Conversely, the theory of the mass and the elite provides an alternative explanation for the stratification of consumption. This theory of social stratification is the simple proposition that the elite consume a highly select amount of culture whilst the masses consume popular and less sophisticated culture. Cultural capital is a key factor in this theory and is what Bourdieu (1984) believed we used to enter into elite social life (Bryson, 1996). The more cultural capital you had the better equipped you were to understand the meaning behind art, and therefore have a more select cultural taste. Furthermore, Bourdieu’s complex concept of ‘habitus’ also factors in here, as he believes that this distinction between the elite and the mass is mediated
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From the study, they identified evidence of a ‘mass’ that consumed a vast amount of popular music, however, they did not find evidence of a cultural ‘elite’ that only consumed highbrow music. Therefore, their study favoured the omnivore/univore theory of social stratification. However, there was still minimal evidence for a ‘true’ univore that solely consumed one type of music. Although, there was a higher tendency of univerous behaviour in lower classes, as they consumed a more limited range of music. Whereas, there was a greater tendency for higher status individuals to be ‘true’ omnivores. Furthermore, they introduce an idea of the ‘omnivore-listener’ who tends not to go to musical events but to listen to a wide range of music. This is an interesting category in relation to the previously discussed number of lower class people who listen to classical music, but do not fully engage with it, in the sense they don’t know the artist or composition (Atkinson, 2011). This could potentially suggest a different group who don’t fit into the social stratification of omnivore or univore. Overall though, Chan and Goldthorpe’s analysis of this study suggests that there is a trend towards the cultural tastes of classes overlapping due to the omnivorous nature of the upper-class, however, there is still evidence for a cultural divide because of lower classes tendency to be univores. Therefore, although the differentiation between peoples’ cultural tastes and their cultural consumption is important and may vary, the study of both seem to suggest an omnivore and univore divide between the classes cultural tastes and
From the study, they identified evidence of a ‘mass’ that consumed a vast amount of popular music, however, they did not find evidence of a cultural ‘elite’ that only consumed highbrow music. Therefore, their study favoured the omnivore/univore theory of social stratification. However, there was still minimal evidence for a ‘true’ univore that solely consumed one type of music. Although, there was a higher tendency of univerous behaviour in lower classes, as they consumed a more limited range of music. Whereas, there was a greater tendency for higher status individuals to be ‘true’ omnivores. Furthermore, they introduce an idea of the ‘omnivore-listener’ who tends not to go to musical events but to listen to a wide range of music. This is an interesting category in relation to the previously discussed number of lower class people who listen to classical music, but do not fully engage with it, in the sense they don’t know the artist or composition (Atkinson, 2011). This could potentially suggest a different group who don’t fit into the social stratification of omnivore or univore. Overall though, Chan and Goldthorpe’s analysis of this study suggests that there is a trend towards the cultural tastes of classes overlapping due to the omnivorous nature of the upper-class, however, there is still evidence for a cultural divide because of lower classes tendency to be univores. Therefore, although the differentiation between peoples’ cultural tastes and their cultural consumption is important and may vary, the study of both seem to suggest an omnivore and univore divide between the classes cultural tastes and