‘The Leisure Class’ Today

Abstract

The central issue addressed by Veblen (1899) in The Theory of the Leisure Class is the honorific value of leisure in mass culture. He shows little interest in the intrinsic character of leisure activities. Indeed, his argument questions if leisure can be understood as activity ‘for its own sake’ or as a ‘natural’ expression of human capacities. Rather his focus is upon what leisure practice signifies symbolically in mass culture and, of course, the connection between symbolic and economic power. This anticipates many of the most salient themes in contemporary discussions about performative culture. In fine, Veblen is claiming that we possess a strong tendency to emulate the standards set by the most economically powerful strata in society. This implies that cultural capital derives from economic capital and further that the stratification hierarchy in industrial society is relatively unambiguous.