The clock read 5:55 a.m. Dressed in khakis and a red zip-up, a Target name badge pinned to my breast, I braved the madness of the sales floor. To the left of the cash registers wove a line of customers, each attached to a shopping cart swollen with Legos, iPods and boxes of Christmas decorations. It was Black Friday at Target, a day of near holiness by retail standards.

Almost immediately after taking my place behind a register, a woman dressed in sweatpants and running sneakers parked her cart in front of the blinking check lane. She was armed with a Starbucks latte in one hand and a fan of credit cards in the other. Like an Olympic sprinter who had just crossed the finish line, she emphatically wiped a bead of sweat from her brow.

“Did you catch the price on those cameras over in electronics? Just bought one downstairs in Best Buy, but couldn’t resist a second,” she chuckled.

Commercialism has often been blamed for tainting our holiday spirit, but it is also a tradition the United States has fully bought into. The term, “Black Friday” traces back to the 1960s when economists first noticed that sales tended to peak after Thanksgiving Day as families readied themselves for the winter gift-giving. Corporations took note, and hyped the day with advertising door-buster bargains and deals to multiply their sales.

“Interestingly enough, it’s a shopping phenomenon of the chains. Small independent retailers don’t do that well,” said Mary Ann Odegaard, a professor in the Foster School of Business. “As our economy continued along at a significantly smoother pace, consumerism grew and grew and grew to the point where it was hard to figure out why there was so much stuff.”

The idea of a big holiday shopping spree has become so ingrained in our culture that economists use the collective sales from the holiday shopping season to gauge the financial stability of our country.

“America is a consumerism-oriented society because we have the money and the technologies,” UW junior Richard Buehler said. “It’s just an effect of the fact that Americans are wealthy compared to a large part of the world.”

This November marked Buehler’s seventh year of retail at the Target superstore in Northgate. He reported that the holidays draw all ages and demographics, with electronics, jewelry and toys being the most popular products.

For some, though, thinner wallets mean less goods during the winter shopping season.

“[I try to avoid] the holiday shopping rush,” said sophomore Scott Brandt, a former teller at Target. “Mainly because I don’t really have any money to spend, but sometimes, there are deals on Black Friday that you just can’t refuse.”

Consumerism was promoted by the government and large corporations as our country transitioned from an agricultural society in the 19th century to a consumer-based culture in the 20th century. GIs and their new brides were encouraged to buy homes, cars, household appliances and trinkets for the baby-boomer generation. Spending money became a symbol of patriotism for its investment in the domestic marketplace.

“The spiritual aspect of the holidays has definitely been challenged by consumerism,” Odegaard said. “People who have all the best intentions about not spending money can feel the pull of the holiday.”

According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), in 2002, the average adult spent $648.85 during the holiday shopping season. That number jumped to $832.36 in 2008 — despite the economic recession. ShopperTrak estimated that this Black Friday, 180 million Americans grazed the aisles of retail giants like Target, Wal-Mart and Best Buy.

The shopping season is perceived as an extension of the holidays because of its ability to unite us. No matter how much money we end up spending or the restrictiveness of this year’s budget, it’s a social activity. The drive to find the perfect gift for the that perfect person is nearly universal. The consumer frenzy surrounding the holiday shopping season may be correlated with the American dream and our belief that we can purchase happiness.

“There are people who go for the experience and people who are lined up for the bargains,” Odegaard observed. “In the United States, we really see shopping as a form of entertainment.

Most student budgets don’t permit a huge wish list. The NRF predicted weak sales among 18 to 20-year-olds with the average young adult spending $50 less than last year because of their limited resources. But while the holiday shopping season is often villainized for challenging religious ideals, individuals like Buehler get pleasure out of spending money and may use the holidays as an excuse to shed frugality.

“I wouldn’t say I feel pressured to spend money, but I definitely want to,” Buehler said. “I enjoy buying gifts for the people in my life that I care for. It’s a chance to show them that they are important to me.”

8:09 a.m.: One group of students mobbed the cash register on Friday unloading only a few things of groceries and a portable DVD player. As I rang up the modest purchase, they gingerly picked at their pile, obviously concerned that they would exceed some budget.

Some professors foresee a shift in the consumerist mentality of our culture. As we recover from the detrimental effects of unemployment and a poor economy, people are left to wonder how much stuff they can do without.

“The financial crisis last year put a screaming halt to everything,” Odegaard said. “Whether Black Friday [and holiday shopping] will ever be the same again is the question.”

Despite the deep-seated presence of consumerism in our culture, Odegaard believes that we may be witnessing a fundamental value shift. A study conducted by Context-Based Research Group revealed that fewer people will be participating in “consumer-centric” activities this winter in favor of spending more time with family and friends. Thirty-four percent said they’d be volunteering as a form of gift-giving.

“There has always been some element of entertainment in shopping. People like to buy new things,” said Richard Yalch, a professor of marketing. “Today, consumers are focused on being thrifty, and in-store entertainment may be seen as unnecessary.”

People are not only inclined to spend less money, explained Odegaard, but they feel guilty indulging in purchases when the stability of the job market is in question.

“Simplification seems to be the dominant desire today,” Yalch said.

Reach reporter Celina Kareiva at lifestyles@dailyuw.com.