In Fight Club, Brad Pitt’s character, Tyler Durden, delivered a powerful line: “The things you own end up owning you.” The main message is that many define themselves through material things, whether branded clothes, shiny gadgets, unneeded furniture, or expensive jewelry.

Consumerism has been a hot-button issue for decades, and many people are going against it. One group is the Anticonsumption subreddit, which has nearly 800,000 members as of this posting. 

We’ve collected a handful of posts that express disapproval against all forms of materialism. See which ones you’re able to relate to the most. 

#1 Some Of The Scenes After Creamfields North Festival This Year. All Tents And Camping Gear Were Abandoned + Left In The Fields, Alongside An Inconceivable Amount Of General Trash

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#2 True

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In a similar piece, Bored Panda spoke with UK-based clinical psychologist and The Thomas Connection founder Michaela Thomas. She discussed a potential link between overspending and mental disorders.

“If overspending is due to lack of financial planning, or wanting the dopamine kick of how good it feels to purchase something, that can be linked to ADHD, depression, mania, psychosis, or other dopamine-related issues.”

#3 Such Incredible Waste…

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#4 Rage

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#5 To Keep Prices High . .

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Then there is the question of, “What drives a person to purchase a product or service?” Survey Sparrow gave several factors, perception being one of them. It is the manner in which a consumer interprets information about what they intend to buy. 

“A consumer who has had a positive experience with a particular brand may have a more favorable perception of that brand than a consumer who has not had any experience with the brand.”

#6 Over Production Of The Wrong Stuff?

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#7 Kardashian Calling Someone Cute For Having To Work 20 Hrs To Afford Their Jeans

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#8 How Do People Not See Thr Addiction Aspect Of Shopping?

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#9 When I Say My Jaw Dropped…

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#10 Influencers Are The Worst

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Our beliefs likewise influence purchasing decisions, which can be influenced by cultural values, personal experience, and social influence. 

“For example, consumers who believe organic products are healthier may be more likely to purchase organic foods.”

#11 This Popped Up On My Feed

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#12 Saw This Flyer On My College Campus

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#13 I Am Not Sure If This Is A "Hot Take" But There Is Literally No Reason Why Anyone *needs* A Private Plane Or Yacht That Cause Literal Tons Of Environmental Damage Unless They Are An Important Essential Official, We Should Legally Ban Them All

Image credits: booksnpizza

The discussion took a slightly darker turn when talking about materialism. Here’s an analysis by Knox College psychology professor Dr. Tim Kasser. 

“We know from research that materialism tends to be associated with treating others in more competitive, manipulative, and selfish ways, as well as with being less empathetic.”

#14 Got My Pizza And It Came With These Napkins. I Ordered Food, Not Political Ads

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#15 What's Yours?

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#16 Eat Shit, Advertising Drones

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#17 This Is Really Sad

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#18 Random American Sees This And Says Nah It's Better Than A Well Working Railway Network

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According to Dr. Kasser, people who tend to be materialistic also experience problems outside of their mental health. 

“They reported physical health problems, such as stomachaches and headaches, and the less they experienced pleasant emotions and felt satisfied with their lives.”

#19 Bullying

Image credits: Ordner

#20 You Will Own Nothing

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#21 Your Real Job

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#22 Food Is Free

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#23 Absolutamente

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Dr. Kasser also pointed out that people who turn to materialism are likely dealing with personal insecurities. 

“People are more materialistic when they feel insecure or threatened, whether because of rejection, economic fears or thoughts of their own death."

#24 On A Beach Vacation, I Walked Out On A Pier To Watch The Sunset When This Hideous Electronic Billboard Cruised By Scrolling Ads In The Middle Of The Ocean. It Felt So Dystopian. Nowhere Is Free From Advertising!

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#25 Based

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#26 Be Honest

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#27 Do We The People See This For How Truly Messed Up It Is?

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Signs of materialism are believed to manifest at a young age. According to Professor Mònica Casabayó of Spain’s Esade University, family income determines whether a child will grow up to be a consumerist. 

“Children in lower-income families were significantly more materialistic than children growing up in higher-income families,” she said in an article for the University website.

#28 ? ❤️

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#29 Better Packaging Options Do Exist

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#30 Simple Math

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#31 Most Items In This Store Will Be In A Landfill Within A Decade. In Two Decades, Effectively Everything In This Store Will Have Been Buried In The Earth, Burned, Washed Out To Sea, Or Shipped To And Dumped In An Impoverished Country

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#32 Googling Anything

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#33 Went Hiking And Came Across The Aftermath Of A Gender Reveal

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#34 Ever Hopeful I Might Be Able To Change Some Minds

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#35 Oh I Guess Natural Diamonds Are Great For The Environment

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#36 Data Pollution

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#37 Eat Healthy With A Side Of Micro Plastics

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#38 Environmental Footprints Of Dairy And Plant-Based Milks

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#39 I'll Never Understand Why So Many People (Especially In The States) Are So Vehemently Opposed To Washing Dishes

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#40 Saw This As A Meme On Instagram Today! Instantly Thought Of Anticonsumption

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Professor Casabayó and her colleagues also found that a child’s education plays a role.  

“Our data show that children in religious schools were less materialistic than children in secular schools. Religious schools may influence children by putting over a world view where spiritual ends are more important than possessions."

#41 Mall Of America Of The Seas

Image credits: CrazyAssBlindKid

#42 Seeing People Paying Hundreds For A Overpriced Clothing With A Giant Logo Triggers Me

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#43 Thank God! I’m Relieved Now

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#44 My Goodness…

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#45 Disney Taking Cultural Appropriation To A Whole New Level

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#46 I Hate This

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#47 Just Discovered The Most Pointless Item I’ve Seen In Awhile

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#48 Why Are We Almost Ignoring The Sheer Volume Of Aircraft In The Global Warming Discussion

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#49 Happy People Don't Buy Much

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#50 Spotted In Singapore: A Way To Dry Your Umbrella Instead Of Using A Single-Use Bag Each Time

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#51 Why Is That A Bad Thing ?

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#52 How Much Plastic Junk Is Needed?

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#53 Profitable War Is One Thing

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#54 Consumer Kills

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#55 Amazing ?

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#56 Kanopy✅

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#57 “There Are Fewer Fish In The Sea Than Ever Before”

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#58 This Thing Sucks, Buy A Different One

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#59 My Vinyl Office Chair Has Been Peeling For Years. Decided To Get It Reupholstered Instead Of Replacing It

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#60 This Is Annoying

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#61 Well, You Shouldn't Have Expected

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#62 The Kings Of Promoting Consumerism

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#63 Saw This Chart On Fb. How Often You Should Change Those Household Items

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#64 You Love To See It

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#65 Over $150 Of Unclaimed Mobile Starbucks Orders Wasted Because People Were Too Busy To Pick Up Today

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#66 Happy Black Week, R/Anticonsumption

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#67 Black Friday My Ass

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#68 Lawn Hating Post Beware

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#69 Save And Repair

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#70 Coke Has Been One Of The Most Disastrous Companies For The Planet And Our Health, It’s About Time To See This

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#71 Remember When Nature And Imagination Kept Us Occupied For Hours

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#72 Analysis Paralysis

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#73 Good Point

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#74 My Friend Found This At The Airport. Makes Me So Mad

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#75 Thanks To This Sub, I Knew How To Repair These Instead Of Replacing Them ?

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#76 What Zionists Are Genociding For

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#77 Saw Someone Share A Pic Of Their Phone, Thought I’d Do The Same

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#78 This Is So Embarrassing

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#79 My Coworkers Make Fun Of My Pencil

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#80 Spend More Money, Loser

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#81 Next Level Of Gadget Addiction Is Coming. Wearing This Will Become The Norm

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#82 The Aftermath Of Nye

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#83 Couldn’t Have Said It Better Myself

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#84 Is Tourism Becoming Toxic?

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#85 Without A Doubt

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#86 Think About It

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#87 Target Is Still Well Stocked On Soulless Christmas Trees

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#88 Black Friday Idiocy

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#89 What Would You Call Amazon?

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#90 Highwaymen Lobbyist

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#91 This Is So Sad

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#92 This Is A Closet

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