Persuasive Speech: The Human Condition - Greed

Statement of intent:

The purpose of this speech is to make the audience who are consumers appreciate the success of all advancements in society. Now a day consumers, just buy goods and services without appreciating its purpose. Considering where we were technology wise 100 years ago compared to now, we have improved so much but people and society are not grateful.

Speech:

Are you thankful for the creation of light from Thomas Edison? Do you understand the endless possibilities mobile phones have given society? Do you appreciate the advantages of owning your own motor vehicle? We are the luckiest humans in existence. Lifesaving medicines, HUGE advancements in technology, an improvement in the population’s health, education, general standards of living, more interaction and trade with foreign nations, and overall world-wide we are becoming richer. Previously generations throughout history have suffered from poor education, incurable illnesses and extreme social and political laws that generally restricted the quality of life. These past generations could only dream of the opportunities and technologies we enjoy unconsciously in our everyday lives. The action of women to become the equal of men on all levels and being more independent liberated and confident in society, was a dream pre 1920’s. As we all know now women can vote, share their own opinions and enjoy employment somewhat equal to that of men. Now as we progress into greater prosperity and discover further knowledge of the unknown, you’d think as a society we would become more grateful for what we have managed to achieve. To an extent, yes some people in society appreciate these advancements, however a large percentage seem to go through life simply doing and achieving things without a second thought to the realities of how we are able to achieve this. Society today seems to revolve around the ownership of the newest, the latest, the biggest, the better of products and services we are constantly being exposed to.

How much money do you spend on luxury or material goods? How do you feel after you have made this purchase? Are you always waiting for the newer model to come out? In today’s modern era, money and material goods are on the minds of almost everyone, and seem to be a motivational goal. We are constantly looking out for the newest iPhone model or the latest fashion trends, so we can fit in, compete with the rest of society and not stand out of the crowd for the wrong reasons i.e.: not having the standard accepted goods and services. Purchasing’s all these things are considered important as we are contributing to the economic growth of an economy. Depending on how much and how often you buy these items, it can lead to an insatiable greed on our part. Greed is defined as the desire to have more of something than you need; it’s the decision to take from others to increase your wellbeing at the expense of them. There are two distinctively different types of greed, ‘The Real World’ and ‘Average Person’ greed. The real world greed for example is a dishonest banker who allows someone a mortgage even though he knows they cannot afford one, just so the bank can make money and foreclosure on the house. The average greedy person however is someone who for instance will eat all the cookies and not share as they know others want them.

The thing with greed is that once the producer of a particular item has fulfilled the latest demands and consumers are happy, they instantly will develop a newer product to replace it to maintain the flow of income and create a new need. The population, once they realised there is a newer model, will second-rate the old version and replace it. Other companies will create a better version and there will be more choices, more dilemmas.  We as humans cannot find a way to be satisfied. We are always demanding more, for the newer and the better. Advancements in technology therefore is an amazing part of our day to day life, but it has created the greed factor and we tend not to appreciate the function of what we buy, and seem to focus only on the fact that it's new.

REFLECTION:
The human condition is any concern about human nature, society and the way we live our lives. This text explores the human condition as; to be greedy is a negative behaviour which occurs amongst people. Unfortunately, society has become dependent on what you have and what you do in life. We are by nature extremely competitive to the point, we are willing to jeopardise the environment, our relationships and friendships all to have the latest goods. It seems to be all about ‘me’. What ‘I need’ and what ‘I want'

I was inspired when writing this speech by the new release of the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 plus models last November. Majority of the people I know are called, ‘Early Adopters’. They were so eager to get this new release just to follow a trend, they didn’t even research it. Many found that it was bending and had other faults. These people were blindsided by the fact that it was a newer model, they didn’t read any reviews, and they just bought it. They were happy to replace their iPhone 5 with a larger, better looking, and more expensive version. I thought this whole situation was very sad. There are people in the world who are struggling to find food. On the other spectrum, there are people who are spending their money so frivolously on goods which in the future they will just replace again. If people realise these actions are an act of greed, maybe it will change their mind set, and they will spend their money on items which might just benefit other people in need.