A Sociological Analysis of Yasmina Reza’s Play Art

Abstract

The sociology of literature studies the relationship between literary texts and the social, political, and economicstructures that shape them. Lucien Goldmann argues that literary works are not mere reflections of socio-economic conditions,but aesthetic forms through which collective consciousness becomes visible. Using Goldmann’s genetic structuralist method (comprehension and explanation), this study conducts a sociological reading of Yasmina Reza’s play Art to explore how social class and cultural taste organize interpersonal conflict and cultural judgment. The research is fundamental in objective, descriptive–analytical in method, and relies on library-based data collection. The play presents three friends—Serge, Marc, and Ivan—whose relationship is disrupted after Serge buys an expensive, almost entirely white modern painting. The analysis shows that each character embodies a distinct socio-economic position that produces different tastes and strategies: Marc’s classical orientation and intolerance of opposing views, Serge’s investment in modern art and status signaling, and Ivan’s indecision and desire to maintain social harmony. These tensions reveal how taste is socially constructed and how cultural legitimacy tends to be shaped by the upper classes. The study argues that investigating such social and political dimensions can help readers and theatre practitioners uncover non-dramatic layers that matter for interpretation, adaptation, and performance.