Enough thinking: we’re living in the age of feeling

Why don't we read ads any more? This article argues it is not because this is a post-literate age when people don't want to read anything (as the Harry Potter phenomenon shows), but because we don't want to have to think about the things we buy.

Enough thinking: we're living in the age of feeling

Brian Millar

I picked up a load of 1970s D&AD annuals in an Oxfam shop a few weeks ago. After knackering my back by carrying them all home with me, I made myself as comfortable as traction would allow and prepared for a feast from the Golden Age of Long Copy Advertising.

After one annual I was ready to slit my wrists. It was so depressing: David Abbott was hawking a kids' book club by terrifying parents into thinking that children who don't read Roald Dahl will never get a job....

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