To Be a Snob or Not to be
That is the question
Everywhere in Europe, they were called shoemakers or cobblers. Except in England, where they were called snobs. No one quite knows why. (One theory claims it comes from the Scottish word “snab” — “a cobbler’s boy” — an apprentice.)
In any case, around 1790, it became a slang term for “townspeople” among students at Cambridge; and soon it became a term for anyone in England who was a member of the lower classes.
After about 1820, when a new era of industry and economic growth dawned, a snob became a term for anyone from the lower classes who aspired to move up the social ladder. Since that meant looking down at the people you had left behind, the term soon came to mean someone who despised those who were inferior to them. And by the 1920’s, it had done a complete 180° turn from its original meaning, denoting a member of the upper classes who looks down at everyone else.
So in a strange way, the evolution of the word “snob” traces the entire social history of England over the last three or four centuries.
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A word that began as someone regarded as socially beneath the university elite has come to mean someone who claims to be socially above others. And the word’s journey reflects a world in which social rank became a central concern and has remained so to this day. In a society where social rank is what matters most, you must be able to scorn others, as proof of your success. So snobbery isn’t a fault. It’s a requirement — a privilege that you have earned.
Another word with an interesting history: from the Latin privilegium — a bill of law that applied solely to an individual (a privus or private person), either for or against them. But after the 5th century (the “post-Augustine” period), it became a term for an ordinance that exempted a particular individual from the operation of a law that everyone else still had to obey.
So it was a favor granted by those in power to those who were not. And indeed, that is what power is — not only control over others, but the ability to relieve yourself and your buddies of any restrictions. Freedom. Freedom from the anxiety that all status hierarchies necessarily create. If you have achieved a certain status, then you are always at risk of losing it — you will constantly worry about the possibility that you will fail to meet social expectations.
All sorts of questions arise: Do others respect me — or am I being looked down on? If I don’t become more successful, will I fall behind? What will happen if I violate a social rule? And indeed, what exactly are the social rules? That, in fact, is one of them — that you are expected to know what they are without ever saying so.
One rule is that you must keep your snobbery to yourself and to those of your own class. You must pretend to everyone else that you are not a snob or they will think you are… pretentious! A big no-no. But only one among many.
So all but those at the very top must live a life of unease — forever in fear of doing something that will appear to others as “common,” “uncultured,” or “out of place.” And all of it is just “understood” — and in that way, any confrontation is avoided. You will just wake up one morning and find yourself excluded, no longer in favor. And if you complain about it to anyone, you will just be digging the hole that much deeper.
But if you are among the privileged, you never need to worry. If you do something that violates the invisible code, people will just pretend not to see it — or if they do, they will just call you “eccentric” — and you will be admired for not behaving like everyone else.
So, in answer to the question: to be a snob or not to be — sure, go ahead. Just don’t tell anyone. And if you are eccentric, best to keep that a secret too.
