Taki is right: we are all still snobs
Vassi Chamberlain was taken to task by the poor little Greek boy over her powers of social observation. On reflection, she concedes that snobbery has never truly gone out of fashion
Can he really think that by not wearing black tie to his recent Tory Black and White Ball he was making a point? If only politics were that simple. You can just hear them edict-making at Conservative Central Office — ‘We must eradicate that great symbol of national hatred, no more black tie for anyone.’ Spare a thought, Dave, for all those poor upwardly mobile Tory hopefuls reluctantly pushing the offending item to the back of their wardrobes. Even Tony Blair was comfortable enough to wear black tie. He even wore white tie. Who doesn’t love dressing up occasionally? There have been Old Etonian MPs and PMs since time immemorial who haven’t been so weak as to shy away from where they really came from — we’ve dealt with it before, we’ll deal with it again.
Which brings me back to Gstaad. This ridiculous outcry is a fine example of the fact that, hateful as it is, snobbery isn’t going anywhere in a hurry; it will always be in fashion. It cannot be eradicated with a political mission statement, or a change of outfit. It is something deeply ingrained in all of us. It is a reflex action. We cannot help it. We all suffer from it — whether it’s the neighbour with a bigger hedge (or hedge fund) or the friend we thought stupider than us who does better. Wake up and wear your black tie, David Cameron. We know you really want to. Especially if Taki invites you to dinner.
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Evelyn Powell
March 28th, 2008 1:26amMiss Chamberlain just doesn't get it. The subtext of this faux apology is that she is right and Taki is wrong. That could never be. In legal parlance, it is not an admission, nor a confession and avoidance, but a denial. Her belief is that if there are nuances of behaviour and values which distinguish some people from others, there shouldn't be. Which leads of course to the lowest common denominator, multicultural, identity-free, vulgarian society of rock star "celebrities", reality television, estuary english and the tabloids which England has deliquesced into and which is lamented in your leading article today.
Noblesse Oblige
March 28th, 2008 6:13amSince when was it snobbery for persons of patrician provenance and mien to deplore and avoid the appalling pachyderm gatecrashing of nouveaux and arrivistes? That's not snobbery, it's just good sense. Miss Chamberlain soes not know what snobbery is. At its worst it is an exaggerated regard for people on account of their supposed social position or wealth. On that basis, it is the nouveau and the arriviste who are the snobs, not those in whose society they aspire to find acceptance. It is why the Blairs never found acceptance, for they are snobs within that definition, and were seen to be vulgar arrivistes. The other, slightly less pernicious, sort of snobbery looks down on people for the reason that they do not possess social position or wealth. Both sorts are foolish, and show a want of intellect and breeding. I commend Miss Chamberlain to Christopher Sykes's biography of Evelyn Waugh for an interesting analysis of snobbery amongst the English. He posthumously castigated his friend Waugh for his weakness in this regard.