> Society would have to work to convince people that status symbols are not worth pursuing.
On this note, a book recommendation: The Theory of the Leisure Class: An Economic Study of Institutions.
Thorsten Veblen, 1899.
More relevant now than ever. From Wikipedia, a short summary:
> a treatise on economics and a detailed, social critique of conspicuous consumption, as a function of social class and of consumerism, derived from the social stratification of people and the division of labour, which are social institutions of the feudal period that have continued to the modern era.
On this note, a book recommendation: The Theory of the Leisure Class: An Economic Study of Institutions.
Thorsten Veblen, 1899.
More relevant now than ever. From Wikipedia, a short summary:
> a treatise on economics and a detailed, social critique of conspicuous consumption, as a function of social class and of consumerism, derived from the social stratification of people and the division of labour, which are social institutions of the feudal period that have continued to the modern era.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Theory_of_the_Leisure_Clas...
I believe he coined the phrase Conspicuous Consumption.