The cost of the Birkin bag can exceed six figures. But its exorbitant price tag is only part of its allure. You cannot simply walk into a Hermes store and purchase a Birkin bag. Shoppers are expected to spend thousands of dollars on other Hermes products over a long period of time before they're even offered the opportunity to buy the Birkin, which is also known as a 'quota bag.' On TikTok, its proponents say it's a way to water down the worth of luxury goods and make Hermes' iconic Birkin design accessible to regular people. Many of these videos also excoriate the original Birkin as a ludicrous status symbol for the ultrarich, with the comments sections peppered with calls to 'eat the rich.' Meme culture is rife with examples of how symbols are ascribed new consensus meanings through new social agreements. The skull emoji, for example, evokes death and decay to many people. But Gen Zers have recast the emoji as a symbol of hysterical laughter. Similarly, the word 'mother' has...
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