Distinction Summary

Why do we like what we like? It’s a question that unveils the deep ties between our preferences and the society we live in.

1. Tastes Reveal Class Position

Our preferences in food, entertainment, and hobbies often echo the social class we belong to. Pierre Bourdieu explains this through the idea that distinct classes have distinct tastes. For example, attending classical music concerts or visiting art museums is often associated with the elite, while wrestling matches and amusement parks are connected to the working class.

This association is not random but deeply ingrained in how society categorizes people. Lower classes are linked with "popular" tastes, the middle class with "middle-brow" preferences, and the cultural elite with "legitimate" or refined tastes. These divisions serve both social and cultural purposes, reinforcing class boundaries and identities.

The preferences themselves are not fixed; they evolve over time and differ across locations, ethnicity, or gender. The cascade of societal trends filters down, and tastes adapt, but the underlying association between preferences and class remains robust.

Examples

• Classical music and opera are tied to the cultural elite.
• Movie preferences, like enjoying superhero flicks versus foreign art films, can reflect a person’s class.
• Choices like luxury cars or boutique tastes highlight divisions within wealthy classes.

2. Understanding Taste Requires Embracing Everyday Thinking

Bourdieu emphasizes that to understand taste sociologically, we must account for how ordinary people perceive taste. Tastes are not purely individual or independent—they are shaped by cultural perceptions and societal judgments, often rooted in class.

For instance, someone from an affluent background might dismiss a circus as "vulgar" but embrace an art exhibit as "sophisticated." This doesn't just reflect individual preference but a societal pattern of aligning activities with class-associated values. Similarly, a working-class person might reject opera as too pretentious, associating it with a class that's not their own.

By considering these class-informed judgments, we see how taste manifests as a way to affirm one's identity and reject what’s viewed as belonging to another group. Ignoring these preconceived connections risks overlooking the societal bonds between taste and class.

Examples

• Wealthy people viewing ballet as high art while dismissing pop music.
• Associating fast food with working-class tastes versus fine dining with affluence.
• Middle-class families adopting trends from higher classes, like home décor fads.

3. Taste Shapes and Reflects Class Realities

Taste doesn’t just align with class; it actively reinforces it. People's judgments about activities or items—believing some are better suited to their class—lead to actual behaviors that then define the class itself.

For example, elites who avoid circuses and attend galleries make these behaviors markers of their class identity. Conversely, a working-class group attending wrestling matches and skipping formal lectures builds their class's cultural blueprint. These actions create self-perpetuating cycles where what people associate with a class becomes that class’s reality.

Through this process, taste doesn't just reflect class; it builds it. A feedback loop develops, solidifying both taste and class roles, and embedding them into cultural norms.

Examples

• Wine tastings viewed as an upper-class event, while beer festivals are associated with the working class.
• Academic lectures or niche museums becoming spaces exclusive to highly educated circles.
• Sports like golf used as symbols of upward mobility among aspirational professionals.

4. Economic and Cultural Capital Define Class

Bourdieu observed that wealth ("economic capital") and shared cultural knowledge ("cultural capital") are two pillars of class identity. Where someone falls on the social ladder depends on how these two forms of capital are distributed.

Cultural capital encompasses things like education, elegance in speech, or familiarity with refined art. These non-monetary assets often play a louder role in distinguishing the elite from those simply wealthy. On the flip side, working-class areas rely less on cultural capital and more on day-to-day economic survival.

This division means someone wealthy but culturally uninvolved (e.g., someone with purely luxury goods) differs from those wealthy and rich in cultural awareness. Thus, taste often mirrors class as much as it defines its boundaries.

Examples

• Someone with a prestigious artist career but little wealth still holds high cultural capital.
• Entrepreneurs focusing primarily on luxury consumption fall under bourgeois taste without being culturally elite.
• Graduates of elite universities gaining class-related advantages through educational capital.

5. Taste Is Inherited Through Habitus

Bourdieu introduced the term "habitus" to explain how people internalize class norms from childhood. Your habitus represents the unseen compass guiding your preferences, shaped by family, education, and social exposure.

If you grow up with exposure to art museums or classical music, you develop the cultural leanings of the elite. Meanwhile, someone raised in a farming household may carry practical, utilitarian preferences, valuing function over aesthetics across all taste encounters.

Habitus explains why similar families in a class have similar tastes—they absorb shared conditions and reproduce them in both preference and behavior, maintaining class cohesion.

Examples

• Children of academics instinctively gravitate toward bookstores and libraries.
• Wealthy families frequent art auctions, passing that value on to younger generations.
• A working-class family prioritizing sturdy, affordable clothing raises children with similar tastes.

6. Social Mobility Influences Preferences

As people move up or down the social ladder, their tastes adapt. The upwardly mobile might mimic elite preferences to integrate, while those experiencing downward mobility may retain former symbols of affluence.

This adaptation drives consumer decisions. Mid-level professionals might buy branded clothing to appear financially successful. At the same time, downwardly mobile elites might still cherish highbrow musical preferences as nostalgic ties to former status.

However, this isn't a perfect fit, as tastes developed in formerly familiar conditions don’t always match changing trajectories, creating personal tensions about identity.

Examples

• First-generation professionals purchasing designer wallets for status.
• Wealthy-born individuals serving in low-income fields like nonprofits holding onto prior preferences.
• Struggling middle-class homeowners maintaining elite hobbies like golf.

7. Class Markers Differentiate Groups

Whether it’s clothing, food, or leisure, taste is used to distinguish “us” and “them.” Members of different classes use preference differences as subtle badges—showing off through behaviors or belongings.

Elites, for instance, don’t just value wealth; they display high-end exclusivity through obscure cultural knowledge. Even commodities like clothes become vessels of class distinction via subtle quality differences or branding.

This stratification creates both inclusion and exclusion, with classes emphasizing identities by displaying preferences incompatible with outside groups.

Examples

• High-status individuals interpreting art through layered, technical discussion.
• Yoga becoming more luxurious via expensive studio memberships in suburban areas.
• The working class emphasizing simpler entertainment options, e.g., televised sports.

8. Cultural Tastes Exclude Outsiders

What may seem like pure preference often serves as a gatekeeping tool by the elite. By requiring cultural knowledge (or capital) to appreciate certain music, art, or fashion trends, the upper classes maintain their exclusivity.

Appreciating an abstract painting or an obscure opera requires special knowledge that's tied to education and upbringing. The elite thus secure their identity, expressing refined cultural attachments inaccessible to those without similar training or exposure.

Outsiders not "in the know" are unable to engage confidently, reinforcing their exclusion.

Examples

• Fine art auctions inaccessible to average income earners.
• Academic analysis of poetry valued over pop lyrics by literary communities.
• Specialized museum exhibits with heavy cultural niche appeal.

9. Taste Reflects and Reinforces Class Systems

Taste doesn't merely define personal choice—it reinforces social structures. Preferences signal class roles to others, confirming identities in complex social spaces.

If someone can "pass" taste tests associated with specific class behaviors, they're admitted socially into elevated ranks. Think of social clubs, workplaces, and cultural events tailored mostly for insiders.

Taste thus ensures that society's distinction lines stay firm, weaving preference into moral and identity judgments.

Examples

• Ivy League alumni events fostering belonging through shared upper-class values.
• Dress codes at elite country clubs enforcing visible class markers.
• Middle-class gated communities emphasizing "tasteful" home preferences as qualifiers.

Takeaways

1. Analyze your preferences and understand how they mirror your personal social environment.
2. Embrace diverse tastes to bridge gaps across cultures and classes, reshaping how you engage socially.
3. Use your knowledge of taste categorizations to navigate professional or social barriers.