I've been reading Kate Fox's book Watching the English which presents itself as an anthropological study of the English. I don't think it has the rigor to really be that, but she does say some interesting things about class. In England*, at least, class is not tied all that tightly to income or even wealth. It's connected to cultural signifiers. She mentions a lot of little tricks the English use to determine class (vocabulary, the state of one's home/car, etc.). A working class guy who makes a fortune is still working class in outlook. An upper class guy who works as a janitor is still culturally upper class. Both can have class pride. It's an interesting way of looking at class that I had never considered before. I think your discussion of knowledge/recipes fits that vein. Since class is not tied directly to money, we use these signifiers to help us identify fellow travelers (or dismiss others as snobs/slobs).
*One of the flaws of her book is that she dismisses the idea of a British culture fairly quickly, arguing that Britain is merely a political construct. The English, Scots, Welsh, and Northern Irish may share cultural traits, but are distinct cultures with no over-riding identity.
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momijizukamori
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Date: 2012-05-17 09:44 pm (UTC)*One of the flaws of her book is that she dismisses the idea of a British culture fairly quickly, arguing that Britain is merely a political construct. The English, Scots, Welsh, and Northern Irish may share cultural traits, but are distinct cultures with no over-riding identity.