The Theory of the Leisure Class: An Economic Study of Institutions

The Theory of the Leisure Class: An Economic Study of Institutions (1899), written by Norwegian-American sociologist and economist Thorstein Veblen, is a critique of consumerism and conspicuous culture promoted by the wealthy leisure class in America during the Industrial era. Veblen proposes that economics is not simply the study of markets and cash flow; it must include sociological analysis to accurately reflect a society’s consumption patterns and their cultural and economic repercussions. Though the book is a serious socio-economic study, Veblen’s tone is often satirical, and his disdain for the leisure class is evident. In addition to straightforward historical and economic discussion, the text includes humorous and exaggerated passages meant to illustrate the corruption and wastefulness of those Veblen considers socially unproductive. The book was critically well-received in its day and has been lauded for predicting many problems of 20th- and 21st-century American consumerism.

A Note on Content: Veblen refers to pseudo-scientific racial categories and theories of social development that have long been debunked. These terms are replicated in this summary quotation marks when they are used within Veblen’s theoretical framework. Veblen also assumes a patriarchal society in which women are wholly dependent upon men. Whenever possible, this guide substitutes contemporary language for outdated terms, taking care to maintain Veblen’s intended meaning.

This summary references the Oxford World’s Classics edition published in 2007 by Oxford University Press.

Summary

The Theory of the Leisure Class comprises 14 titled chapters. The first chapter is an introduction while each subsequent chapter focuses on a different aspect of Veblen’s economic framework.

Chapter 1 provides a thematic and historical overview of human socio-economic development. It illustrates the 19th-century European belief that society developed from a peaceable “savage” period characterized by cooperation and solidarity to a “barbaric” and predatory era marked by violence, economic development, and competition. Veblen extends these ideas to the modern industrial period, which is an offshoot of “barbaric” culture in that its increased wealth has fostered greater social stratification, which is a product of competitive, predatory behavior, and an increase in conspicuous consumption. This chapter establishes the importance of institutions in shaping people’s consumption patterns, foreshadowing the important role that sociology plays in the rest of the book.

Chapters 2-4 define the three central factors that give rise to conspicuous consumption in modern industrial culture. Chapter 2 explains how pecuniary emulation, the desire to outperform others to gain social recognition and respect, encourages the wealthy to consume not for personal comfort but rather to demonstrate their rank. This, in turn, leads the wealthy to spend money on symbolic rather than substantive goods and services. Chapter 3 explores how wealthy people, which Veblen dubs the “leisure class,” develop a framework of respectability based on leisure, or the capacity to do non-productive work. Chapter 4 further develops this idea by observing how leisure is extended not only to their types of employment, but also to their consumption patterns.

Chapters 5-7 demonstrate how conspicuous consumption occurs in daily life. Chapter 5 argues that a person’s wealth can be gauged through his standard of living, in which expensive objects and services gain symbolic significance and indicate class status. Chapter 6 expands upon this idea by illustrating how institutions established by the upper class can skew people’s perceptions of value: expensive items are seen as aesthetically pleasing not for their innate beauty, but because they are coveted by the “respectable” wealthy members of society. Chapter 7 evaluates how certain social customs, such as fashion, are also symbols of conspicuous consumption.

Beginning in Chapter 8, Veblen’s tone shifts from analytical to critical and satirical. Chapter 8 declares that the leisure class, by virtue of not having to participate in industrial processes, tends to value tradition and conservatism. Chapter 9 defends the point by illustrating how, even in modern industrial society, becoming part of the leisure class is predicated upon adherence to archaic social structures and customs, such as etiquette. He also discusses the European “ethnic types” that make up modern industrial society and how they relate to “peaceable” and “predatory” attributes. Chapter 10 argues that pecuniary culture and consumer society nurture competitiveness and ferocity, which increase wealth but are detrimental to society as a whole. Chapter 11 demonstrates how holding religious and superstitious beliefs, such as trusting in luck, can encourage gambling and other destructive consumer behaviors. This is especially apparent in athletics, a social practice that should emphasize integrity and teamwork but is tainted by competitiveness and pecuniary culture.

Chapters 12-14 observe how conspicuous consumption is prevalent in modern society. Chapter 12 argues that the clerical system parallels the social framework of the leisure class, especially in its participation in conspicuous consumption. In Chapter 13, Veblen links the clergy to upper-class women as symbols of vicarious wealth that reflect the respectability of their patriarchal masters: In the church’s case, the master is the worshipped deity while in women’s case, the master is the husband or father. Although women and churches are known for donating to charity and participating in organizations that help the poor, their actions are not purely altruistic because they are part of what Veblen terms the “vicarious leisure class” because, in a patriarchal society, only men of independent means can truly belong to the leisure class. Chapter 14 critiques modern institutions of higher learning that cling to wasteful religious practices, especially in the field of humanities.