Nov. 1 hits and “All I Want For Christmas” by Mariah Carey is blasting as you walk through HomeGoods. There you have it; you’re finally in the mood for some early Christmas shopping and cheer before when the first holiday occurs: Thanksgiving.
Some may argue that Christmas is a month and a half away and Thanksgiving should be valued before the holiday rejoices, but it will be the New Year before you know it. So take the time to celebrate the holiday season with our limited month and a half. We live in a commercialized society, as the capitalists believe that we must benefit from the limited time we have to celebrate until Christmas advertising and retail deals are out of the picture and into the New Year. If we go back in time, recall traditionalists like Karl Marx claiming that traditionalists want to maximize their limited time and resources, as we, as members of society, are a product of our environment.
Regardless of having consciousness this holiday season that we live in a commercialized society, we are fully aware yet fully engaged in retailing and advertising since it makes most of the population happy — maximizing utility with a little sweet, festive, jolly, Starbucks cookie butter latte in the cold, dark, daylight-saving early winter you have on your way to your 8:30 a.m. class or studying for that upcoming math midterm. We live in a society where everyone maximizes their utility and minimizes disutility. As a result, we tend to lean towards capitalism to escape the disutility our current modern day suffers in. To prevent our disutility, the dark, cold, daylight-saving winters, we ask for a Christmas miracle to celebrate with new festive flavors and gifts to spread the holiday cheer. According to a press release, 74% of holiday decorators associate holiday decorating with joy. In response, HomeGoods, beginning Nov. 1, opens an hour earlier than usual, around 8:30 a.m., until the end of December.
In addition, we live in a modernized society where social media plays a vast role in our day-to-day influences and interactions within the environment. With Grinch memes, TikToks of Christmas events to do, SantaCon or just Christmas music, we are bundled into the season once it hits the low 60 degrees of November.
Psychologically, I notice that people are friendlier and more connected during the holiday season. I cannot remember when so many families or mothers at HomeGoods complimented or asked for gift advice for a daughter or niece around my age. The holidays are about appreciating and cherishing those close to you, such as family and friends, and creating new memories. Some of the ways I like to cherish my memories with loved ones is by Christmas shopping, baking and activities. I get very excited when I sip hot cocoa in Bryant Park and view the several Christmas lights displays and decorations I plan to buy as gifts.
So, the question stands: when is a good time to start celebrating Christmas? I think Nov. 1 is the perfect day. The more enlightenment and positivity we can spread as a society, the more it is worth all the memories of holiday cheer. Even though we may fall into some sort of manipulation under the commercialized world of retailers, it brings people together and allows us to refrain and destress from hard times.
In my opinion, the holidays are a time of year that I’m not reluctant to spend money, as I think many of us work hard to save up and prioritize spending it on something worth it. With the many mixed emotions about the election, now is a perfect time to refrain from conflict and appreciate life. The purpose of Christmas is to give society a break, and as a college student in the middle of midterms, I’m here for it regardless of the month being November.
Bridgette Leahy, FCRH ’27, is a journalism major from Basking Ridge, N.J.
