投资 · 西方古典
托斯丹·凡勃伦:有闲阶级论·摘录 69
托斯丹·凡勃伦《有闲阶级论》· The Theory of the Leisure Class · 投资
The popular taste in these matters is to be seen in the prevalent high appreciation of topiary work and of the conventional flower-beds of public grounds. Perhaps as happy an illustration as may be had of this dominance of pecuniary beauty over aesthetic beauty in middle-class tastes is seen in the reconstruction of the grounds lately occupied by the Columbian Exposition. The evidence goes to show that the requirement of reputable expensiveness is still present in good vigor even where all ostensibly lavish display is avoided. The artistic effects actually wrought in this work of reconstruction diverge somewhat widely from the effect to which the same ground would have lent itself in hands not guided by pecuniary canons of taste. And even the better class of the city's population view the progress of the work with an unreserved approval which suggests that there is in this case little if any discrepancy between the tastes of the upper and the lower or middle classes of the city. The sense of beauty in the population of this representative city of the advanced pecuniary culture is very chary of any departure from its great cultural principle of conspicuous waste.
出处:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/833
定位:Excerpt 69 · 核对日期:2026-10-19 · 核验:短摘录
白话
大众品味体现在对修剪造型的树木和公共绿地常规花坛的推崇上。最典型的例子是哥伦布纪念博览会旧址的重建:明明可以更艺术,却按金钱美学来搞,结果处处透着“体面昂贵”。连城市上层也毫无保留地赞成,说明上下层品味在此高度一致。这说明,在金钱文化发达的城市,美感很难偏离“炫耀性浪费”这条大原则。
上下文
凡勃伦以1893年芝加哥世博会场馆重建为例,说明金钱美学如何压倒纯粹审美。
今日一问
你所在城市的公共景观,是在服务审美还是服务“体面”?
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