Advertising has now become a less aggressive version of propaganda. The reason for this is the relationship that developed between Sigmund Freud and his nephew Edward Bernays. In the film titled The Century of the Self, we learn how Bernays took the ideas of his uncle's philosophy and invented the profession of public relations in the early 1920s. His nephew would go to different companies in America and show them how to manipulate people into wanting their products. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay. This manipulation would create the need for their marketed item. It's not that a person necessarily needed their product, but would now want it so much that they felt it was a need. This was done by linking the mass-produced goods of the world to people's unconscious desires and creating this effect of need on top of an innocent desire. Bernays would use every possible trick in the book to exploit people's feelings about products. These tricks included, but were not limited to the following: celebrity endorsements, public relations stunts, and even assigning cars to specific genders. After watching this movie, I was completely horrified by how these little thirty second commercials on my television are playing a role in controlling our society. We currently live in a world where we feed on advertising. Companies and people use advertising to target the most basic psychological needs and this plays into a person's denial of access to certain needs. Personally, every day of my life, I am exposed to companies that try to convince me to purchase their items by connecting their products to my emotions and how they know they will make me feel. For example, when I saw an advertisement for a detergent, there was this brand of detergent next to cute and soft puppies, small children, sunshine and soft blankets. Seeing all these items together represents positivity and comfort that will trigger an urge in me where I will definitely purchase the product the next time I go to the store. However, this is only because I want my blankets to be as soft as the ones those adorable puppies slept on. This is just as Bernays had said: “You are not just buying something; that's how much better you'll feel once you buy it. ”Advertising continues to dominate our world and in today's society the things we want are so accessible that we don't even need to think about them before making the purchase, but we don't realize what could be affected around us. Let's talk for example about the famous fast-food restaurant Chick-Fil-A. They're known for having their famous cows holding up signs that read "Eat Mor Chikin," but where do these chickens come from? Are these chickens full of antibiotics? How many are killed every day just to provide enough supplies for their restaurants? And do we know if workers are paid a fair wage or treated fairly by their managers? Oh, but I don't have to worry, if I download the Chick-Fil-A app on my phone, I get a free eight-count chicken nugget and that's when I won't be thinking about all my previous questions. I won't care anymore because I get the food for free. It's just like Bernays said: “Information drives behavior. “This is where the world, especially America, has taken a wrong turn in how we treat each other. Companies continually blind us, preying on our emotions. They know that because most Americans can't make ends meet,they repeatedly go to a place that offers promotions, good deals or free food. When times are tough, a buy-one-get-one-free meal seems like the best option for your family, but we don't realize how we got that product in the first place. Since we are not worried about the origin of the product, we take out our credit cards to make it happen before the promotion ends. Corporations are achieving their goal of human manipulation and control of our thoughts every single day through these deals that trick our minds. The whole concept of advertising really scares me. This is because I don't like having my mind controlled by someone else and not being fully aware of it. It's happening right in front of me, but I haven't seen it yet. One of the greatest examples of this manipulation in our society occurs every year on the first Sunday in February. On this day, we get together with all our friends and family to eat something and watch the biggest football game of the year, The Super Bowl. The thing that goes unnoticed is that we don't just watch the two best teams in the NFL clash, but big companies spend millions of dollars to give us a 30-60 second ad about why their product is best for us. We all know that Super Bowl commercials are the most anticipated because of their usual comedic value, so let's all pay attention to them so we can talk about them the next day at work or school. Great companies are brilliant, because millions of people watch, millions of people react, and millions of people buy. This helps prove Bernays' theory that this psychological manipulation causes an instinctive drive for all consumers to do just that, consume. The hunger created in us to have what we don't have, but now feel we need, is exceptional. It's hard to know when you make a purchase what exactly you're getting into. Let's say someone plans to take dietary supplements such as: nutritional pills, protein powder, energy bars or herbal extracts. These items are not required to receive approval from the US Food and Drug Administration to provide their product to their customers. Therefore, a person might consume protein powder just because they like the way the advertisement shows the product, but the fine print stating that it is not FDA approved goes unnoticed. This means that a company can put anything they want into their product and sell it without having that seal of approval. This is a great example of marketing controlling consumers. By appealing to something like weight loss from purchasing dietary supplements, big companies know that people will ignore the side effects of the product. Showing a faster way to lose weight successfully appeals to most people's emotions; this emotional connection is why people are drawn to the product's show in that short period of time that interrupted their favorite TV show. Advertising and propaganda are very powerful media tools. Both use similar media formats to spread their message and attract new followers or gain additional support from their already emotional army. Bernays thought that: “If you can use propaganda for war, then you could certainly use it for peace. “I think the word 'advertising' is just a less aggressive, softer version of the word 'propaganda.'” Both of these marketing strategies attempt to influence people to do certain activities that they most likely didn't want to do in the first place, but which now they will.?