Throughout history, the dominant class usually create a very explicit cultural distinction between themselves and the exploited. Kings were divinely ordained and lived secluded in their courts, Roman senators had their privileges explicitly encoded into law, and colonial slavemasters relied on racism and religion to distinguish themselves from their slaves. They were explicitly and unashamedly metaphysically different kinds of people, with exclusive access to social markers like clothing.
Meanwhile the modern bourgeoisie seems to be almost reliant on propagating the myth that they’re just like workers. Billionaires will go on talk shows to talk about their “job” as CEO, mostly dress just like the labour aristocracy, and even (ghost) write books on productivity or lifestyle as though they’re human. Heck, some of them even have salaries! Culturally, they seem to always try to frame themselves as just a particularly successful regular Joe rather than a categorically different kind of person.
Am I crazy here or is the bourgeoisie historically unique in ideologically negating their own existence as a class? These statements seem too broad to be true.
Am I crazy here or is the bourgeoisie historically unique in ideologically negating their own existence as a class?
Byung Chul Han introduced the concept of self oppression in a couple of books. The idea being that the capitalist class doesn’t need to enslave workers any more. Now that workers are encouraged to think of themselves as individual brands hustling against other individuals, they then push themselves to serve the capitalists. The workers don’t need to be berated by the boss, they are enslaved by their own positivity.
CEOs are a form of celebrity worker to be emulated. They supposedly claim to live to work, making sacrifices for the job. Etc.
Could it be as simple as that the ultra wealthy want a culture war instead of a class war and so they blur the surface level cultural differences between the two primary classes in capitalist society? Or maybe it’s a fascist thing, white unity rather than proletarian unity.
