Vulgar things: Moral dilemmas of luxury consumption in an unequal society

There are discussions in South Africa, the world's most unequal society, about the morality of consuming and displaying luxuries. Anger is especially directed at political elites eager to display their expensive trappings, while others can barely survive. This article considers the negative consequences of conspicuous consumption in South Africa by analysing instances of discontent being directed at political elites and their possessions of luxury brands. I argue that such luxuries can become 'vulgar' in unequal South Africa especially when consumed by political elites thought to be hypocritical, when positioned within socioeconomic crisis and when regarded as the proceeds of theft. Ultimately, luxuries that remain detached from effective redistribution, which helps to soften tensions that arise from social hierarchies in human societies, become egregious. Finally, I consider why, despite their vulgarity in South Africa, many political elites continue to publicly display luxury goods.