To Veblen, this fact marked a fundamental change in the attitude of the savage toward work. What had once been a source of pride had become degraded by the transfer of approval to the plundering and predatory ways of the leisure class. Classical economists considered the desire for leisure inherent in human nature, but Veblen maintained that what was inherent in human nature was pride in work. As men plundered, seized booty and women, and received admiration for their prowess, approval transferred from the once-honored way of life to the spirit of plunder — and the leisure class gained respect.
As societies progressed, continued Veblen, the leisure class changed its occupation and refined its methods, but its goal remained the same — the accumulation of goods without productive work, but by seizure. Applying his findings to the United States, Veblen wrote: ". . . by heredity human nature still is, and must indefinitely continue to be, savage human nature." Modern plunder did not exist for booty or women, but for the accumulation of money and its lavish display. The savage displayed numerous wives, the barbarian his conquests of war; in the same vein, modern savages displayed wealth.
So Veblen arrived at a thesis: the leisure class advertises its superiority through conspicuous consumption — enjoying leisure more fully by being able to display it before the public. Thus, the modern
U.S. businessman, by seeking and accumulating money and then displaying it — either subtly or conspicuously — is the modern counterpart of a savage heritage. Furthermore, everyone — the worker, the middle-class citizen, and the capitalist — seeks through conspicuous expenditure and even the waste of money to prove status.
Carrying the theme a step further, Veblen explained why a proletariat revolution, as Marx predicted, had not occurred in the United States. It was simply that workers did not seek to overthrow the upper class, but rather strove to join it themselves. This ambition explained the nation's social stability.
