The paragraph your questions refers to, is an excerpt from 'Babbit' by Sinclair Lewis. Babbit, in his book, was a country boy, one that had dreams. He appears to be the clear representation of the American dream. However, his longing for the fairy child slowly start to stain the vision he has of himself.
In this paragraph, the main idea is: He has wealth, but no real joy and passion in his life. We can get to this conclusion from the use of the words: 'sign' and 'substitute'. Because the toothpaste, socks, tires, cameras and water heaters were signs at first, we could say that he was passionate at first.
When the signs turn into substitutes, the 'real joy' and 'real passion' are no longer real. They just become substitutes. So he is wealthy, but not happy or passionate about life anymore.
Have a great day! :)