W. David Marx
Tokyo-based American writer; author of Ametora (2015), Status and Culture (2022) and Blank Space (2025).
W. David Marx did not write this page. ppll compiled it from their own words, each linked to the source. Is this you? · Report a mistake
What they believe
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The good taste of each era tracks the makeup of its elites.
But as Veblen explained, the "good taste" of each era is correlated with the particular makeup of elites.
culture.ghost.ioSaid 22 Sept 2026This on korrents
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People in similar social positions tend to share tastes, and the social hierarchy labels some tastes good and others bad.
People in similar social positions tend to have similar tastes (so-called “taste worlds”), and the social hierarchy elevates some tastes as “good” and disparages others as “bad."
culture.ghost.ioSaid 5 Dec 2023This on korrents
The bold line is korrents’ wording; the quote is theirs. These 2: what they wrote before what they said aloud, one per source, newest first.
Beliefs
Korrents What they believe 4 beliefs — each backed by an exact quote.
Each is a — compiled by korrents.com, not by them: the one-line wordings are korrents', the quotes are theirs.
Recent
The good taste of each era tracks the makeup of its elites.
But as Veblen explained, the "good taste" of each era is correlated with the particular makeup of elites.
Good Taste is Not What’s Oppressing Us in 2026 Said 22 Sept 2026
The taste for high art has become extremely marginal, limited almost entirely to a subset of knowledge workers.
Today the taste for “high art” has become extremely marginal, almost exclusively limited to a particular subset of knowledge workers.
Good Taste is Not What’s Oppressing Us in 2026 Said 22 Sept 2026
People in similar social positions tend to share tastes, and the social hierarchy labels some tastes good and others bad.
People in similar social positions tend to have similar tastes (so-called “taste worlds”), and the social hierarchy elevates some tastes as “good” and disparages others as “bad."
On Taste and Congruence Said 5 Dec 2023
Show 1 more
There cannot be good taste without congruence.
Without congruence, there cannot be good taste.
On Taste and Congruence Said 5 Dec 2023
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Where they publish
Newsletter Culture: An Owner's Manual His newsletter on how culture works and why it changes.
Essays on status, taste and cultural change, from Tokyo: taste worlds and congruence, Bourdieu and Veblen, and what the elites of each era do to what counts as good taste. Has an RSS feed.
Link verified 3 Oct 2026.
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