My supervisor has a saying that I think is quite incisive: we want bourgeois virtues not bourgeois values.
The values of the bourgeoisie are well captured in "Distinction" by Bourdieu (very neatly in the title of that book). They include being to look down on other people and feel superior (which gives rise to the phenomenon of 'keeping up with the Joneses'), using manners and other arbitrary formalities to perpetuate class differences while overlooking deeper and more important qualities like moral fibre, materialism, tranquillity (especially as it manifests in the inane goal of saving for an early retirement and playing more golf), and legacy, which I think manifests most deplorably in those Patek Phillipe advertisements that say things like "you never really own a Patek Phillipe, you merely hold on to it for the next generation". Vomit.
The main negative effects of bourgeois values as I see it is that they give rise to a politics and culture of envy; extremely dull lifestyles that place little value on creativity, adventure or individuation; and parents who oppress their children with the excuse that they "I just want what's best for you".
I take it that the virtues of the bourgeoisie are hard work, ambition, discipline, being able to provide security to those you care about and meritocracy. These are all critical to why the middle class is the backbone of strong economies and strong societies. The middle class turns up to work, pays its taxes and perpetuates itself. It is an aspirational class, which makes it an exceptional engine of economic growth. It also tends to have a strong desire for inclusive institutions, accountability and fairness in promotion and the like, all of which make for robust and effective democracies.
The values of the bourgeoisie are well captured in "Distinction" by Bourdieu (very neatly in the title of that book). They include being to look down on other people and feel superior (which gives rise to the phenomenon of 'keeping up with the Joneses'), using manners and other arbitrary formalities to perpetuate class differences while overlooking deeper and more important qualities like moral fibre, materialism, tranquillity (especially as it manifests in the inane goal of saving for an early retirement and playing more golf), and legacy, which I think manifests most deplorably in those Patek Phillipe advertisements that say things like "you never really own a Patek Phillipe, you merely hold on to it for the next generation". Vomit.
The main negative effects of bourgeois values as I see it is that they give rise to a politics and culture of envy; extremely dull lifestyles that place little value on creativity, adventure or individuation; and parents who oppress their children with the excuse that they "I just want what's best for you".
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