwhile to do， something that makes you happy， not anyone else.

If no one was around to validate7 our existence， as society has defined by how much stuff we have， we wouldnt actually care about it. Hardly anyone would actually choose to have their lifes purpose revolve8 around buying things， but so many people do exactly that every day， without stopping to question it.

We dont have to go as far as erasing9 every other person on Earth. If we just cared a little less about what other people think， wed care a little more about what we want， and what really matters to us.

我們为什么买东西？不是我们买的东西都有用，所以我们乐此不疲地买东西一定有别的原因。

也许是因为我们在买新东西时得到了幸福感或满足感，但我们都知道这种感觉很快就会消褪（尽管我们每次买新东西时几乎都不会记得这一点）。

我们买东西的原因与其说是在于物品本身，不如说是在于我们自己。当我们买昂贵的衣服、最新的小玩意或华而不实的汽车时，那是因为我们相信它会给我们带来周围人的认可——我们会向他们“展示”我们是多么成功，于是他们会接受我们，甚至喜欢我们。

人类渴望得到认可。为了融入一个群体，或者至少不是活在别人的影子里，大多数人更多地是被别人对他们的看法而不是他们真正想要的所影响。

想想看，如果明天世界上的所有人都消失了，而你是剩下的唯一一个人（不考虑失去你的朋友和你爱的人们的烦恼的话），你可以得到你想要的任何东西，于是你现在会做什么？

你可以走进别人的豪宅，甚至是最美丽的城堡，把一切都留给自己。你可以挑选任何最好的衣服和珠宝，如果你想要的话，甚至可以戴上皇冠！你可以驾驶一辆法拉利，在钞票里游泳，拥有成百上千的苹果手机。但之后会发生什么？你没有人可以展示，你很可能会发现某个地方比大房子更方便、更容易维护，你会穿着更舒适的衣服，你会驾驶更实用的车，你会厌倦最新的小玩意。

你之前认为很有价值的东西不再那么重要了。你是世界上唯一的一个人。除了去做值得做的事，去做让你自己快乐而不是让别人快乐的事情之外，什么都没有意义。

如果没有人来彰顯我们的存在，就像社会通过我们拥有多少东西来定义我们一样，那么我们就不会真的去在意。几乎没有人会选择让自己的人生目标围绕着购买东西而展开，但有很多人每天都在做这件事，却没有停下来去质疑。

我们不必去消灭地球上的每一个人。如果我们少在意一点别人的想法，我们就会更关心我们自己想要什么，什么对我们来说才是重要的。

Notes：

1. vanity n. 虚荣心；浮华；无价值的东西

2. gadget n. 小玩意；小配件

3. flashy adj. 闪光的；俗丽的

4. crave vt. 渴望；恳求

5. mansion n. 大厦；宅邸

6. crown n. 王冠

7. validate vt. 证实；确认

8. revolve vi. 旋转；循环出现；反复考虑

9. erase vt. 抹去；擦除