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November 25, 2005
Chapter 2: Taste
In Chapter 2 of Practices of Looking, taste is defined as being “informed by experiences relating to one’s class, cultural background, education, and other aspects of identity”. The book goes on to explain that taste is usually associated with a certain class, a certain culture, or a certain group of people. Taste has a +high class or +wealthy connotation. If a person has taste it usually means that he or she knows how to wear, buy, or arrange something to make it look expensive or show off its value. Interesting how that word has evolved. Now, in an age of thrift stores and bargains, taste no longer holds that connotation as much as it used to. Someone can have good taste, even if they are not wealthy. Then again, when I think of the word “connoisseurship”, I immediately think of a wealthy higher class person. A connoisseur judges what is good and bad. Being a connoisseur is something that can only be attained through study and most likely travel. When I think of a connoisseur, I think of a wine connoisseur who has tried hundreds of wines and has the right frame of mind and tongue to be able to detect good wine when he or she tastes it. But again, in order to be an excellent wine connoisseur, one needs to have tasted many wines, been to many regions, especially in France, and experienced wine tasting. So again, I do not think of a connoisseur as a poor person, but a very rich and worldly one. I just have never thought about this particular word before, and now I realize that it is truly specific to a certain class and group of people. -Christina
Posted by lcisgancarz at November 25, 2005 05:17 PM