Is Bigger Always Better?

As you heard in a few times in my housemates’ interviews, one of the main aspects that stood out to them when they arrived here was the large size of everything.

Drink size comparison (the line is the American Size)

“Go big or go home” is a coined American phrase. It is no secret… we like "BIG". People coming to the USA for the first time are always quick to marvel at the large size of our drinks, houses, cars, and, yes, even our people.

You don’t believe me on this? Check out these five graphs (source) that show how America has gotten bigger:

1. Our Food

The average restaurant meal is now four times larger than it was in the 1950s.

2. Our Chickens

Our chickens have grown substantially since the 1950s

3. Our People

American women have increased 18.5% in weight since 1960 and American men have increased 17.6%

4. Our Cars

The Honda Accord has increased 20 inches in length in 30 years.

5. Our Houses

The size of our houses have increased 120% while our household size has decreased.

This all has got me wondering -- why is everything in America so large?

According to the Times (2010), Americans are enamored with big things because of our history. It all started with the idea that we had so much space to spread out with. This idea that we had the ability to go westward and claim our land might be the root cause for our obsession with the huge. The American Dream thrives on this idea in that we can have everything we want if we work for it -- whether that is a bigger house or just a super-sized Coke. America consumerism does not like to put limits. As we like to say, “bigger is ALWAYS better”.

Comparisons of Dinner Plate Size

However, at what point do we say enough is enough? When is bigger not neccisarily better? Big houses and big cars put more strain on our environment and we know that obesity is unhealthy.

Before you know it, we will all end up like the people in Wall-E

As we read and discussed in class, nudges towards normal sizes could be used. For example, as discussed in the Mindless Eating Youtube Video, we can use smaller plates to reduce the large amounts of food we consume.

Maybe we are already seeing shifts in the American consumer mindset though with the popularity of tiny houses and smart cars. Who knows, maybe in the future I will have to write a blog post complaining about the small sizes in America?

A tiny house -- A possible backlash from large houses?

What Do You Think: Will sizes in America continue to grow or are we shifting towards more moderate sizings?