THIS OTHER EDEN: CONSUMERISM

Throughout This Other Eden, consumerism was proved to be the overarching theme. Ben Elton made this clear through his writing style, the way the characters were portrayed, and the world they lived in. Consumerism is a word used to describe the continual consumption of things, and I believe the plot of the story, of buying one’s way out of the end of the world, proved this definition to perfectly describe what Ben Elton was trying to depict, a consumerist society at it’s worst.

(Dystopia: Society characterised by misery, disease and squalor. Opposite of Utopia)

PLOT

One aspect of the plot was the ‘Rat Run’. The earth could no longer sustain the human race and it’s lifestyle, so they had to abandon their lives, purchase and move in to Claustrospheres (like a miniature world, to keep a person alive inside and the dying world around them out). Even though it was written in the book that the damage was too great to be reversed, but nothing was said about the general population trying to help the problem.

Today’s society is the same. People know what effects their wants have on the environment, but it does not stop anybody from continuing to consume. Society has now accepted it’s habits as normal and have chosen the economy over the environment. The only problem is that without an environment there can be no economy.

CHARACTERS 

Max was horrified by Rosalie’s grandparents. He had never seen a person age naturally before, as he grew up in Hollywood, and was constantly pressured in to staying young. This was obviously achieved by having plastic surgery. Max came from a world where buying beauty was seen as normal, and ageing naturally out of the question, a world where consumerism was seen as a lifestyle.

Rosalie had very negative beliefs about what Max’s world stood for, but was still star struck at first by his presence. She also found him physically attractive. This showed how Max’s world, Hollywood, had an effect on everybody, in the book and in the reality.

SETTINGS

In the story, Claustrosphere Corp., run by Plastic Tolstoy, was perceived as the most powerful advertising company on the planet. Plastic Tolstoy invented something called ‘advertainment’ (advertisement fused with entertainment). The entire world would see products in good and bad ways, either way the products would be successful as people could be frightened in to buying certain products. Also, it was a mixture of advertisement and entertainment, so actors would always be endorsing the goods. Consumers, in the real world as well, find the product more desirable if somebody they admire is using it.

(Utopia: Real or imaginary, considered perfect and ideal)

STYLE

Ben Elton payed very close attention to physical detail in his writing. This connects to the theme of consumerism. For example, when Rosalie remembered seeing Jurgen Thor’s house for the first time, it was described as perfection, paradise. Also, when Max met Rosalie’s grandparents he did a great job at making wrinkles sound like disease. Paying attention to physical detail is a direct link to consumerism. In reality, if something looks unattractive, it is immediately considered incapable of doing a good job, and therefore undesirable. Consumers never take their needs in to account, and always judge ‘‘the book by it’s cover’’.

Ben Elton made it clear that consumerism was the overarching theme in the book. All aspects, the setting, plot, characters and style of the book have many similarities to the reality of our industrial world, and the people who feed it. If links from This Other Eden can be made 10 years after it was written, it shows what a tremendously accurate view Ben Elton had of the future, and also how little our society has evolved. It is impossible for consumerism to be eliminated, it is apart of being a human, but it can be seen as something that can be too much of a good thing. We can improve our ways, and improve our quality of life.