Douglas Coupland, "Shopping Is Not Creating," from Generation X


1. In many ways, "Shopping Is Not Creating" takes the form of commentary on contemporary culture. What types of cultural artifacts are referred to throughout the story, and what roles do they play in both the story and the story-within-the-story?

2. Texlahoma is described by the narrator as "a sad Everyplace." How is it sad, how is that sadness part of common human experience, and how is it particular to late-twentieth-century American culture? Finally, how does the sadness of the place shape the characters within it?

3. What role do the marginalia--in this excerpt, "STOP/HISTORY" and the definitions of "legislated nostalgia" and "now denial"--play in the story's meaning? Is the placement of these marginalia significant, and, if so, how?