engleski

Expressions of cultural distinction: omnivorousness, cosmopolitanism and class inequality

This presentation engages with the recent theoretical debates on cultural consumption and social inequalities by situating them in present- day Croatia. It answers the following research questions: What are the cultural tastes of the majority in Croatia? What types of cultural consumers can be identified and how do they align with class inequalities? What are the implications of these findings for contemporary discussions on cultural consumption? The presentation is based on survey data from the project "Social stratification in Croatia: structural and subjective aspects", co-funded by the Croatian Science Foundation. The data was collected from 1000 respondents living in Croatia and above the age of 18 in November and December 2017. The data was analyzed using multiple correspondence analysis and cluster analysis. We identify seven clusters of cultural taste. In line with other studies which show that very small percentage of individuals consume exclusively highbrow art and culture, there are no “highbrow univores” in our sample. We identify two variants of omnivore tastes associated predominantly with members of the dominant class and younger middle class with a cosmopolitan orientation, one more eclectic, the other more selective. We also identify an intersectional gender aspect to these differences. On the other hand, at the bottom of the class hierarchy we find univores who dislike foreign and contemporary culture, who prefer Croatian traditional, patriotic and pop-folk music as well as religious sculptures. There is a high proportion of the elderly with such tastes. The paper reflects on our findings with a particular focus on the omnivoreunivore and cosmopolitan- national debates, placing these in the context of the role cultural tastes and practices can have in reinforcing but also complicating class inequalities as they intersect with gender and age.

cultural consumption ; cultural tastes ; social inequalities ; social class ; cosmopolitanism

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