Notice what prompts the purchase
Read for meaning first. Select a highlighted word if you want a closer look.
Competitive consumption appears in a fictional club when members repeatedly buy more elaborate tea sets after comparing their tables with one another's displays. The story criticizes materialism through a character who values the ownership of impressive objects and physical comforts above the relationships formed at the gatherings. A quiet cup of favorite tea becomes a modest indulgence for another character who simply allows herself a pleasure at the end of the day. The reading group compares those motives, avoiding the assumption that every purchase or pleasant experience expresses the same outlook.
The competitive consumption continues when one member replaces an adequate set solely because another member has acquired a more impressive one. Materialism shapes the first character's priorities more broadly, making possessions and comfort the standard by which she evaluates a successful life. The second character's small indulgence need not involve comparison with anyone else's table or a general belief about the importance of possessions. Readers identify the stated motives before applying the vocabulary, so a similar object can appear in different decisions without making the decisions equivalent.
Before you move on
Look away from the passage. Can you explain each focus word in your own words?
Original fictional passages for vocabulary practice.