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In Passage 1, Urist claims that minimalism is driven by the desire to manage impressions and present one’s best face rather than ideals of frugality and inner well-being. (Para 4) 

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In Passage 1, Urist claims that minimalism is driven by the desire to manage impressions and present one’s best face rather than ideals of frugality and inner well-being. (Para 4) 

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Becker exalts minimalism in Passage 2 as a form of escape from the clutter in life, bringing mental clarity, alignment to one’s values and inner peace. (Para 2) 

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Becker exalts minimalism in Passage 2 as a form of escape from the clutter in life, bringing mental clarity, alignment to one’s values and inner peace. (Para 2) 

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Becker argues in Passage 2 that minimalism is the antidote to the materialistic values of today’s world. (Para 4) 

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Becker argues in Passage 2 that minimalism is the antidote to the materialistic values of today’s world. (Para 4) 

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in my opinion, minimalism is the antidote to the materialistic values of todays world. minimalism allows people to abstain from indulging in materialism and helps them to minimise their dependence on materialistic things for seeking instant gratification. it allows them to be grateful for the small things in life instead of only focusing on material aspects of their lives. this can be seen in Singapore. while we rank 5th in the world for our GDP per capita, residents in singapore are the least likely to report positive emotions. this shows that solely focusing on getting expensive items and wealth can lead to unhappiness even though it can get you the items you desire the most. with minimalism, people put aside their want for expensive goods and focus on appreciating what they already have, making them happier overall.

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I personally agree to a large extent that minimalism is a great way to gain more time for internal reflections, more time to think of what we truly want as well as seeking internal comforts. Minimalism is the exact opposite of materialism. It means that one who actively seeks simplicity and not live to earn money, purchasing wealthy goods just to impress people. Minimalism allows people to take breaks to de-stress from hectic lives. I believe that in our lives, there is much more meaningful things to do rather than owning every single thing to awe people around, we should start learning to appreciate little things around us. This is especially the case in Singapore, whereby people strive to get the latest technology, own the most expensive, updated goods. Additionally, Singapore is one of the most stressed country to live in, especially when cost of living, pandemic, and with all the inflation going on for the past four years. With minimalism, this can distract people from constantly chasing over the new technology, the new item or the new 'Gucci Bag' just to make people admire them. Instead, people in Singapore would be able to take some break, truly reflect what is the purpose of life and their passion which allows them to find comfort within themselves. Thus I agree that minimalism brings about more merits than drawbacks.

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Minimalism is the antidote to the materialistic values of today’s world. Passage 2 explores how minimalism helps us to be more appreciative of what one has and not dwell on what we do not have. This is not observed in Singapore, where its citizens are money-driven, where they constantly seek lavish lifestyles, including having the latest technology like the newest iPhones and other gadgets, even though they already have a working one. This distracts them by focusing on unnecessary desires and divert their attention from enjoying their life. Life for the average Singaporean is already hectic as it is and many complain saying they lack the time to rest. This exacerbates the issue of spending time, money and effort on things that ultimately do not matter. To consistently find ways to upgrade one’s inventory of material goods despite having no need to, it is difficult for one to be satisfied with what they have, such that happiness is compromised. Minimalism helps to guide one to realise the true value of truly enjoying life.

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we agree to a large extent that minimalism is the antidote to the materialistic values of today's world. Having minimalistic items have a cleaner and smoother look, making easier for people to view. It does not distract you from the main objective. An art museum is a great example. Art museums tend to have white walls, having spotlights on each of the artpieces, without them having distractive frames. Instead, they have simple frames to prevent the user from being distracted from the artwork. Imagine going to an art museum with bright neon colour with designs all over the frame. You will not be focused on the artwork but the frame instead.

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I agree that minimalism is the antidote to the materialistic values of today's world. minimalism allows us to focus on the more important things in live and care less about things that do not matter as much to us. for instance living in a face paced city and small country like Singapore will make us focus more on how much productive things we can do for the society we can complete in a day but if we live like minimalists we will be able to not care as much and focus on how happy we are everyday instead as there is no longer as much clutter

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I agree to a large extent that minimalism helps us to live a peaceful and healthy life. Living the way one wants to live with their own rules and values is a life best lived. We often tend to lead our lives the way others want us to or just to impress others. In the end what remains is unhappiness and regret. When we are old we can only look back to realise that we own possessions that are no longer on trend today. What’s the point of working very hard to live a trendy life to show off to others? While leading this type of hectic lifestyle one has forgotten to reflect on how he/she has lived their life. Which is why having lesser things or being more focused on living a flourishing life is important to be peaceful and happy. However in SG minimalism can rarely be seen. Everyone’s more focused on which iPhone is on trend today or what New product rare beauty released. We work,buy  and repeat. It’s because of this mindset of ours that we are the most fatigued country in the world with a score of 7.20. If we made minimalism the new normal we can live a well- rounded life. As such I believe that minimalism brings peace to the soul.

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We agree that minimalism encourages individuals to focus on what truly adds value to their lives, advocating for the intentional ownership of possessions and a deliberate avoidance of unnecessary consumption. By consciously decluttering and simplifying one's life, minimalism aims to promote a sense of contentment and fulfillment that goes beyond the pursuit of material possessions. In the context of Singapore, which is a  capitalist country, minimalism allows Singaporeans to become less consumerist. Consequently, this reduces the materialistic mindset of Singaporeans.

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I personally agree that minimalism helps one to escape from the clutter from their life and find inner peace. This is backed by Joushua Becker’s personal experience where he says “ minimalism offered an escape from the clutter in my life. It reintroduced clarity to my thoughts which realigned my actions with my values. And it offered a deep inner peace in my heart which had so far been elusive.” Similarly I also believe that the act of having less helps us to reduce unnecessary worry and stress about the things we own as they just do matter. Moreover having less also allows us to redirect our energy on things that actually matter like having fun and making memories that last.

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I agree to a small extent that people practice minimalism so as to only impress others rather than truly embodying it. Firstly what Urist fails to consider is that the practice of minimalism entails much sacrifice one has to make, some of which will be gruelling, such as having to part ways with sentimental items. Thus, with the painful costs one has to bear, seeking external validation is unlikely to be a sufficient source of motivation. However, there is no doubt it will play a role in driving individuals to practice minimalism. Be that as it may, it will more often then not be overshadowed by ones motivation of achieving frugality and inner well-being due to the vast effect minimalism will have on one's life, should they choose to practise it, a possible 180 degree change. Hence, one would definitely genuinely practice minimalism rather than to just impress others. In the context of Singapore, many Singaporeans are often self driven. With the array of opportunities students now have to develop themselves, many possess outstanding qualifications relative to other foreign students. Many high paying jobs are available to them, yet most Singaporeans choose to find jobs which align with their goals and passion. For instance, More than six in ten Professionals, managers, executives and technicians (PMETs) agreed that it is true or very true that they have found a meaningful career, and that their work makes a positive difference in the world. Thus showing that Singaporeans mostly seek purposeful jobs. Hence minimalism is not only driven by the desire to present ones best face.