Greeting Card Companies Hold Arbitrary Conventions over Adults
…and teach children to expect something that only they can provide.
Birthday cards are given out during special occasions from one person to another with the express intention of getting across some sort of empathetic point. One may believe that birthday cards, especially ones marketed towards young children, are meant for the person receiving them. However, it may be surprising to know that, in fact, these cards may be targeted more towards the buyers instead. This is especially strange when considering the “audience” of said card is likely years younger than the person buying the card. It only goes to show that American society has been tricked into believing that cards are a must-have for birthdays, which is why we give children – even the ones who cannot read for themselves – pieces of paper with pretty pictures and vague phrases on them.
Within the realm of children’s birthday cards, there are four main elements that strike true towards this claim that the cards are meant to draw in consumers more than hold a place in childrens’ interests: corporate mascots, catchy rhyme schemes, bright or delicate color palettes and animal imagery. These details attract customers by playing on nostalgia and emotions, attaching a pathos to an overpriced piece of paper. The elements, when brought together, underscore a very specific issue within our society; supply and demand are sometimes fabricated by companies in order to appeal to our pathological instincts as humans. Corporations who sell and moderate the production of capital play on adult sensibilities and nostalgia in order to sell more products, and greeting cards are one of the most insidious of them all.
