Christian Persaud
Shoplifting from American Apparel by Tao Lin
Response:

Tao Lin's Shoplifting from American Apparel is a tale of the new-found contemporary struggles of everyday life. Lin's novel depicts how and why life is the way it is in our current times through the advent of technology. For example, a major aspect in this novel's storytelling is the internet messages the characters communicate with. They give an insight into their backgrounds and their pressures of maintaining productive lives. The vibes Lin incorporates into his story all showcases the affect the internet and modern technology can have on youth. In a way, Lin personifies the American youth in today's world through the main character Sam. I believe there is an inner Sam in all of us, someone who slacks off, wishes they were someone else and does selfish non-productive things from time to time. I think if Lin wanted his readers to come away with a certain message in his book, it would be that the youth of today are so spoiled and used to having immediacy thanks to technology. As a result, many people are always wanting more but not wanting to work for any of it.
As for the term postmodernism, this story ties in perfectly with what was discussed in class regarding the Warhol and Mohammed readings. More specifically, these authors talk about the nature of how life has changed in society. Everyone now lives a life filled with temporary happiness that usually lasts on a daily basis; the youth tends to be lacking in future dreams and ambitions thanks to the digital age. In other words, no one wants to nor has the drive to stick to a goal when it is so far away. The quote that ended the story demonstrated this well: "What did you want to be when you grew up? said Aubrey. Marine biologist, said Sam."(95)   This is acknowledged by the authors as a negative aspect because technology has shown that everything can be instantaneous. Each of the three authors reprimand modern inventions as it definitively has caused drastic changes in the way we do things, for better or worse.