Last night I was telling my mother that if I became so phithy rich that money was no object I would like to buy the copyrights to The Lion King movie. She told me that she wished my dreams weren't so materialistic. I remember my niece accidently breaking a few sentimental Christmas ordiments and asking my mother why she was so upset about it because if something of my mine was broken or lost she told me that it was just a thing. I told her I has so many mixed messages as kid and she said she only told me that because I was so materialistic. I could never really fit in with people nor did I ever feel as if I was a part of my family so maybe "things" helped me cope. I remember for years my stuffed animals were the only friends I ever had. I remember my mom telling countless shrinks that I used to say I never wanted to make friends becuase I had my stuffed animals. So is being materalistic a common thing to autisim/asperger's.
Joined: 6 Dec 2007 Age: 33 Gender: Female Posts: 1,187 Location: Virginia Tech
04 Sep 2008, 10:47 pm
I think it's just that we attach emotion to objects. So it is materialism, but it's not a greedy materialism. It's a loving materialism, if that makes any sense.
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"materialistic" isn't quite the right word. Autistics can be more likely to develop an attachment to objects rather than people, but that isn't really materialism. Materialism is more like the belief that having a lot of money and buying lots of stuff will make you happy
Joined: 26 Aug 2008 Age: 38 Gender: Male Posts: 1,462
04 Sep 2008, 11:25 pm
I'm not materialistic at all.. I dont like to own a lot of things..
when i first moved into my own appartment i had almost nothing.. but it was great.. im a hippie like that, I slept on the floor (hardwood).. what you are is sentimental perhaps but not materialistic.. your mom is a b***h, tell her i said that
Might it be that non-autistics are more likely to be 'peoplistic'?
I'm not convinced we are more materialistic; seems to me everyone else is just as materialistic, but prone to forgetting people are material objects and fixating on them and their attributes/functions/pay-offs/costs is no less materialistic than fixation on any other object and its attributes/functions/pay-offs/costs.
Joined: 29 Aug 2008 Age: 44 Gender: Male Posts: 47
05 Sep 2008, 1:18 am
I would consider myself very materialistic too. I find that aspies are one of the rare types of people who can love materials and objects without being greedy or arrogant.
For me, I just like things. I like phones, cars, computers, certain clothes, even staplers and cool looking pens and notepads. I just like things and yes I am materialistic. But I'm by no means greedy. It's hard to explain the connection we have to objects to an NT.
Could she have just been trying to say she'd wish you'd dream for something great but that was obtainable - like a happy loving spouse and kids, even if you couldn't live in the best house or neighborhood?
I'm not materialistic. I like to live in a nice home, in a nice neighborhood, but it's for my kids' sake, not mine. I don't have expensive taste, I don't try to "keep up with the Jonses", and I don't think money can buy anything other than material items, certainly not happiness. My NT mother is unbelievablt materialistic and a hoarder.
Joined: 26 Mar 2008 Age: 43 Gender: Male Posts: 39
05 Sep 2008, 1:34 am
It depends on your personality. Some aspies are and some aren't. I suspect majority are materialistic. I think many people without wealth or power to obtain wealth delude themselves into believing that material things aren't that important to them.
Joined: 19 Aug 2008 Age: 36 Gender: Male Posts: 773
05 Sep 2008, 1:59 am
I'm a philosophical materialist, but this isn't what this post is about.
But am I materialistic in the sense of dreaming about having a lot of stuff? Not really. I tend to think more about things I'd like to do (e.g. places I'd like to go) if I could afford to, not objects I'd like to own.
I'd like to have enough money to not have to worry about money, but I have no particular desire to be ultra-rich. I don't really know what I'd do with a mansion, for example.
Joined: 19 Jul 2007 Age: 64 Gender: Male Posts: 6,248
05 Sep 2008, 6:32 am
dougn wrote:
I'm a philosophical materialist, but this isn't what this post is about.
But am I materialistic in the sense of dreaming about having a lot of stuff? Not really. I tend to think more about things I'd like to do (e.g. places I'd like to go) if I could afford to, not objects I'd like to own.
I'd like to have enough money to not have to worry about money, but I have no particular desire to be ultra-rich. I don't really know what I'd do with a mansion, for example.
Joined: 3 Feb 2006 Age: 42 Gender: Female Posts: 10,775 Location: Ohio, USA
05 Sep 2008, 9:01 am
Yeah. I think we are 'materialistic' at about the same rate NTs are; but being different, we express it differently. An autistic's attachment to his favorite movie could be just as materialistic as an NT's attachment to his sports car.
I don't think I am particularly materialistic, but if I lost the stuff on my computer hard drive, I'd probably cry.
Joined: 15 Dec 2007 Age: 44 Gender: Male Posts: 898 Location: Netherlands
05 Sep 2008, 10:10 am
A bit materialistic...
I like certain objects, and having enough money to buy books, dvd's and camping equipment. But I am not looking for more money like certain people. And I do not attach much value to a car or clothing like some people do. So my materialism is a bit different.
Joined: 21 Aug 2008 Age: 49 Gender: Female Posts: 1,305 Location: not anywhere near you
05 Sep 2008, 10:15 am
I admit I am somewhat materialistic and LOVE luxury (I don't mean so much fancy cars and definitely not fur coats and expensive clothing.. but trips, nice restaurants and stuff I love, those are definitely luxurious)... and I have plans to do some traveling in the future. Even though things are tight for us now, I am still managing to find a way to save up for some trips I want to take in the future. Visiting certain countries is on my "too do before I die list" and I won't let anything get into the way of my dreams.. unless the travel industry completely goes bust!!
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