Bourdieu - Cultural Capital

According to Bourdieu there are 3 kinds of Capital: Economic Capital, Social Capital and Cultural Capital.

You may recall that when we discussed Marx we talked about "capital" as not just money but money that can make money. Bourdieu's ideas of capital are similar in that they are traits which can be built upon to gain more "capital."  Similarly, one kind of capital can often be exchanged or parlayed into other kinds of capital.  As you move forward you should as yourself,  "what makes a trait 'capital'?"  and "Who gets to decide which traits are valuable?"


This blog post will focus upon Cultural Capital.  Cultural capital includes symbolic elements of capital such as forms of knowledge, skills, posture, accents, mannerisms, material objects and  education.

 "Cultural capital can be acquired, to a varying extent, depending on the period, the society, and the social class, in the absence of any deliberate inculcation, and therefore quite unconsciously. It always remains marked by its earliest conditions of acquisition which, through the more or less visible marks they leave (such as the pronunciations characteristic of a class or region), help to determine its distinctive value."(Bourdieu, 1986)

 Having the "right" kinds of capital can create advantages for that person, giving them a higher status in society.  There are three categories of cultural capital:

In the scene below we see Frasier and his father struggle with having very different tastes in material objects. Though Frasier is Marty's son, he has cultivated a very different kind of cultural capital creating conflict between these two.

1. Embodied Cultural Capital: This is capital that is related to our bodies. This can include attributes like language (accent, euphemisms, vocabulary, colloquialisms), [preferred] bodily composition (highly muscled, fake tans, body weight, manicures) and posture.  In the film stills from above we can see how actors learn to adjust their embodied cultural capital to portray characters from a variety of economic backgrounds.  A combination of acting (embodied), hair/makeup (embodied), and costuming (objectified) allows these actors to send cues that the audience can pick up on to understand the character's socioeconomic background before (or without) being told what that background is.
2. Objectified Cultural Capital: This is material capital. These are the things we own like furniture, clothes, jewelry, and cars.  However, objectified cultural capital is more than just what we own, but what we want to own and what we decide to own.  Our tastes combined with our economic capital can combine to dictate what sorts of objects we collect. Do we prefer antique furniture or new? Do we want to spend our money on technological gadgets or a box at the opera? (see Frasier Episode Above)  
3.   Institutional Cultural Capital:  Degrees and credentials that are acquired can be a form of cultural capital.  

We all have cultural capital and we all have a lot of cultural capital, but some kinds of capital are more valued than others. These kinds of cultural capital are seen as demonstrating cultural competence within a given field. Depending upon the field different kinds of capital are going to be valued. The cultural capital that will gain you access and acceptance at a country club is going to be quite different than the kinds of cultural capital that produce "Street Cred"

Generally,  those kinds of cultural capital associated with the upper class are more highly valued and easily parlayed into other kinds of capital.   These kinds of cultural capital can contribute social mobility, or lack there of.

Many of our readings have focused upon the way that certain kinds of cultural capital are favored within educational institutions, thus making it easier and more likely that students who already have that capital are more likely to acquire Institutional Cultural Capital.   Educational settings often favor middle-class ways of being. This is what is often called the "hidden curriculum" which pertains to attitudes and behaviors expected of students.