Taste and the Logic of Practice in Distinction

Abstract

Abstract:Proper engagement with the theory of taste that Bourdieu formulates in Distinction [1984] has been marred by an inability to differentiate between the theory of the functions of taste and the theory of the origins of taste. In this paper, the author shows that the theory of taste developed in Distinction is one concerned primarily with the origins and only secondarily with the functions of taste. The author further argues that this theory is inseparable from Bourdieu's practice-theoretical project; it therefore cannot be coherently understood or evaluated unless it is presented in those terms (with habitus as the centrepiece concept). To that end, the author engages in a close reading of the basic argument in Distinction and shows that, according to Bourdieu, there is a tight (dynamically adjusting) relationship between tastes, conscious preferences, practical anticipations, and accumulated competences. Likes and dislikes function as partial glimpses into the store of practical capacities for cultural appropriation accumulated by a person. Most importantly, tastes operate via practical anticipatory action and not by conscious regulation. The author closes by outlining the implications of Bourdieu's 'scandalous' proposal for future research in the sociology of taste.

The Stratification of Attendance at Cultural Activities in Canada

“…For example, a set of preferences for hip‐hop, pop, and R&B, on the one hand, and for hip‐hop, classical music, and heavy metal, on the other, is equally omnivorous by volume. However, as the latter genres do not have “overlapping audiences” (Lizardo ), this set of tastes is more omnivorous by composition. As I further elaborate in the next section, I use a measure of “omnivorousness by volume” which despite its drawbacks remains useful and widely used in the literature due to its ordinal simplicity and ease of replicability across different studies or data sets (Lizardo ).…”

Bourdieu, Distinction, and Aesthetic Consumption

“…According to Bourdieu, aesthetic experiences are practical and emotive (Lizardo, 2014) ; they are not analytical or theoretical in the "scholastic" sense suggested by traditional aesthetic theory (Dewey and the pragmatists being a key exception). The perception of cultural works can best be thought of as "a practical execution of quasi-corporeal schemata that operate beneath the level of the concept" (Bourdieu, 1992, p. 160) .…”

Taste and Organization Studies

“…Food is an important, albeit often overlooked, component of Bourdieu’s argument regarding taste (Lizardo, 2014). Yet Bourdieu maintained that there exists a deep structural divide between those middle-class consumers who had a taste for rare or exclusive items, defined as a taste for freedom or luxury, and the more practical tastes of working-class consumers, which he referred to as a taste of necessity.…”