Plath uses the notion of consumerism in her poem “The Applicant” to reveal marriage as an institution on the continuation of social norms. This perception is confirmed by “How about this dress… will you marry it?”, which shows marriage as an investment in society rather than a pristine tradition. This consumerist appeal is reinforced through the use of advertising language “It's waterproof, shatterproof, fireproof and bombs to the stars,” used to continue the metaphor that marriage is an investment in society. Plath demonstrates marriage as a consumerist element of society that reflects the economic paradigms of the time period. Additionally, Kennedy is able to show the economic “ways of thinking” during the time period by comparing capitalism to communism. This is illustrated in his statement “democracy is not perfect, but we have never had to build a wall to hold our people back” and the cynical tone is used to highlight the failures of communism as a system of government. His condemnation of the Berlin Wall reinforces the flaws of the communist system as he assertively describes it as “the most obvious and vivid demonstration of the failures of the communist system.” Kennedy presents communism as inept by accentuating it