In our consumer-driven society it seems like you can become a snob about almost everything. I don’t mean this in a purely negative sense, but rather the idea that you can get increasingly obsessed and aware of more subtle nuances of anything. This might be sports cars, coffee, or vacuum cleaners – every category of thing can be an area of specialization and opinion.
I will fully admit that there are things in my life, namely coffee and wine, in which I am probably still in the snob category. But as I think about interests I’ve had in the past, and my journey into them, I have a theory I have been wanting to share.
At first you know nothing. This is ignorance. For example, you know that there are different types of coffee, but you don’t drink it and the information is totally irrelevant. For many things, this is where we all stay. Happily knowing essentially nothing and living lives unaffected by our ignorance.
Then we learn the thing exists. This could be trying coffee for the first time and realizing we actually like it. This is a basic understanding, and can be enough. We don’t need to know more than this thing exists and we like it, not worrying about discerning between further details.
But, perhaps we like the thing and want to know more. For coffee this was learning about the regional differences between beans. As I learned more, I became interested in the roasting process and dove in myself. As I learned more, I moved up the snob ladder, becoming aware of further nuances and details – what elevation was the coffee grown at, how was it processed, how recently was it roasted etc.
This can continue almost indefinitely, continuing to learn more and more, perhaps at a reduced rate, but on a never-ending quest for better. At this stage you spend too much to get a small return on the “better” item … the camera, or bicycle, or espresso machine.
But, at some point you might realize, “I’ve gone too far. I’ve enjoyed the pursuit of the best, but I can settle for less.” This is what I call “post-snob”. When you still have an understanding and appreciation for the thing – maybe its fine wine or indie music, but you are also totally okay listening to top 40.
Now, I’m not advocating for becoming a snob, or post-snob, about anything necessarily. The pursuit of more and better is usually unfulfilling and very costly. But there is something about having a deep knowledge and appreciation for something, without it having any power over you.