The leisure class amazon modern library manual#

As industrialization took place, the upper class became more useless in society as they mainly consumed but did not take part in the production of goods and services (Veblen, 23).Ĭonspicuous consumption on the other hand takes place among the upper class where they spend money on goods and services that display their wealth or income. They spent much of their time on leisure activities.

The leisure class amazon modern library manual#

During the 19 th century, the upper class would own property such as land but would not take part in manual labor. The aspect of conspicuous leisure was first introduced by an American economist- Thorstein Veblen. An example may be taking long holidays to exotic destinations and getting souvenirs while at it. This has taken different forms with time.

Conspicuous leisure is where people take up leisure activities that show off social status. The church has been used as a way of expressing social status with the clergy being paid well without necessarily having to do much work. Key among them is the fact that various forms of employment have been a preserve of the upper class, for instance, they have specifically been excluded from industrial occupations and they take up those occupations within which more honor is attached such as the priestly office. There are a number of factors that have made the institution of leisure different among the different classes of people. This paper is going to look at the differences in the two aspects leisure and consumption among the upper and middle class Americans during the late 19 th century and the last part of the 20 th century. There is therefore a struggle as people aspire to attain higher status and be among the upper class. Human beings aspire to be recognized by others and to form part of the most respected groups in society. Over the years, there have been changes in the way different classes of people view both leisure and consumption based on their income as well as their lifestyle.