<p>Hey guys, I wrote another essay in preparation for the SAT in 3 days. I typed it up on the computer in 14 minutes (giving myself less time considering I will be writing not typing in the actual exam). It comes out to around 470 words. Here it is:</p>
<p>Should modern society be criticized for being materialistic?</p>
<p>I cried because I had no shoes, until I met a man who had no feet. Taken from an old Persian proverb, this quote exemplifies the fact that you should be happy with what you have. Many members of modern society are coiled up around the idea that the amount of money you have, or the type of car you drive directly correlates to your level of happiness. This misinterpretation of happiness has led to somewhat of a competition for monetary wealth, as well as other materialistic pleasures.</p>
<p>My uncles actions of past perfectly illustrate what is wrong with being obsessed with materialistic goods. In 2004, my uncle was a lawyer who fought big cases for a large construction company in India. He fought disputes over land as well as other disputes that caught the attention of the media. Naturally, with such a high profile career, he received a lot of money from the company he represented but for him, back then, it wasnt enough. He secretly met up with his opposition and negotiated a certain amount of monetary kickback if he purposely lost the case. Due to this, many cases were awarded to the wrong party, particularly the case of a large patch of industrial land north of Delhi, which was rightly purchased by the company my uncle represented, NIIT, but went to a computer firm that paid a large sum to my uncle. Though he has changed his ways now, what the world would be if everyone were driven by such materialistic desires?</p>
<p>A much more prominent case that accentuates the flaws of an obsession with materialistic possessions is that of David Irving. A British historian, Irving is renowned for believing that the Holocaust never took place and that it was falsified by Allied troops. In the 1970s an invaluable artifact that related directly to Hitler and the Holocaust surfaced in Poland and Irving wanted it to add to his collection of World War II memorabilia. He traveled to Poland where he pretended that he was sincerely interested and would assess the artifact in order to dig up information that wasnt known at the time. Unknown to Polish authorities, he stole the artifact and hid it somewhere it still hasnt been found. An historian that partly analyzed the artifact before the arrival of Irving said that the artifact built up to the exposure of some major scandal that the public had little knowledge of prior. If Irving werent driven by his materialistic tendencies, more information would be available regarding the atrocities that took place in Germany under the rule of the totalitarian, Hitler.</p>
<p>Though material objects give a sense of absolute possession and a real value of what you really have, they can consume you if you are too obsessed and bring about a negative impact to you and everyone around you.</p>
<p>What do you guys think? Critiques and scores are greatly appreciated!</p>