Caitlin Butler Activity #1-Flaneur

I never knew what the word Flaneur meant until I heard it in class. I also realized that I was a Flaneur myself. I never knew other people did what I liked to do. I think it is really fun and exciting to just walk around watching people all day. One day I went to Manhattan Mall and sat down on a bench to watch people. I really enjoyed this because everyone is so different from one another in the way they look and behave. No two people have the same walk I noticed. You would think with all the people in this world, that some people would have the same walk….but the truth is they don’t, which really intrigued me. I also saw a mother talking to her son and she seemed to be quite upset because he would not stop nagging her about buying this certain video game that he wanted. The mother basically said that she could not afford the game right now and that they would have to wait until his birthday. The kid then got really mad and threw a fit right in front of everyone. I can see that the mother was really embrassed and overwhelmed. But I was on the mother’s side. Why should she get her son this video game for no reason, especially during these harsh economic times. Her son should just be glad that the mother is taking care of him and taking him out. I swear I look around today and I see so many kids who are spoiled especailly in this generation. It is pathetic. My grandmother’s generation was so much simpler and very conservative. She always tells me that people today always take things for granted and complain way too much and to tell you the truth she is right. I see it everywhere. It’s like kids and young adults expect everything to be for them. They are too selfish. But I think it’s also how their parents raise them that contributes to their certain behaviors and the sense of entitlement. I know that when I have my own kids, one thing is for certain, they are not going to act that way. It will not be tolerated. Another thing that I saw in the mall that I thought was pretty interesting is that everyone was in a rush. You would think that they would take their time shopping, but I guess not. I know when I go shopping, it takes me the whole day. I hate to rush. It would be interesting to do a study on shopping in different locations to see if people only rush shopping in New York City or does it also happen in other places as well. There are three floors in the mall and a basement type floor where the food court is held, which is really nice because sometimes people can get really hungry shopping so having the food court is a great idea and one that works well! I sometimes go to the mall to shop, but I have to tell you that it’s not what it once used to be. It now has less people shopping there, but I guess the economy has something to do with that. I remember like two years ago how packed it was and now it’s just not anymore. The stores also changed as well. Some of the old stores are now no longer there. I do not even shop there anymore that much because I used to really like the old stores that used to be there instead. When I watch people and observe them, I pretend to make up a whole story about them in my mind all based on what I see. I am sure that some of the things I come up with are true and some aren’t. For example in the mall I saw this older man carrying an old briefcase, walking slowly with his wife, or at least I think it was his wife. I was thinking to myself, now here’s a man who looks like he’s just worn out from life in general. He looks like he works very hard, but isn’t quite fully happy. Maybe he has problems with his wife at home or maybe it’s his job. But one way or another he just does not seem to be happy. Not only does he seem unhappy, but he looks depressed. And depressed people always seem to look like they just don’t care about anything. This man obviously didn’t care about his own briefcase because it was old and torn looking. His wife seemed like she was worn out too, but not because she was unhappy but because she had to deal with her husband being sad. O well….I just felt sorry for the man, that’s all. I don’t even know why he was out in the mall if he looked so sad. As I watch all these people in the mall, I am wondering to myself how much the media really influences everyone into buying the latest hottest stuff like sneakers or clothing. I saw a lot of girls in the mall wearing skinny jeans with boots over them and I also saw other girls wearing tights and big shirts over the tights. That is the new look now. We are constantly surrounded by advertisements for products everywhere. How could we possibly escape the chaos? The point is we can’t and we are not helping either because we buy all of these latest items. The media does an excellent job in sucking all of us in. I must say that I am a victim too. I have boots and skinny jeans, etc. Another thing that we, the consumer should be asking ourselves is, “ Do we really need the item, or do we just buy things because we simply want it”? It becomes an issue of need or want. But I think people just buy things now adays simply because they want it or desire it and not because they truly need it. The only person I know that will buy something because they actually need it, is my mother. She hates to shop for clothes, so she will only go out to shop for clothes If she absolutely needs it. But I love to shop. I guess that is why I am almost broke now..haha. When I look at people buying stuff in the mall, I always think to myself that they just want to buy things just for the hell of it and I do not think that that is necessarily right, but yet again it is their money so hey. My observations from the mall tells me that urban life living is much more fast pace and serious. People in urban places are always running to places and look so serious doing it. It also seems to be a much harder life. I know this because I have the best of both worlds. I have a house in the city and a house out on Long Island. And I know at least for me that life out on Long Island is an easier one. You can actually take your time doing things without getting trampled over. The air there is fresher and cleaner. I like Long Island living better than the city because I am near the beach and my dogs can run freely there opposed to in the city. And just like Jane Jacobs I have too studied big cities such as New York City. It is also vital to plan the city well so that people are not having and living in chaos. I thought that observing in the mall was a good experience. It opened up my eyes much more in discovering that not as many people shop there and what the latest trends are. And how everyone’s lives are different from our own.