Kudos on the Pickwick quote. Dickens can be quoted for almost any occasion, and should be.

To echo some of the comments that are visible to me, I think “elitism” took on negative connotations when the concept of noblesse oblige went out the window. People can put up with the idea that someone is better than them, in a superlative way, in some field, as long as they’re being gracious about it. Does anybody resent Tiger Woods (excepting his opponents) for his golfing ability?

Treating other people with respect used to be considered an obligation. When the elites forget this, they run a danger of losing their status. Literally, in ancient Athens, as those too big for their britches would be kicked out of the city for 10+ years. And another literary example here is Austen’s Emma, where the well-endowed heroine (in class terms) is upbraided by her fellow gentry by being a snot to those lower on the ladder. She is told that she is in danger of slipping down that ladder, too, if she doesn’t pay attention to her social obligations. Dickens also touches on this theme in many of his novels (Our Mutual Friend (which I’m currently re-reading), Little Dorrit, Great Expectations, and David Copperfield come to mind to me.)