Seasonal Spirit
In Florida, seasons are merely suggestions. Rather, we divide our year into “hot” and “less hot.” As such, we know fall is here with the emergence of seasonal food and drink; when stores begin setting up their fall decorations and advertising their limited edition flavors. Thus, on October 1st while the air is still humid and the weather outside is 90 degrees with a slight breeze, National Pumpkin Spice Day has us pulling out our sweaters and Uggs. However, pumpkin spice wasn’t always the staple it is today. In fact, only years ago was the drink negatively characterized as “basic” and “too girly” online. And while hundreds of thousands of women enjoy pumpkin spice, why is that considered negative? Furthermore, how does social media affect—for better or worse—the decisions that build our day to day lives?
Not only does pumpkin spice signify the changing of the leaves, but it also generates hundreds of millions of dollars for Starbucks in a single season alone (around five to six hundred million dollars!). First launched in 2003 as a test product and limited to stores in Washington D.C. and Vancouver, pumpkin spice has since become a huge phenomenon found in all sorts of stores across the United States. However, social media didn’t always view it the same way. According to Brittany Luse”s NPR piece, “<20 years of Pumpkin Spice Power", pumpkin spice had developed a rather negative image of simplicity in a time where all one wanted was to stand out. In American culture, the drink is often associated with femininity and “whiteness”, Luse claims. Throughout the 2010s, “quirky craze” basic was a sneer-worthy title. Henceforth, social media users worked to distinguish themselves from all things plain, pumpkin spice being one of them. Thus,pumpkin spice’s fall from grace began with social media as the culprit.
Mass Media
In today’s America, having a cell phone is necessary for communication and connection. Because of this, much of our lives are digitized and our phones determine so much of who we are and what we do. The emergence of social media has only ignited this technological force further. Today, it’s proven that the average person spends about two hours and thirty minutes on social media a day, which adds up to about forty days in a year; it’s clear the influence social media has on our everyday lives. However, it’s not only the content that affects people. Advertisements are embedded into every page on our phones and every swipe we make, trying to persuade us to make purchases or think a certain way. In the United States, TikTok users typically get sponsored ads after every one to two organic videos they see. In other words, this means users see as many or almost as many ads as they do videos. Even the way that we think and define advertisements has changed with the rise of social media.
Content creators, also known as influencers, post regularly and have a significant follower count. With their unique ability to reach a large audience quickly, they are often the targets of companies looking to advance their product. Consequently, these influencers get sponsored—meaning they get paid to promote a product to their viewers, whether they actually like the product or not. In this way, companies utilize ethos and a content creator’s credibility to convince the market of their good. As this has increased steadily throughout the years, society has begun to blend into product trends. People want the latest and greatest—and today that’s whatever their favorite influencer is supporting. It’s clear that social media is the great homogenizer of today and very useful in the adoption of trends in our culture. However, it can also do the opposite. As fast as the media creates trends, it can cancel them too. Thus, cancel culture emerges. In the case of pumpkin spice, it originally wasn’t supported on social media, as users stereotyped it to be a drink for “basic white girls”.
Don’t be Afraid to be Basic
As people made to live in community, we enjoy fitting in and having a sense of connection with those around us. In the fall, pumpkin spice allows us to do just that. While social media has ever-changing trends often determining “what’s right” and “what’s wrong”, it’s clear that pumpkin spice has survived it all. However, if people fell to the societal pressures of social media, who knows if the seasonal favorite would be as successful as it is today. While it feels good to “fit in”, we can’t let the ever-changing culture of trends take away our sense of self and our unique identity (hint: this doesn’t just apply to what drink flavor you like!). What I’m trying to say is: don’t be afraid to be basic! Trends may have stereotypes, but you don’t! So drink that pumpkin spice if you want, try that new restaurant, but don’t put pressure on yourself to be unique—you already are. After all, pumpkin spice, once viewed as nothing special, is now a symbol of individuality.
