Bruksföremål eller statussymbol : En studie av handväskor från Chanel ur ett maktperspektiv

Sammanfattning: A lot of women buy handbags from Chanel, even though they cost thousands of Euros, and this study aim to examine why. Are the bags to be considered investments, utility items, or status symbols? The research is primarily performed through qualitative interviews of seven women, both owners of Chanel bags and non-owners. The material has been processed and analysed with a discourse perspective focusing on communication of identity through clothing and accessories and regulation of power within and between groups. The study shows that the image of a person who owns a Chanel bag changes in a context where the observer is aware of the symbolic value of the bag. In a context where the observer does not recognise the Chanel bag, this change does not occur. Owning a Chanel bag gives in some groups, where expensive bags are norm, higher status within the group. Outside the group, the bag may cause discomfort and negative comments. For those who buy a Chanel bag, neither is the investment nor the need to communicate financial status a priority. Thewomen buy it primarily to reward themselves for hard work and successful thriftiness. It gives an increased sense of self-esteem and a sense of joy to own an aesthetically pleasing item of high quality and historic value. However, within the group of women interviewed, there is a prevailing view that there are women who, after all, buy them as a status symbol, but no one considers themselves to belong to that group.