Thursday, February 5, 2015
Case Study-Tourism,Fashion, and the Other
While reading the study, I realized that what they were talking about I had seen everywhere without really noticing and had inadvertently been doing myself. I don't really follow the fashion world, so I can't comment much on the use of models in spreads and ads there, but I am a fish freak, and even in the relatively small world of the goldfish fanatics I see this want of exoticism. While many of the fish we own are bred here in the U.S. and purchased from various stores and retailers, there are some with fish from the East, namely Japan. I look at pictures of these such fish, and compare them to similar ones found here in the U.S, and I can't tell much of a difference at all. These people payed hundreds more, seemingly just because they came from Japan. I've noticed the same with Bettas. Those from Thailand are much more expensive than those from here, and while color combinations may play a small part in their prices, even the plain ones are higher priced. In both instances, they're taken to be worth more just because of where they came from.
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This post makes me think about how as an American culture the exotic is most appealing. I find that i fall into this trap because if I see an object and I am told that it is created in a mountain range in Turkey I am going to be way more interested in it than if it were made in Ohio. I do not understand why this is true. As a overall culture we are more diverse than other countries but many white people fantasize about other cultures as well as appropriate them. Photographs have the power to do this as well because you can make any setting with props to make them seem more exotic. The "exotic" complex offends many people and I am torn between both points. I think that if someone is being objectified as exotic than there is an issue. But I do not find it wrong that people are mearly interested in something that they are unfamiliar with. Also on a last note it is not smart in my opinion that we are shipping items that can be found in under 100 miles across the world just because they are "exotic".
I probably wouldn’t have made the comparison between the case study and the fish market initially, but you are exactly right. It is interesting how people are so intrigued by this idea of exoticism and “otherness.” I think it could be associated to human nature and our ever-growing push to have the best, most original and unique thing. In today’s culture, we see people bragging about their latest handbag, toy, and potentially exotic fish on all sorts of social media. #fromitaly #originalgucchibag #hastag Does it make it cool that our handbag is $4,000 more than the one made in the U.S. that is exactly the same? I guess so if we want bragging rights, and a sense of status. Similarly, if you are in the market for a specific fish and buy a Japanese fish for hundreds more than the American one, chances are it is probably along the same reason, unless you’re a Japanese fish collector. Then again, though, there is some enticement pushing you towards the Japanese fish in the first place. I think generally people associate the cost of something to determine it’s worth instead of its actual functionality. A bag is still a bag, and a fish is still a fish.
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