Structures, feelings andsavoir faire: Ghana's middle classes in the making

Abstract

The concept of ‘middle class’ in African societies has been recognized recently but at the same time it resists clear-cut definition. Rather than seeking clearer classification, I propose to embrace its contested nature as productive, seeing ‘middle class’ not as a category that we can find ‘out there’ and measure, but as a classification-in-the-making. Middle-class status, or a particular idea of the good life, is a position people strive towards, but what this entails depends on context and place. The study of the pursuit of social mobility in Ghana during colonialism, independence and the post-Cold War period – of those who have successfully improved their livelihoods – provides knowledge about the middle class in the making in different eras and under different conditions. I propose a three-pronged approach to study this processual nature: Raymond Williams’ notion of ‘structures of feeling’ helps unravel the shifting affective qualities of the changing political economy, while Sara Ahmed's focus on the ‘feelings of structure’ zooms in on agency as an important tool to analyse how middle-class trajectories unfold over time. Lastly, the availability of advantageous conditions is not enough to stimulate change; one needs the savoir faire to enact them.

Never enough: neoliberalizing Namibian middle-class marriages

“…Being pregnant, she now needed to focus her attention on providing the best for her baby, investing and optimizing there. Other research from Southern and West Africa indicates comparable shifts in kin investment, away from extended kin relations and towards the nuclear family and children (Alber 2018;Durham 2020;Hull 2020;Spronk 2020). Gisela's reasoning thus suggests that neoliberalization alters not only marriages but also parent-child relations.…”

“…It became visible through jointly experiencing hardship, mastering the challenges and then growing together. The metaphor of growth is thus tightly connected to ideas of success (see also Spronk 2020).…”

“…It is remarkable that, in their narratives, the couples hardly ever mentioned the help of kin on their way to prosperity (Spronk 2020;Vorhölter 2019). Quite the contrary: the role of kin in these narratives was often one of hindrance and obstacle, slowing down the energetic couple on their way to middle-classness.…”

“…Only recently has a literature on neoliberal techniques of self-optimizing and selfgoverning taken shape within African contexts (Hannaford 2017;Mupotsa 2014;Spronk 2020;Van Dijk 2017;Vorhölter 2019). In 2010, James Ferguson still sceptically remarked that 'the development of new technologies of government, responsibilized prudential subjects, and so on (all the things that Nikolas Rose and other "Anglo-Foucauldians" tend to emphasize) was very limited' in Africa (Ferguson 2010: 172; see also Hilgers 2012;Stasik 2015).…”

“…Lentz (2020: 453) interprets these middle-class consumption practices as 'typical of the era of neoliberal globalization'. Neoliberally informed discourses of self-optimization and deservingness (Burchardt 2020;James 2019;Spronk 2020;Van Dijk 2017;Vorhölter 2019) complement these globally inspired consumption practices. Comparison with others is crucial within these conceptualizations (Phadi and Ceruti 2011: 100-1): to compare one's efforts with those of others legitimizes class privileges.…”