The Art of Becoming: The implications of taste on the self and society in a postmodern era

Jason Lewis

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Our questionnaire also seeks to investigate Bourdieus notion that taste is as a compilation of learned social behaviours as a result of ones socio-economic background, also referred to as, social class. To Bourdieu, like Weber, class is essentially a theoretical construction that allows for characterisation. Classes are made up of individuals who happen to occupy similar positions in a multidimensional capital space (i.e. they possess similar amounts and types of capital) hence, they are subject to similar material and cultural conditions and conditionings which results in the formation

of a structure which controls aesthetic personal preferences; such as clothing, art, music, etc (Douglas E. Allen and Paul F. Anderson 1994).

According to Bourdieu, the results of our questionnaire should show a strong correlation between familial income brackets and taste- defined as personal preferences in the realm of the arts, fashion, leisure activities and socio-political involvement (Bourdieu, 1984). But the results do not necessarily do that. Why?

Results To begin with, we take a look at some of the relevant results.* (refer to full results on results page)

travelling(17%). Only a combined total of 11% are interested in more classical hobbies like visiting Museums/Galleries and going to the Opera The first thing one notes is the apparent arbitrary nature of the results and the absence of any correlation Bourdieus hypothesis proposes. However, it is not the seemingly arbitrary nature of our results which appear to contradict Bourdieu, as he also believes that majority of societies trends are merely the arbitrary preferences of those at the top of the social hierarchy which are then enforced on the rest of the society. It is the fact that this arbitrariness doesnt appear to be consigned to any particular social class in our findings. Desires are spread out as if the familial income of our participants is just one of those random occurrences, not the purveyor of them.

i) 18% of our participants come from homes with a total combined annual income below 20,000, while 34% come from homes with a total annual income of over 80,000 ii) 98% are undergraduate students with 70% aiming for a masters degree iii) most indicate a preference for a career which involve art, culture, and/or creative expression iv) 76% are quite actively involved in social media; with Facebook & Instagram as the top two, with a 100% participating in social media in some form or the other v) 55% of our survey takers prefer to get their news from online sources vi) A combined 67% listen to: trendy pop music (31%), R&B(18%) and Rock(18%) vii)64% prefer to spend their spare money on: books(13%), clothing and accessories (16%), food (16%), and

What would Bourdieu say? If Bourdieu were alive to witness the results of this questionnaire, however, he would most likely offer up the following

conclusion. He would argue that the reason personal preferences and desires are not limited to the one class is because all of the participants have managed to attain a high level of education (98% are undergrads, and the rest are PHD students). For Bourdieu, the educational institution succeeds in imposing cultural practices that it does not teach and does not even explicitly demand, but which belong to the attributes attached by status to the position it assigns, the qualifications it awards, and the social positions to which the latter give access (Bourdieu, 1984). In other words, Bourdieu would suggest that the participants of our survey purchase the things they do, spend their leisure time doing certain activities, and have certain desires, all because of their direct contact with educational institutions. Thus, these cultural implications become a natural and everyday part of the participants life outside of the university curriculum (Douglas E. Allen and Paul F. Anderson 1994).

Postmodern Consumerism One such argument, which is relevant in t h i s e r a , i s t h a t o f Po s t m o d e r n Consumerism. The belief that consumption is intricately and intimately linked to creation and production of self; of an identity. As Danielle Todd writes, Today, it is virtually impossible to buy any product not embedded with certain symbols of identity acquire by the buyer knowingly or otherwise (Todd). With great advances in technology aiding the rate and complexity of globalisation as the turn of the century, fixity can no longer be assumed; personal relationships and connections to social groups are always contingent as individuals are now enabled, in most part thanks to the internet, to scan the world to decide with whom or what they wish to identify (Todd). As our results show, 100% of the survey takers participate in various forms of social media, with 76% indicating that they are quite actively involved. Hence, now, more than ever, individuals are exposed to a myriad of sub-cultures of which they actively seek out those they identity with, and express their personal preferences sub-culture. Globalisation has enabled the emergence of what Sociologist Michel Maffesoli and what they value in relation to becoming a member of that

Although our results appear to support this thesis to an extent, they in no way can be used to indicate a causal relationship, and hence, provide room for alternative arguments.

introduced as the concept of neotribalism; a culture where clans and subcultures transcending geographical and traditional socio-cultural, and even economic, boundaries. He states individualism, instrumental reason, the omnipotence of technique, and the everything is economics no longer arouse the adherence of former times, and no longer function as the fonduing myths or as goals to be attained (Bradford, 2002). Hence, individuals are empowered to identify these sub-cultures and tailor their consumerism towards belonging to, being recognised as member of, that subculture. In other words, individuals mark themselves as members of a particular neo-tribe by using a sense of style (music type, clothes and accessories, food, etc) attributed to it. To conclude, members of these subcultures use the groups style to simultaneously comment and society. However, Maffesoli points out that we take caution to regard style not as unity, in the holistic sense of the word, but as a cultural expression of an aesthetic vibration, however harmonious or discordant (Bradford, 2002). Maffesoli suggests that the forming of these tribes, or consumer groupings if you will, has less to do with political or actively be part of the

economic factors, and more on value judgements made by the individual in the appreciation of what is beautiful; aesthetically/stylishly pleasing. while what an individual holds dear in terms of political activity might be at times a strong factor, these are often not driving forces for the formation of these subcultures; they arent political parties, or activist groups, their formation is much more subtle, less politically driven. For example, there are goths, Rastafarians, hipsters, skinheads etc and there are communist activist groups, Greenpeace, etc. This correlates with our results are we see although majority were aware of current public affairs which have been seen to ignite activist reactions around the world, most (93%) still wouldnt participate in protests and viewed enacting societal change as far down their priority list. This, regardless of the fact that majority of our participants showed similar consumer behaviour. Conclusion Thus, the increasing interconnectedness of the world and the rise of the onlineculture generation have rendered Bourdieus original questionnaire and ideas about social stratification and taste, to the realm of the defunct. As the current socio-historical context has stratified society in novel, and arguably

more complex, ways. Bourdieus methods and hypothesis are no longer as applicable as they were, and new approaches and propositions are required to understand consumerism in this era, as depicted by our questionnaire. The individuals who took our survey exhibit consumerism with regards to the style of the subculture they want to/identify themselves with. This is more of a factor than their socio-political views. Hence they attribute more to finding a 'cultural identity' than enacting societal change. So, the central question still remains, from whence are the origins of sociopolitical activism? Cited Works Bourdieu, Pierre. 1984. Distinction: A Social Critique of the Judgment of Taste. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Bradford, Vivian. 2002. Style, Rhetoric, and Postmodern Culture. Philosophy and Rhetoric 35.3 Kruger, B.. Untitled. [image online] Available at: http://c4gallery.com/artist/ database/barbara-%20kruger/barbarakruger-i-shop-therefore-i-am.jpg

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Todd, D.. You Are What You Buy: Postmodern Consumerism and the Construction of Self