Introduction Corporate politics have influenced traditional American beliefs, American culture, and American social systems. This way, the commercialization of culture has degenerated traditional cultural values. Through a fascination with American television, mass media has stripped us of tradition and replaced it with a fascination for the pursuit of products and other material possessions. This change has happened within a wider context of the consumerism culture. This culture is part of a popular myth in American contemporary society that advances the belief that gratification and social integration occurs through product ownership and the accumulation of material possessions. Here, stronger needs for fetishistic consumer ideals have replaced traditional values that focus on art, religion, and family. In a false representation of gratification, egocentric ideals have forced many Americans to sublimate the desire for cultural fulfillment through an endless pursuit for material possessions. 1 In this regard, there is no rebirth or renewal through property ownership because transcend truths are lacking. This paper delves deeper into this topic by evaluating the ideology surrounding consumerism and finding out its interaction with traditional American cultural values. Ideological Critique Consumerism thrives on media-manipulated undulations. In this regard, it fails to meet its goals because it lacks the fulfillment of other cultural mythologies (consumerism offers short-term gratification for people who can afford luxury goods and services at the expense of those who cannot afford them). This way, consumerism is a myth that thrives on an inadequately engineered value system. The consumerism culture has thrived in America because the society is largely egocentric. This egocentric culture has made it easy for many Americans to overlook the ontological value of an important cultural experience and replaced it for the ideals and values propagated by deceptive advertising. The lack of morality and humanitarianism are products of this system because people measure their cultural values to economic worth. This system has thrived on the backdrop of a politically oppressive culture that depends on product availability, as opposed to survival needs. These factors have justified the politically oppressive moral construction of the American society. Barthes affirms this view through his representation of myths as “signifiers.” 2 As opposed to the common belief that most myths hide the truth, myths distort our perception of reality. This is what Barthes believes to be the true alienation of our history. He uses this philosophy to oppose the premise through which most myths use to advance their distorted truths – the alienation of history through language. This happens through an oversimplification of truths to a few definitive traits. In the distorted moral and societal system, the dollar has become a cheap substitute for American cultural values. Here, the society gauges people’s self-worth with their ability to purchase luxury goods and services. This problem has also brought a major identity crisis for America because people’s purchasing decisions are not only informed by purpose, but, rather, by the need to please others, or to gain social acceptance. Th