- 01Leisure-Class Institutions in Feudal Societies
- 02Industrial Exemption and Upper-Class Occupations
- 03Government, Warfare, Religion, and Sports as Honorific Employments
- 01Leisure-Class Development in Higher Barbarian Culture
- 02Women’s Work and the Rise of Industrial Labor
- 03Peaceable Primitive Communities Without a Leisure Class
- 01The Distinction Between Exploit and Drudgery
- 02Animate Versus Inert Things in Barbarian Thought
- 03Prowess, Force, and the Predatory Habit of Life
The Theory of the Leisure Class
by Thorstein Veblen · 1899 · 14 chapters · 24/7 tutor
Status consumption and institutional economics.
14Chapters
44Lessons
132Topics
Certificate of completion included
This course was produced by Cavua from a public-domain text.
Skills this course leaves you with.
- Explain Veblen's theory of the leisure class and its historical origins
- Analyze conspicuous consumption and conspicuous leisure as signals of status
- Describe how pecuniary emulation shapes property, taste, fashion, and social standing
- Evaluate the role of industrial exemption, conservatism, and archaic traits in modern society
- Interpret the relationships among luck, religion, sport, and predatory instincts in the text
- Assess how higher education and scholarship reflect pecuniary culture and patronage
Curriculum
The full table of contents.
Every chapter, every lesson, every topic — laid out before you enroll. Click any chapter to expand it.
- Chapters
- 14
- Lessons
- 44
- Topics
- 132
- 01Leisure and Ownership as Linked Institutions
- 02Ownership of Women and the Origin of Property Rights
- 03Booty, Captives, and the Extension of Private Property
- 01Emulation as the Root of Ownership
- 02Wealth as Honorific Evidence of Prepotence
- 03The Shift from Predatory Booty to Accumulated Property
- 01Prowess Versus Commonplace Reputability
- 02The Desire for Wealth as an Unsatiable Motive
- 03Class Comparison Under the Competitive Regime
- 01Vicarious Leisure and the Leisure-Class Household
- 02Good Manners as Evidence of Non-Productive Time
- 03Refined Tastes and the Training of Leisure
- 01Domestic Service as a Display of Superfluity
- 02Servile Disposition and Trained Conformity
- 03The Refinement of Servant Display in Wealthier Households
- 01Leisure as a Standard of Decency
- 02The Household as a Site of Honorific Expenditure
- 03The Relation Between Leisure and Social Repute
- 01Ceremonial Differentiation of Food and Drink
- 02Intoxicating Beverages and Narcotics as Noble Consumption
- 03Specialized Consumption in the Gentleman of Leisure
- 01The Wife as Vicarious Consumer
- 02Children and Dependents in Conspicuous Consumption
- 03Livery, Retainers, and the Badge of Menial Service
- 01Conspicuous Waste as a Basis of Repute
- 02Wasteful Expenditure in Goods, Services, and Human Life
- 03The Relation Between Consumption and Pecuniary Comparison
- 01Ceremonial Requirements in Modern Expenditure
- 02The Persistence of Habits in the Standard of Living
- 03Reluctance to Abandon Conspicuous Consumption
- 01Pecuniary Gain as a Guide to Serious Activity
- 02The Scholarly Class and Honorific Expenditure
- 03The Canon of Honorific Expenditure Versus Moral Conduct
- 01Sacred Edifices and Devout Consumption
- 02Pecuniary Canons in Religious Observance
- 03The Influence of Reputability on Taste and Beauty
- 01Public Grounds and Pseudo-Serviceable Beauty
- 02Honorific Animals and Aesthetic Selection
- 03The Secondary Utility of Consumable Goods
- 01The Law of Conspicuous Waste in Taste
- 02Cheapness as Aesthetic Disrepute
- 03Wasteful Apparel as a Mark of Reputability
- 01Women’s Dress and Abstinence from Productive Employment
- 02Fashion Change and Aesthetic Nausea
- 03The Imperative of Conformity to Current Styles
- 01The Pecuniary Basis of Beautiful Objects
- 02Honorific Standards in Domestic Animals and Artifacts
- 03Archaism and Reputability in Language
- 01Women’s Dress as Evidence of Vicarious Leisure
- 02Priestly Dress and Clerical Decorum
- 03Dress as a Marker of Wealth and Culture
- 01Wastefulness Versus Native Taste in Apparel
- 02The Development of Aesthetic Nausea
- 03The Social Pressure to Adopt New Styles
- 01Adaptive Processes in Dress and Temperament
- 02Conservatism Among Wealthy and Lower Classes
- 03Dress as a Pecuniary Expression of Decency
- 01The Leisure Class and Resistance to Innovation
- 02The Lower Classes as Conservative by Necessity
- 03Radical Change and the Risk of Social Disruption
- 01The Pecuniary Relation of the Leisure Class to Industry
- 02Acquisition Versus Production in Class Relations
- 03Exemption from Industrial Pressure and Habit Formation
- 01The Difficulty of Reversing Conventional Life Patterns
- 02The Conservative Effect of Leisure-Class Institutions
- 03Industrial Life and the Pace of Social Change
- 01The Effect of Leisure-Class Institutions on Individual Character
- 02Selective Survival of Temperamental Types
- 03Reversions to Earlier Human Variants
- 01Surviving Effects of Early Discipline
- 02Pecuniary Culture and the Predatory Temperament
- 03Clannishness, Loyalty, and Competitive Success
- 01Sporting and Gambling Tendencies
- 02Aristocratic Virtues Under Modern Discipline
- 03The Survival of Predatory Habits in the Population
- 01The Boy’s Predilection for Exploit and Isolation
- 02Transient Reversion to Early Barbarian Temperament
- 03Emulative Ferocity in Youthful Conduct
- 01Athletic Games as Modern Exploit
- 02Hunting and Angling as Predatory Recreation
- 03The Social Distribution of Sporting Propensity
- 01Fraud as a Narrowly Self-Regarding Habit
- 02Belief in Luck and the Gambling Habit
- 03Fortuitous Agencies in Modern Industry
- 01The Basis of the Gambling Habit
- 02Betting on Strength and Skill Contests
- 03Luck as a Motive in Competitive Play
- 01Primitive Animistic Sense of Relations
- 02The Hamingja and the Unseen Hand
- 03Fortuitous Agencies Beyond Workman Control
- 01The Non-Economic Utility of Extra-Causal Propensity
- 02Luck and the Interpretation of Events
- 03The Persistence of Belief in Chance
- 01Devout Observance as an Elaborated Predatory Attitude
- 02Anthropomorphic Cult and Status Relations
- 03The Scope and Limits of the Present Inquiry
- 01The Economic Character of Devout Consumption
- 02Vicarious Leisure in Clerical Decorum
- 03Austere and Vicarious Manner of Life in the Priesthood
- 01Devout Habit Among Lower and Higher Classes
- 02The Growth of Wealth and Ease in Worship
- 03The Obsolescence of Animistic Interpretation
- 01The Leisure Class and Non-Invidious Interests
- 02The Predatory and Quasi-Peaceable Discipline of Life
- 03The Need for Expression Beyond Invidious Struggle
- 01Honorific Giving and Public Benefactions
- 02Charitable and Ameliorative Organizations
- 03The Invidious Interest in Non-Invidious Works
- 01The Pecuniary Culture of Woman’s Position
- 02The New-Woman Movement and Social Misapprehension
- 03Domestic Sphere and Habitual Dependence
- 01The Non-Invidious Trend of Kindergarten Discipline
- 02The Leisure-Class Bias in Higher Education
- 03Scientific and Scholarly Incentives from Leisure
- 01The Higher Learning and Pecuniary Reputability
- 02Cap and Gown as Leisure-Class Symbols
- 03The College as a Site of Social Distinction
- 01Scholars and Scientists Derived from Leisure
- 02Patronage as a Means of Enhancing Repute
- 03Scientific Progress and the Vehicle of Leisure
- 01The Leisure-Class Propriety of Archaism in Speech
- 02Received Standards and Methods of Culture
- 03The Reputable and the Disreputable in Academic Life
01How many chapters are in the Theory of the Leisure Class course?
The Theory of the Leisure Class course has 14 chapters, each with its own lessons and topics.
02How many lessons are in the Theory of the Leisure Class course?
There are 44 lessons across the course, and you can ask your 24/7 tutor about any of them.
03Can I see what the Theory of the Leisure Class course covers before I start?
Yes. The full curriculum is listed on this page, beginning with "Chapter One ~~ Introductory".
04Do I get a certificate for the Theory of the Leisure Class course?
Yes. Finishing the course earns a personal Cavua certificate of completion.
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