--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Our society is falling back increasingly…" description: "\"Our society is falling back increasingly on rampant consumerism and self-promoting social media as a way for people to feel that their lives matter - s..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5a9/rebecca-goldstein-4026_annoying_our-society-is-falling-back-increasingly_2900235.jpg" --- # Our society is falling back increasingly on rampant… ![“Our society is falling back increasingly on rampant consumerism and self-promoting social media as a way for people to feel that their lives matter - self-centered means of numbing the questions of mattering. Culture has relapsed back into the self-aggrandizing, glorifying answers that the…” quote by Rebecca Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5a9/rebecca-goldstein-4026_annoying_our-society-is-falling-back-increasingly_2900235.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5a9/rebecca-goldstein-4026_annoying_our-society-is-falling-back-increasingly_2900235.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5a9/rebecca-goldstein-4026_annoying_our-society-is-falling-back-increasingly_2900235.jpg) > “Our society is falling back increasingly on rampant consumerism and self-promoting social media as a way for people to feel that their lives matter - self-centered means of numbing the questions of mattering. Culture has relapsed back into the self-aggrandizing, glorifying answers that the Athenians had presumed, which had Socrates railing against them until he got so annoying that they killed him.” [Rebecca Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-goldstein/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Society turns to consumerism and self‑promotion to feel meaningful, echoing ancient critiques of superficial values. **In simple terms:** People seek meaning through materialism and social media. Key Takeaway Question shallow sources of meaning. Themes consumerism social media meaning Mood critical reflective Type philosophical analytical When to use this quote - marketing - online behavior - personal fulfillment Key Concepts cultural critique philosophical reflection Questions to Reflect On - What truly gives life meaning? - How can we foster deeper connections? A Different Perspective It may oversimplify complex social dynamics. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Athenians](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/athenians/) [Consumerism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consumerism/) [Culture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/culture/) [Identity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/identity/) [Media](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/media/) [Our society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/our-society/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self/) [Self centered](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self-centered/) [Social](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social/) [Social media](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social-media/) [Twitter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/twitter/) ## Related quotes > [I think people are inherently self-aggrandizing, pleasureseeking, unempathetic, self-serving, greedy and lustful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/park-dietz/i-think-people-are-inherently-self-aggrandizing-pleasureseeking/) [Park Dietz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/park-dietz/) > [To say, "It used to be better," nobody can say, "Well, no it wasn't." It's like telling a story that is self-aggrandizing about someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-mangan/to-say-it-used-to-be-better-nobody-can-say-well-no-it-wasn-t-it-s/) [Dan Mangan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-mangan/) > [What makes me angry is the idea that people would be going to a movie because of what I said about it. It makes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-solondz/what-makes-me-angry-is-the-idea-that-people-would-be-going-to-a-movie/) [Todd Solondz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-solondz/) > [I put out a lot of different kinds of material, and maybe people read that as egotistical. Or maybe, since a lot of it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-franco/i-put-out-a-lot-of-different-kinds-of-material-and-maybe-people-read/) [James Franco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-franco/) > [I'm not interested in creating a self-aggrandizing home base for myself, for my artistic foibles and interests.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-wanamaker/i-m-not-interested-in-creating-a-self-aggrandizing-home-base-for/) [Sam Wanamaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-wanamaker/) > [Nothing is more untoward than a grown man tasking another with snapping a pic expressly so he can 'flex the 'fit.' It's tacky -self-aggrandizing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-h-k-choi/nothing-is-more-untoward-than-a-grown-man-tasking-another-with/) [Mary H.K. Choi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-h-k-choi/) > [“Similarly, those who have been weaned off the self-aggrandizing attractions of political power are those who can then best be entrusted with it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-w-l-moberly/similarly-those-who-have-been-weaned-off-the-self-aggrandizing/) [R.W.L. Moberly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-w-l-moberly/) > [It’s lucky no one else knows what our most secret thoughts are. We’d all be seen for the cunning, self-aggrandizing fools we are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-connelly/it-s-lucky-no-one-else-knows-what-our-most-secret-thoughts-are-we-d/) [Michael Connelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-connelly/) > [“I know it's a bit self-aggrandizing." "Hey, you're stealing my eulogy," Isaac said. "My first bit is about how you were a self-aggrandizing bastard.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-know-it-s-a-bit-self-aggrandizing-hey-you-re-stealing-my-eulogy/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“What Nelson saw driving me arises from a different kind of aspiration: the desire to do for others, to help make things right for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonia-sotomayor/what-nelson-saw-driving-me-arises-from-a-different-kind-of-aspiration/) [Sonia Sotomayor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonia-sotomayor/) > [I think what breaks people is not adversity; what breaks people is thinking that tomorrow is going to be just like yesterday. That's what's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/i-think-what-breaks-people-is-not-adversity-what-breaks-people-is/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [In the numbing hands of pretentious filmmakers Joel and Ethan Coen, history does not repeat itself in any way whatsoever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-reed/in-the-numbing-hands-of-pretentious-filmmakers-joel-and-ethan-coen/) [Rex Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-reed/) > [“Alcohol was a great numbing agent. Screw the chocolate and ice cream – I’ll take vodka to heal a broken heart.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tiffany-snow/alcohol-was-a-great-numbing-agent-screw-the-chocolate-and-ice-cream-i/) [Tiffany Snow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tiffany-snow/) > [But for the unquiet heart and brain A use in measured language lies; The sad mechanic exercise Like dull narcotics numbing pain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lord-tennyson/but-for-the-unquiet-heart-and-brain-a-use-in-measured-language-lies/) [Alfred Lord Tennyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lord-tennyson/) > [“Before conducting this research I thought that numbing and taking the edge off was just about addiction, but I don’t believe that anymore. Now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bren-brown/before-conducting-this-research-i-thought-that-numbing-and-taking-the/) [Brené Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bren-brown/) ## More by Rebecca Goldstein > [Youth is not an essential, but rather an accidental property. Nobody is in essence young. One either ceases to be or ceases to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-goldstein/youth-is-not-an-essential-but-rather-an-accidental-property-nobody-is/) [Rebecca Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-goldstein/) > [Plato dramatically puts the detachment of the philosopher from his time this way: to philosophize is to prepare to die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-goldstein/plato-dramatically-puts-the-detachment-of-the-philosopher-from-his/) [Rebecca Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-goldstein/) > [When you ask why did some particular question occur to a scientist or philosopher for the first time, or why did this particular approach…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-goldstein/when-you-ask-why-did-some-particular-question-occur-to-a-scientist-or/) [Rebecca Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-goldstein/) > [“Freedom for me is a pain in the Buridan's ass.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-goldstein/freedom-for-me-is-a-pain-in-the-buridan-s-ass/) [Rebecca Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-goldstein/) > [Those who share my heroes are, in the deepest sense, of my own kind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-goldstein/those-who-share-my-heroes-are-in-the-deepest-sense-of-my-own-kind/) [Rebecca Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-goldstein/) > [“one evangelical scientist who had felt his doubts falling away from him when he was hiking in the mountains and came upon a frozen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-goldstein/one-evangelical-scientist-who-had-felt-his-doubts-falling-away-from/) [Rebecca Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-goldstein/) > [Because of the failure of religion to offer satisfying answers to an increasing number of people, it's time for philosophy to address forcefully these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-goldstein/because-of-the-failure-of-religion-to-offer-satisfying-answers-to-an/) [Rebecca Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-goldstein/) > [If we look at our attitudes consistently and work out the logical implications we're on the road to moral progress, moral understanding.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-goldstein/if-we-look-at-our-attitudes-consistently-and-work-out-the-logical/) [Rebecca Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-goldstein/) > [We may not need God to tell us where the world came from, but we need God to be able to live moral lives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-goldstein/we-may-not-need-god-to-tell-us-where-the-world-came-from-but-we-need/) [Rebecca Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-goldstein/) > [In order to refute a conclusion, you have to put forth the best possible argument for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-goldstein/in-order-to-refute-a-conclusion-you-have-to-put-forth-the-best/) [Rebecca Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-goldstein/) > [Philosophical progress changes what we take to be "intuitively" obvious, and this change covers up the tracks of the laborious arguments that preceded the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-goldstein/philosophical-progress-changes-what-we-take-to-be-intuitively-obvious/) [Rebecca Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-goldstein/) > [What one tries to force into a child against its own nature will never come to good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-goldstein/what-one-tries-to-force-into-a-child-against-its-own-nature-will/) [Rebecca Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-goldstein/) > [Thinking is the soul speaking to itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-goldstein/thinking-is-the-soul-speaking-to-itself/) [Rebecca Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-goldstein/) > [What is remarkable about the Greeks - even pre-philosophically - is that despite the salience of religious rituals in their lives, when it came…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-goldstein/what-is-remarkable-about-the-greeks-even-pre-philosophically-is-that/) [Rebecca Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-goldstein/) > [In fact, it’s the very impersonality of impersonal knowledge that renders such knowledge the most ethically potent of all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-goldstein/in-fact-it-s-the-very-impersonality-of-impersonal-knowledge-that/) [Rebecca Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-goldstein/) [Explore all 116 Rebecca Goldstein quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-goldstein/) ## More Annoying quotes > [Why couldn't Jesus command us to obsess over everything, to try to control and manipulate people, to try not to breathe at all, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/why-couldn-t-jesus-command-us-to-obsess-over-everything-to-try-to/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [The trouble is. . .that everybody sneers at restrictions and demands freedom, till something annoying happens; then they demand angrily what has become of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-l-sayers/the-trouble-is-that-everybody-sneers-at-restrictions-and-demands/) [Dorothy L. Sayers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-l-sayers/) > [At Epcot Center the Disney corporation has focused its attention on two things greatly in need of Disneyfication: the tedious future and the annoying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/at-epcot-center-the-disney-corporation-has-focused-its-attention-on/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [The book it reminded me of most is Henry Miller’s The Books in My Life. Like Miller, Shields manages to convey his affection for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-alexis/the-book-it-reminded-me-of-most-is-henry-miller-s-the-books-in-my/) [Andre Alexis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-alexis/) > [When you're standing around for an hour doing stand up it's no big deal but when you're standing around watching a show for an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-rogan/when-you-re-standing-around-for-an-hour-doing-stand-up-it-s-no-big/) [Joe Rogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-rogan/) > [Belief is a good thing in principle, but an annoying thing in human beings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wurtzel/belief-is-a-good-thing-in-principle-but-an-annoying-thing-in-human/) [Elizabeth Wurtzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wurtzel/) > [Shut the fuck up ur so annoying and you think your the shit lmao sit the fuck down](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/shut-the-fuck-up-ur-so-annoying-and-you-think-your-the-shit-lmao-sit/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The only kind of freedom that the mob can imagine is freedom to annoy and oppress its betters, and that is precisely the kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-kind-of-freedom-that-the-mob-can-imagine-is-freedom-to-annoy/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Die, enemies of Ra!" Sekhemet yelled. "Perish in agony!" "She's almost as annoying as you," I told Horus. "Impossible," Horus said. "No one bests…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/die-enemies-of-ra-sekhemet-yelled-perish-in-agony-she-s-almost-as/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [My middle finger is used when words aren't enough for people to understand that they're annoying.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/my-middle-finger-is-used-when-words-aren-t-enough-for-people-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [...Be grateful for what you have to be thankful for instead of complaining about the little things that annoy you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/be-grateful-for-what-you-have-to-be-thankful-for-instead-of/) [Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) > [Would you want people walking up to you and pointing at your d--k? I can't believe I'm still talking about this. But I've worn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-hamm/would-you-want-people-walking-up-to-you-and-pointing-at-your-d-k-i/) [Jon Hamm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-hamm/) > [I ceased in the year 1764 to believe that one can convince one’s opponents with arguments printed in books. It is not to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-c-lichtenberg/i-ceased-in-the-year-1764-to-believe-that-one-can-convince-one-s/) [Georg C. Lichtenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-c-lichtenberg/) > [WikiLeaks is irritating and annoying for Germany, but not a threat. From an international perspective, I see their actions as totally irresponsible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-de-maiziere/wikileaks-is-irritating-and-annoying-for-germany-but-not-a-threat/) [Thomas de Maiziere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-de-maiziere/) > [It doesn't annoy me but I think of myself as a presenter who is gay, rather than a gay presenter. It's a subtle distinction,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-davis/it-doesn-t-annoy-me-but-i-think-of-myself-as-a-presenter-who-is-gay/) [Evan Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-davis/) Browse all 1,217 Annoying quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Our society is falling back increasingly on rampant consumerism and self-promoting social media as a way for people to feel that their lives matter - self-centered means of numbing the questions of mattering. 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