Too much?

I just finished watching "The Devil Wears Prada" (for the third time), and I have come to the conclusion that I have a love-hate relationship with that movie, similar to "Running with Scissors," only for very different reasons. I find it funny and entertaining, despite the fact that Anne Hathaway can't act and even Emily Blunt, I think, performs below par. What really impacted me this time around was how absurdly materialistic our society, and the human race in general, is. Given the money, almost anyone, almost, will maybe not necessarily become greedy and heartless, but will undoubtedly indulge himself far more than he should. 

I work at the lowest end of the fashion industry, and even there it's disgusting. The way we convince people they need certain shoes because they're "in style," they'll attract attention, they'll go with a certain outfit, they're something basic that every wardrobe requires, etc...it's manipulative and utterly unnecessary. But isn't that the whole point of fashion?  

Last week, I was in a mall I don't normally visit with my friend, Ellen. We were there to see a movie because Ellen had a gift card for that particular theatre. There are two reasons neither of us would usually go there: one, we have a perfectly good mall that is closer to where we live, and two, this was is what we refer to as a "rich mall." We had some time to kill before the movie began, so we wandered around with the intention of gawking at the ridiculously high prices of various items. The first store we wandered into was Ralph Lauren. The only experience I've ever had with Ralph Lauren was on the sale rack at Macy's when I was Christmas shopping for my mother. I got her a sweater for about $25. Thinking this may just be one of the sole affordable stores the mall offered, Ellen and I immediately gravitated toward a pair of blindingly bright orange denim pants that we proceeded to mock. Upon sneaking a look at the price tag, we discovered, to our shock, that they were $245. Who in the world would pay $245 for any pair of pants, let alone hideous orange ones? We then found an equally atrocious orange and white striped collared shirt which we combined with the pants to make the Orange Outfit of Doom. 

My point is that materialism is such an issue, yet I realize this and still fall prey to it. As I was watching the movie tonight, I found myself thinking, "Whoa, I look like crap. I definitely need to replace like half my clothing!" Of course I quickly pulled myself out of that mindset, but it left me wondering, how much is too much? There's a lot that I don't exactly need, but I don't think having it is wrong. Where is the balance between having enough to be acceptable by social standards (i.e., a family wouldn't get along too well here if they owned a one-room house with a dirt floor and no electricity or plumbing) and having more than I should? I believe it differs for everyone, but it's still interesting to ponder. The Devil can wear Prada if he likes, but I'll stick to something a bit more affordable that wouldn't forever scar my conscience.