Snobbery meaning. See what "Snob" is in other dictionaries

Many people believe that a snob is arrogant manwho finds himself better than others for whatever reason, takes pride in this and clearly demonstrates his superiority. Other people usually find his demeanor repulsive, since they hate to see an obvious and unreasonable understatement of their own material, intellectual, cultural or other level. The main personal quality a snob can be called pride and pride, directed towards vanity.

Who is a snob?

A snob is a personality prone to narcissism, possessing megalomania and adoring what, in his opinion, belongs to the high and prestigious. It is characteristic for him to exaggerate the importance of some things.

The snob very carefully observes the rules of the style of the circle of people to whom he wants to relate. At the same time, he sincerely believes that he most subtly and correctly understands all the requirements of a characteristic fashion. Snob behavior is about worshiping what the elite values. But objects or works of art are not recognized because of their true value, but because their properties are understood by the representatives of the upper class, who need to be like.

The snob feels the need to enjoy his own worth. But this is not possible alone, as he feels the need to stand out from others. Moreover, weak in spirit people are not able to be alone for a long time.

What is characteristic of a snob personality?

It is common for a snob to end a relationship with a person who does not act according to the overestimated standards he requires. Moreover, if a representative of a high class, to whom a proud man wants to relate, also makes a similar oversight, then this goes unnoticed. That is, a snob breaks off relations with a good and smart personif he buys groceries in the market and not in an elite supermarket. But at the same time, if a famous person imitated by a proud man acts in the same way, then the hypocrite confirms the correctness of his choice. The snob is often characterized by exaggeration of the importance of the system of division into classes in society.

Other people usually do not even intend to compete with him or prove their superiority, and before his appearance they do not even realize that they have something wrong. The snob feels an intuitive desire to develop a flawed feeling in friends and relatives and to rise at their expense.

How does a snob choose his circle of acquaintances?

At the same time, it cannot be said that the snob is dishonest in his actions, since he actually considers himself better than others. This person believes that his knowledge is special, his demeanor is refined, his taste is refined, or his origin is more noble than that of other people. The snob does not maintain relations with acquaintances who do not "reach" his level, and if such people accidentally fall into his environment, he cuts off all contacts with them.

It is very important for a snob to be superior to other people in something, so such a person can first pay attention to what the majority does not have, and draw his own conclusions about their failure. After that, he deliberately demonstrates his superiority, creating in the minds of acquaintances the illusion of the need to possess the same thing that he has. Due to the lack of such a criterion in people, the snob secretly indicates (with gestures, facial expressions, actions) their low status. A snob's way of communicating is to look past the other person, filtering words through his teeth.

What is a snob proud of?

Talent, a large sum of money, connections with high-ranking people and so on can be a subject of pride. There are also the opposite cases, when the snob clearly demonstrates his superiority in the ability to possess something less than his acquaintances, or simply different. By and large, the snob doesn't care what the advantage is. His manner of communication is to present his views and property as the most correct in any situation.

There are many examples:

1. A laptop is better than a desktop computer.
2. An outdated and simple phone model is preferable to a new and cutting edge one.
3. A house outside the city is better than an apartment in an elite central area (and vice versa).
4. More modern technology is better than the one that was bought even a year ago.
5. Antique items are valued above any other.
6. A small car is better than a large one because it is more maneuverable.
7. An expensive large car is better than a small one, as it is more prestigious, and so on.

Varieties of snobs

Many people know the preference of high-quality branded items to ordinary consumer goods. But there is not always an opportunity or even a desire to acquire, for example, a leather belt from a prestigious and best brand. A reasonable decision is to buy a medium-level trademark of the same functionality, which is made by a person who is adequate in his actions. And society fully accepts his choice.

But there is a certain type of people who literally worship brands. Usually these individuals have a considerable inferiority complex. They believe that even an ordinary, even low-quality thing with a label should be bought than a completely natural and decent one, but without it. Such people increase their own importance in their own eyes, acquiring more and more elite brands.

There is also snobbery, based on an unshakable belief in mental superiority or physical attractiveness. It so happens that this happens at a religious level, since the adherents of the correct religion go to Heaven, and everyone else goes to Hell. Or, a sense of superiority arises in relation to people with a dark skin color or to residents of third world countries. Such a person and society do not belong to harmonious relationship, because the person experiences an inner protest before his origin.

Snobbery in art is manifested in the statement that a person is not able to evaluate a real work from the outside. As if this is common sense, but in fact, a real creator creates something at the behest inner voice... A connoisseur or an intelligent person interested in art can see something for himself in a work, feel it, without possessing any specific knowledge.

History of origin

The concept of "snob" originated in England and meant a person of the profession "small shoemaker". Then this word began to call individuals who want to join high society and rubbed into the environment of aristocrats. At that time, the hypocrite did not have the appropriate taste in dress, which was very noticeable. But gradually this quality disappeared, since a modern snob is a person who looks fashionable and stylish.

The type "English snob" appeared in Britain in the Victorian era as a consequence of the emergence of the commercial aristocracy - a new social class. Its representatives are not characterized by a noble origin, but significance in political and economic spheres. At that time, aristocrats and landowners had a significant influence, but new class He strove in every possible way to acquire the corresponding status.

Is a snob just an upstart?

You cannot call a snob an ordinary upstart simply because he is very careful about keeping secret all information about his base origin. At the same time, only a snob can think so, since all his acquaintances do not at all think that from their social status there is a problem that needs to be covered up.

This is also evidenced by his belief in his uniqueness and belief in the right to occupy a high position. But famous people by and large they are not interested in him as a person, since he only needs from them belonging to a high class.

For example, a careerist may try to communicate with rich and successful people in order to learn from them knowledge and experience, establish relationships that may contribute to career advancement, and make new acquaintances. But the snob believes that he already refers to noble people, so he should communicate only with them. He seems to be playing a role in the theater, creating the scenery for himself.

Snob intellectual, cultural and musical pride

There is such a variety as the intellectual snob, which appeared in the 20th century. This is also true of modern British society. At the heart of this snobbery are special mental capacity, wonderful refined taste. A type of intellectual snobbery is considered a person who understands wine (considers himself so). He believes that his knowledge and taste are special.

There is also a cultural snob. This is a person who is versed in culture, literature, art, has an encyclopedic mind, who visits art galleries.

A music snob is a proud man who is deeply passionate about music and knows a lot about it. He buys discs in large quantities, attends concerts, keeps track of the latest trends, understands musical trends, is always aware of the release of new albums and looks forward to them. Such a person is the most harmless of all kinds of snobs. His interlocutors for hours of conversation about reviews, compositions and other things are mostly on the Internet. In fact, one cannot say that a snob is a fully intelligent person, since he only creates the appearance of such.

Fashionable, office and bourgeois snobs

There are snobs who have significant material wealth, allowing them to acquire things that are inaccessible to many. They buy exclusive goods only for the sake of the prestige of owning them bourgeois snobs.

A fashionable snob is a person who is interested in fashionable and expensive clothes of famous brands. Such people disapprove of the owners of simple and inexpensive things.

A person holding intermediate management positions (deputy chief, department head) can be defined as an office snob. The meaning of this concept is in admiration for the leadership and an arrogant attitude towards lower-ranking colleagues.

The British themselves are considered an arrogant nation, so they are often accused of snobbery due to overconfidence. Modern British society is characterized by the manifestation of snobbery in any social class in relation to the representatives of the lower class.

Today in our life the concept of "snobbery" is not often used, rather it is considered more bookish than colloquial. Nevertheless, we encounter snobs every day in different spheres of life and regardless of the conditions under which this happens, in the process of communicating with them, one constantly feels fake, as if this is not a person, but a character in a film or book who is trying on new role. These people are often repulsive, although they themselves do not notice what effect they have on others, considering themselves a step higher than most people.

If we turn to history, the concept of "snob" first appeared in England, and it denoted the profession of "small shoemaker". After that, this word began to be used to characterize people seeking to join high society and reverent for aristocrats. What is the characteristic of snobbery today, who is a snob and how to distinguish it - our article is devoted to the answers to these questions.

Snobbery is ...

In the classical sense, snobbery is the desire and tendency of a person to imitate the tastes and manners of the "upper class", to strive to get into this social circle and dismiss all other people, deliberately humiliating their dignity and exalting oneself with contrived refined taste and interests.

Main feature snobbery - arrogance, manifested in the ridicule of others. Moreover, the presence of snobbery in a person's character is considered an indicator of his inner inferiority and ordinariness, although outwardly this fact is masked by refined demeanors.

Snobbery manifests itself in various forms and spheres of life. The following types of it are known: intellectual or professional, everyday, social and cultural, snobbery by origin, and so on.

For example, cultural snobbery manifests itself not in the assessment of the aesthetic perception of the painting, but exclusively in the assessment of the author of the work and his authority in the circles of “art connoisseurs”. As an example of a kind of intellectual snobbery, a person who, as he believes, understands wine is considered. Although in fact his opinion is not based on personal preferences, but only on the opinion of "authoritative" people, to whose circle he wants to include himself.

People often confuse snobbery with hypocrisy, but still these concepts are not identical. Snobbery is distinguished by the fact that a person does not fully realize that he lives in the illusions of his own "I" and is only trying to pass himself off as an intellectual standing above those around him. Life often develops in such a way that snobs get so used to these thoughts that they begin to seriously believe in their importance and honorable position in society.

True, in practice to try to reach the desired heights and stop passing off other people's thoughts and behavior as their own, such a person is not ready to do anything. Snobbery is limited to imitation. A person does not want to be an individual, he has enough to create an illusion in the eyes of others to feel special. Everything in his life comes down to the outer shell, while filling has no meaning.

It is believed that snobbery is most inherent in British society, it manifests itself in all areas, especially with regard to social status.

Snob - who is this?

Given the typical traits of snobbery, portraying a modern snob is not difficult.

A snob is a person who considers himself, and not those around him, to be the owner of high taste and intelligence. He tries to emphasize as much as possible his external belonging to the society, to which, in fact, he has no relationship. The snob is distinguished by arrogance and arrogance. This concept has 3 synonyms: proud, show-off and poser. All of them include similar traits of a person's character, but they are applied with different emotional coloring, for example, characterizing a person's “ambition”.

The snob diligently protects his image and sincerely believes that he looks absolutely natural in this. He just needs people around who are ready to listen to his "special" opinion, because alone he himself feels his own falsehood.

But the snob also treats the environment selectively, is able to easily stop communicating with those who do not act according to the standards they have accepted, although this applies only to people "on a step below." If this concerns a representative of the "upper class", then the snob will not attach any importance to this, because the "upper class" for him has undeniable authority.

The snob, at the first opportunity, tries to emphasize his merits in contrast with other people. He likes to point out what most people do not have, while showing disdain for his appearance. Moreover, for a snob it does not matter what exactly his advantage will be, only the fact itself is important.

From the outside, it seems that the life of a snob boils down to the fact that he seems to be playing in the theater, creating images and decorations around him. It is important for him that those around him consider him a chosen person and belonging to the highest circles, then he himself will feel his own nobility, without worrying that inside himself he is most likely insecure and not interesting person without their own judgments and goals in life.

Distinctive traits of a snob or how to recognize snobbery

Although a rather detailed description of a snob has already been presented above, in life it is not so easy to recognize him. But nevertheless, distinctive features are known that help determine snobbery in the character of the interlocutor.

1. If a person given name seems insufficient for his "high" nature, then you have a snob. For example, this manifests itself if Ira perceives her own name only as "Irena", and Masha - only "Mari" and nothing else.
2. If a person has reached relatives living in the 15th century in the study of the genealogy, and does not plan to stop there, believing that he is a representative of blue blood, this is not a simple desire to find out his roots, but rather a kind of snobbery.
3. The dismissive attitude towards compatriots and the praise of foreigners in a conversation indicate that your interlocutor is a snob.
4. If a person is trying to prove that people in the world live better than you and their happiness is full-fledged happiness, especially if by this he seeks to belittle your event, do not doubt - snobbery speaks in this person.
5. If a photo with a celebrity hangs in an honorable and prominent place in the house and a lot of attention is paid to this fact, then this characterizes the owner of the house as a snob who wants to flaunt the importance of his personality in such an unoriginal way.

Snob considers himself a representative of "blue" blood

This is not all distinctive features snob, conspicuous in communication, but still typical and characteristic. The conclusion suggests itself the following: no matter how he covers his own life with decorations, the snob will still remain a person who cannot feel the fullness of life. He does not receive full-fledged pleasure, because he cannot and does not know how to either relax or realize himself without looking back at others. And this "lack of happiness", the incompleteness of life, and push this person to the manifestation of snobbery, as a kind of compensation.

When communicating with a snob, especially if this communication involves a protracted nature, use the following rules to prevent the snob from losing your dignity, but at the same time to avoid direct conflict with him.

First of all, try to find common topics of conversation with him that can somehow "relax" the interlocutor and turn the conversation into a pleasant channel for both. Also, do not live up to the expectations of the snob and do not typically respond to his tendency to "belittle" your dignity.

Competent behavior in this matter will only advantageously emphasize your positive sides, which the snob will diligently belittle. But you should still avoid conflicting topics of conversation, and if it is not possible to establish communication in a positive manner, then it is better to find a reason altogether and leave than to try to prove something to a person who lives by other people's thoughts and goals.

Snobbery is, of course, negative trait character of the person. But it is important to remember that by fighting it, you can turn into an anti-snooze. Antisnob is a person who seeks out the traits of snobbery in others and points specifically to them. Antisnobs also like to emphasize that they are completely different people, but they do it so often that they do not notice how they themselves become snobs.

In different eras, this term had its own definite meaning, but it always wore a negative emotional connotation. Today they say about such a person: "From rags to riches." So who is a snob - read this article.

Who is a snob and what is snobbery?

There are several versions of the origin of this word:

1. For the first time, mentions of him are found in the historical literature of 1775-1875. This was the name of a shoemaker or an apprentice of a shoemaker. In the future, it acquired a general meaning and spread to all people of the low class, and later to those who hid their origin and tried with all their might to be like an aristocrat, imitating the speech and manners of the nobility.
2. Another version says that the word has an older origin and is translated from the Latin abbreviation "s.nob." means "ignoble birth".
3. According to the third version, the term has completely different, English roots. The thing is that at the dawn of the 19th century, a limited number of lower-class students studied at the University of Eton. They competed with the aristocrats, but were powerless over the system. It was from the opposition of commoners to representatives of the highest nobility that the word snob was born.

For those who are interested in what a snob means, you can answer that this is a person who admires high society, imitates its manners and tastes and by hook or by crook strives to get there. He can claim the right to be in any area, for example, an intellectual snob considers himself smarter and more intelligent, even wiser than others, and at the same time despises and arrogantly treats those who, in his opinion, do not reach this level. The word is found in many languages \u200b\u200bof the world and it was from him that the term "snobbery" originated, which in an outdated sense characterized the desire and desire of a person to keep up with fashion, to constantly adhere to the manners of the "high society" and the aristocratic circle.

The modern meaning of the word snob

Today, the boundaries between classes are more blurred and it is possible to become part of the “elite” with a lot of money, connections or a good education. Therefore, those who wonder what this means - a snob, you can answer that we are talking about a certain stratum of society, which, according to one indicator or another, considers itself "elite" and opposes itself to all the rest, which include the style of clothing, behavior, demeanor and speaking. This helps them emphasize their own importance and originality. By emphasizing their belonging to such a group, its members betray their own snobbery.

Typical Snob Behavior

1. Their behavior, manners and way of expressing their emotions not only become a hallmark of such belonging, but also an opportunity to express their contempt for everyone else, to show them "their place".
2. They consider themselves superior to others, and all others unworthy, pitiful and worthless, not realizing that they themselves are such. A highly spiritual person will never boast of his spirituality, as a highly educated and intelligent person will never boast of his mind. These same people simply pretend to be educated and intellectually, although in reality they are not.
3. They surround themselves with objects of art and cultural values, visit openings and exhibitions, wanting to appear, but not to be.
4. Their taste and sophistication of manners cause only laughter and pity in people. Such a striking example is many stars of show business who like to shock the audience, impersonate those who they really are not.
5. They are licentious and arrogant, strive to fuck everything at once and now, not wanting to put in special efforts for this.

It is impossible to understand what snobbery is without considering the word "snob" in detail. Once it meant only those who imitated the representatives of the noble classes, but themselves belonged to the lower of them. In the past, the stratification of society was especially noticeable, although, of course, to a large extent it is still present today. Snobs are precisely those who wanted to seep into the upper world by any means.

Later the "snob" expanded somewhat. So they began to call those who imitated the aristocrats in manners and behavior, and in relation to their peers showed arrogance. This is the kind of person for whom it is important to appear as someone especially intelligent, even if he is not. The snob has big claims, but at the same time, insignificant potential.

Snobbery

As a rule, snobbery is understood as a deliberate demonstration of one's importance, an emphasized manifestation of one's own manners. A feigned and deliberate sophistication, which is noticeable in everything: how a person dresses, how he holds a tea cup, behaves at the table,. A snob can be well educated, but you should not expect pleasant communication from him if he decides that you are no match for him. Snobbery is the lack of the ability to communicate with all people in the same way, it is the ranking of others and the appropriate treatment of them.

If you meet a snob who is dismissive of you, try to just ignore him. It is extremely difficult to explain something to him, and getting upset is not the most reasonable decision. Think of it as bad weather. You are not angry about rain or snow. Hold on with dignity, do not allow yourself to be insulted, but you should not use the enemy's "weapon".

From the point of view of etiquette, snobbery is a violation of decency and bad form. Decent and sane people are able to behave adequately. They, as a rule, are easy to communicate with both superiors and subordinates, and do not divide those around them into worthy and unworthy of their attention.

The word "snobbery" has always had a negative connotation, but in modern world the situation has changed somewhat. Despite the fact that its meaning has remained the same, the word itself is used with some sarcasm, and there are quite a few people who are happy to call themselves snobs. There is even a periodical called Snob.

Snobbery ♦ Snobisme The desire to follow an example from the elite (or what is taken for the elite) in the absence of the opportunity to belong to it. The snob imitates an exclusivity that it does not and cannot have. He is not so much striving to become ... ... Philosophical Dictionary Sponville

Show off, show off, demeanor Dictionary of Russian synonyms. snobbery noun, number of synonyms: 4 show off (14) ... Synonym dictionary

SNOBISM, ah, husband. (book). Views, behavior, manners inherent in a snob. | adj. snobbish, oh, oh. Dictionary Ozhegova. S.I. Ozhegov, N.Yu. Shvedova. 1949 1992 ... Ozhegov's Explanatory Dictionary

See Ambition (Source: "Aphorisms from around the world. Encyclopedia of wisdom." Www.foxdesign.ru) ... Consolidated encyclopedia of aphorisms

- (from the English snob person with a claim) snobbery; German Snobismus. Imitation of tastes, manners, behavior of the so-called. high society; the individual's claim to belonging to the highest social. layers. Antinazi. Encyclopedia of Sociology, 2009 ... Encyclopedia of Sociology

snobbery - a, m. snobbisme m. , eng. snobbism. Behavior, manners, way of thinking inherent in a person who claims an exquisitely refined taste. But the academicians are death blow the author of Daudet, and not even an academy, as a national ... Historical Dictionary of Russian Gallicisms

Manners, behavior, attitudes inherent in a snob. New Dictionary foreign words. by EdwART, 2009. snobbery [Dictionary of foreign words of the Russian language

Snobbery - unfounded claims of a person for an exquisitely refined taste; refined manners, along with a dismissive attitude towards those who, in the opinion of a snob (as they call a person who shows snobbery), does not have all this. Snobbery is also excessive ... ... Encyclopedic Dictionary of Psychology and Pedagogy

Snobbery - (English - upstart) - a negative moral ethical quality of a person, manifested in imitation of the tastes of a certain "high society", passion for fashion, blind copying of tastes and habits taken as a standard, in admiration for all this, ... ... Fundamentals of Spiritual Culture ( encyclopedic Dictionary teacher)

snobbery - SNOBISM, a, m Behavior, attitudes, manners inherent in a person who considers himself the bearer of the highest intellectuality and refined tastes, with arrogance and disdain for other people. I also, I say, like imported cigarettes ... Explanatory dictionary of Russian nouns

Books

• Township, Charlatta Bronte. The novel "Gorodok" by the famous English writer S. Bronte is a story of the struggle between two worldviews, two different approaches to life. On the one hand, there are negative characters embodying ...
• The Book of Snobs, W. M. Thackeray. Moscow, 1959. Foreign Languages \u200b\u200bPublishing House. Publishing binding. The preservation is good. The concept of "snob" was invented by the English writer William Thackeray. The Book of Snobs was the first ...