‘IT IS NOT A MATTER OF TASTE … ’

ABSTRACT

Upper classes and elites are usually exclusive circles which are hard to enter. In this paper we approach one such group using a focus group interview: a group from the Swedish-speaking upper class in officially bilingual Finland. Our paper addresses Bourdieu's idea of distinction by cultural or taste distinctions. In comparison to some international studies on elites and upper classes, our group was surprisingly keen on expressing disgust towards other tastes and lifestyles and therefore other classes and/or social groups. One might be surprised at how efficiently distinction works in the Swedish-speaking old upper class and how politically incorrect its outspokenness about cultural superiority is. In this specific group, there is a double-distinction: not only are Finnish speakers looked down upon regardless of their class position, almost any other group is, too. In this sense, this is more or less a case par excellence of Bourdieu's theory of distinction.

Keywords:

• upper class
• cultural capital
• taste
• Bourdieu

Notes

The research carried out in this study was made possible through financial support from the Research Council for Culture and Society at the Academy of Finland (research project ‘Cultural Capital and Social Differentiation in Finland: An International Comparison’; SA 2006-1114819).

2. In Finland the pejorative phrase of the ‘Swedish-speaking better people’ (‘svenskatalande bättre folk’) is a common stereotype, based on both the historical position of the Swedish-speakers in the country and the ‘ethnic mobilisation’ created by the Finnish nationalist ideologies at the turn of the twentieth century (Lönnqvist 2001). The stereotype has been maintained and later reinforced by strong popular beliefs and the media. The Swedish-speakers have themselves ironically characterized their small world as a ‘Duck pond’ (‘Ankdammen’), referring to the fact that everybody knows each other. On the other hand, there is also critical self-reflection in the Swedish-speaking community, which is perhaps best documented in the works of Finland-Swede authors in the 1960s and 1970s that illustrated the decay of the Swedish-speaking bourgeoisie and upper class (e.g., Henrik and Märta Tikkanen, Christer Kihlman, Jörn Donner).

3. Finland-Swedes see themselves above all as Finnish citizens with their language rights guaranteed by the constitution. They are well integrated into Finnish society, but also form a distinct cultural group in their own language with many important institutions of their own; among others, the Swedish University (Åbo Akademi), the Hanken School of Economics (i.e., a longstanding Swedish-language business school in Helsinki), the Swedish People's Party (founded 1906), Swedish-language media, wealthy independent Swedish foundations, etc. They have not pursued independence or autonomy like in Quebec, Canada (with the exception of the semi-autonomous province of the Åland isles) (cf. McRae 1997).

4. A student who attended the Hanken School of Economics, a long-established Swedish-language business school in Helsinki.

5. A private Swedish-language high school in a well-off neighbourhood.

6. An old Swedish grammar school in the city centre.

7. Cf. Tesco in the UK.

8. This comparison with Vepsäläinen is an interesting slip, which is probably caused by the very typical Finnish name of this furniture firm. Namely, Vepsäläinen (est. 1959) is not exactly a furniture store for the masses. Its selection includes classical modern interior design, like Artek (e.g., Alvar Aalto) and Fritz Hansen (e.g., Arne Jacobsen), as well as contemporary European design.