In a section titled “Class Transgressions,” Lee and Moscowitz note that while class clan be defined in economic terms, it is “also definable as a cultural construct tethered to a range of behavioral expectations” (146). What do they mean by this? How is this manner of defining class evident in the Real Housewives franchise?
April 17, 2019 at 2:52 pm
When Lee and Moscowitz assert that class is “definable as a cultural construct tethered to a range of behavioral expectations” they mean that class is an accumulation of physical wealth and lifestyle. How well you perform your lifestyle is a marker of your wealth. In the Real Housewives, these women, despite their obvious monetary capital, are constantly pushed to prove their wealth in the size and extravagance of their homes, their access to elite institutions, the schools their children attend, and the items they possess.
April 17, 2019 at 2:25 pm
When authors Lee and Moscowitz note that class can be defined in non-economic terms and rather as a cultural construct, they are explaining that class can be tied to things such as mannerisms, dress, and language use instead of just income and net-worth terms. Because of social norms, we expect things such as good manners, very “private, mannered dispute resolutions, and conversations about “high-status” things such as “art or literature”. I do not watch the Real Housewives, but after watching the preview, I think some of the allure of the show is how the women in Real Housewives push back against these cultural constructs of rich women as elegant and polite, and are shown as women who swear a lot, are boisterous, and get into arguments that seem petty and entertaining to the audience watching. It also is misogynistic, portraying them as “typical rich mothers” who do not work and are dependent on rich husbands who do not give them much attention. It seems that the show is trying to portray the idea that because they are rich, they can behave in whichever ways they want. I find it interesting that if the characters in this show were females from a lower socio economic class, their actions would be deemed as inappropriate and crazy, but also, at the same time, their actions would be deemed as normal for someone from a lower class. Because these women are wealthy, their actions are less susceptible to public judgment and thus are the center of entertainment.
April 16, 2019 at 9:43 pm
While much of the action in each episode of The Real Housewives of New York is financed by large, upper class incomes, the true measure of class amongst the women is their social standing and their consumption habits. The Housewives use expensive wardrobes, extravagant functions, and exciting vacations to display the “image of effortless class” that Lee and Moscowitz say is vital to adhering to the “social script” that is high class living (146). In watching the Season 6 preview, the women are consumed with their placement within the social hierarchy and tirelessly work to bring each other down by gossiping and insulting one another, thereby elevating themselves by default.
The lack of eloquence and manners shown in many of the scenes seems to be the main allure of the series. As Lee and Moscowitz discuss, the rich, upper class is usually portrayed as being well mannered and gliding through the world with grace. What makes The Real Housewives so interesting to the average viewer is the way the women turn this idea n its head. On one hand, they are an embodiment of the “behavioral expectations” of class, in terms of their dress and consumption habits, but on the other hand, they fight, yell, and talk about topics that are defy the “expectations of etiquette” for upper class women.
So, The Real Housewives is a culmination of “social script” that defines upper class and the “physicality and emotionality” associated with the working class. It is these mannerisms and behaviors that define class lines and The Real Housewives allures viewers by showing them in conjunction with one another.
April 16, 2019 at 3:00 pm
The Real Housewives franchise portrays wealthy women with exuberant personalities and large consumption patterns. Though the upper class is often defined in economic terms, specifically income, it can also be defined “as a cultural construct tethered to a range of behavioral expectations” (146). The Real Housewives franchise focuses on the latter definition. Though these women do have high incomes, the show emphasizes their lavish vacations, social status and consumption rather than their direct income. The women constantly compare themselves to each other and desire to be seen as a “higher status” than their peers.
Interestingly, some housewives on the series actually struggle financially or have encountered financial trouble while trying to maintain their lavish lifestyles. This further emphasizes Lee and Moscowitz’s definition of class that relies on certain behaviors rather than economic means. Veblen similarly touches on this, saying, “consumption of ‘excellent goods’ signified wealth whereas a lack, in either quantity of quality of such goods was viewed as a ‘mark of inferiority or demerit’” (146). The housewives chase their status by matching the consumption of their so-called “friends” and constantly displaying markers of wealth. However, in reality some of these women, although wealthy, are not wealthy enough to attain their excessive lifestyles.
April 16, 2019 at 9:30 am
Class can be defined by behaviors, arguably more so than actual economic standing. I believe this is one reason that class lines are so blurred in the United States today. With the use of credit cards, one can significantly alter the appearance of their class based upon their tastes, their clothing, the car they drive, and the types of things they spend their money on, even when they don’t physically have that money. People are capable of “transgressing class lines” by demonstrating their consumption and participating in lavish consumer culture, and adhering to the set “range of behavioral expectations” (146).
I believe Thorstein Veblen is correct in the assertion that “consumption of excellent goods signified wealth, whereas a lack, in either quantity or quality, of such goods was viewed as a mark of inferiority of demerit,” (146) and, further, I believe it applies to complicated social webs the make up the lives of the women in Real Housewives. Class is defined in the Real Housewives because each member of the cast appears owns similar ‘things’ and they spend their money in similar ways. The group focuses their time and concern on vacations, second homes, invite lists to events and galas, and money remains the single driving force for all of these entities. If one member of the group doesn’t exhibit concern about these things and doesn’t adhere to the behavioral expectations, this could greatly affect their social standing and their relationships with women in the group.