de bas étage

[Guillaume37]

How could one translate this figurative expression, as in "philosophe de bas étage" ?

(This follows a thread about "dictateur d'opérette"
http://forum.wordreference.com/showthread.php?t=679005
.)

 

[edwingill]

small-time philosopher?

 

[Phyllogian]

Or "third-rate." In any case, it's meant as an insult or self-depreciation.

 

[bh7]

a beer-hall philosopher

A rich tapestry of human life, peopled by a profusion of wistful dreamers, pining lonely hearts, and beer-hall philosophers, this is a twentieth-century American masterpiece.

Source : William Saroyan, The Time of Your Life, paperback ed. back cover

 

[geve]

a beer-hall philosopher

This seems to fit very well the other common expression (quite close to "philosophe de bas-étage): la philo(sophie) de comptoir.