Keywords
Theory of the leisure class (Veblen, Thorstein), Super Bowl, NFL
Subjects
Theory of the leisure class (Veblen, Thorstein); Super Bowl; National Football League;
Introduction
The Harvard Economist John Kenneth Galbraith once observed that the rich are among the least understood social groups in America. Unlike the poor who are studied intensely, constantly surveyed by social workers and graduate students, the rich have gone largely uncharted. The only real exception to this is to be found in the works of Thorstein Veblen, the Norwegian American economist from Minnesota, who wrote several books on the social habits of the rich, the best known being The Theory of the Leisure Class. It was in this work that Veblen coined those wonderful phrases, "conspicuous consumption," "conspicuous leisure," and "conspicuous waste." Veblen was tracking and describing the habits of the rich at the turn of the century, but if he found himself in Minnesota this week he could just as easily track them during the Super Bowl.
Publication Date
1-22-1992
Document Type
Commentary
Type
Text
Format
application/pdf
Source Title
Sport and Society for Arete
Language
English
Collection
Publication Version
Author's version
Copyright Status
Author retained
College
College of Arts and Humanities
Department
History
Creator (Linked Data)
Crepeau, Richard C., 1941- (VIAF)
Recommended Citation
Crepeau, Richard C., "Thorstein Veblen Explains the Super Bowl" (1992). On Sport and Society. 223.
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/onsportandsociety/223
Included in
Cultural History Commons, Journalism Studies Commons, Other History Commons, Sports Management Commons, Sports Studies Commons