Luxuology. A Socio-philosophical perspective

Luxury is a rarely discussed topic within philosophy. Even less attention is paid to the analysis of the concept of luxury following a Weberian perspective. My thesis has two aims. The first is to analyze the meaning (Bedeutung) of the concept of luxury. The second is to highlight the subjective intended meaning (Sinn) conferred on the concept of luxury. If luxury is interpreted through the former point of view, then the description of a particular social type of expense emerges. Luxury as an expense can be very precisely differentiated from the practice of fashion. If luxury, on the contrary, is described in terms of the subjective intended meaning, then three possible idealtypes of luxury as aesthetic experience can be identified. They are characterized by a variation in the relevance of visibility, the degree of possession, and the level of mutual recognition. In the experience of luxury, a social/personal good (esteem, respect, dignity) is always sought through possession.