Along with some awaited post, there were a few barely coherent fliers and a small local publication. This publication overtly calls itself an advertising medium and does not offer any real substance beyond spaces for local companies to advertise. Nestled among these advertisements is a personal ads section.
I was struck by its position in the publication and how brazen its position as advertisement became within it. Local businesses advertise their wares in this paper and I wonder if something similar is going on with the local people that take out these personal ads. What exactly are they advertising? Sexual appeal? Sociability? Love? Each of these things seems far more subjective than the type of lawn mower you use or the different supermarket you visit.
At least with these other objects there is a clear definition of what they offer. A better coffee grinder will grind your coffee better. It is not obvious what a better personal ad would look like or what it would sell. Not only do these ads seem to undermine the subjective specificity of relationships, it seems to do so in a manner that is pretty incoherent.
Let's not all become advertisement companies for ourselves.
-The English Student
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