Well, I studied sociology for three years in UCD and as I leave I feel I can comment on it. Here I particularly want to discuss a theory that, since I first studied it, has impressed me but also left me feeling that something was missing. The theory I'm talking about in Bourdieu's views on class being the be all and end all factor in defining social tastes.
Bourdieu views class distinctions (in terms of their tastes) as being cause and consequence of the division of society. His idea of a habitus that we inculcate and subsequently reproduce makes a lot of sense...in 1970s (and potentially modern) France. If you study it in depth, it's fairly compelling stuff. But drawing upon Irish society as a counter example I think we can see that class plays a role in defining taste, but isn't the deciding factor. The most obvious examples are clothes, drinks and sports. Wearing track suit bottoms is completely acceptable today in Ireland, whereas a decade ago (maybe slightly longer) it was viewed by many as being 'lower class'. It is typical to see guys wearing a shirt with a collar and track suit bottoms. Similarly, you often see people from lower classes dressing with a 'posh' fashion sense. I'm not making any judgement here on the character of any of these people, just stating a phenomenon I notice more and more. You can also see this when it comes to drinks and sports.
I used to work in a very typical Irish pub here in Dublin, and I met a lot of people there. From the lower classes to the very wealthy, I met (and befriended) tons of interesting characters. What I noticed is that people don't drink based on supposed class tastes as Bourdieu indicates. A man with fewer economic means might drink the same whisky as the rich entrepreneur with his own company. Sporting events is another perfect example. Golf, traditionally a game for the higher echelons of society, whilst boxing used to be a working class sport. Now, both are enjoyed by all levels of society. This strongly goes against Bourdieu's assumptions that class defines taste (unless we assume that class tastes have blended together in which case the whole theory is rather pointless - however I won't make this assumption).
Really the point of this argument isn't to attempt to debunk Bourdieu (which would be no small feat) but rather to shed on light on the fact that nowadays class distinction isn't as prominent a factor in society as it once was. Yes, of course it still predetermines a lot of the decisions one will make in life (thus Bourdieu's theory is still very valid) but these decisions aren't rigid and unchanging. A rethinking and consequent expansion of Bourdieu's views is necessary in order to truly understand social tastes.
Manuel
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Well yeah, but you're brushing over some important factors. First off, be concise: class distinction is not so important anymore in IRISH society...towards the end you just said "society". Careful with generalizations.
The main factor you have to look at here is what the Irish "lower" class is today compared with ten, twenty years ago. Really, I would argue that Ireland no longer has a true lower class. Though clearly there are differences in wealth and power, the Irish "lower" class these days enjoys access to food, work, clothes, transportation, education, health care, etc....I'm sure there is still some abject poverty in Ireland, but such a small percentage as to be ignorable in terms of statistics (I perceive it that way anyways - let's not forget I lived in Ireland for a year).
So I would argue that the new increase in wealth of the past 10 or 20 years has elevated the standard of living of the Irish "lower" class to the point where they now have access to the luxuries of the upper class.
And let's not forget the other essential factor. The new "wealth" of the Irish lower class is predicated on cheap labor and resources somewhere else far away, thus creating an invisible true lower class elsewhere.....aaaaah the joy of capitalism.
Rant over.
Love you bro!
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