Work alienation

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Work alienation

Entfremdung (estrangement) is Karl Marx's theory of alienation, which describes the separation of things that naturally belong together; and the placement of antagonism between things that are properly in harmony. Theoretically, Entfremdung describes the social alienation (estrangement) of people from aspects of their human nature (Gattungswesen, «species-essence») as a consequence of living in a society stratified into social classes; Marx had earlier expressed the entfremdung theory in the Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844 (1927). Philosophically, the Entfremdung theory relies upon The Essence of Christianity (1841), by Ludwig Feuerbach, which argues that the supernatural idea of «God» has alienated the natural characteristics of the human being. Moreover, in The Ego and its Own (1845), Max Stirner extends the Feurbach analysis by arguing that even the idea of «humanity» is an alienating concept for the individual man and woman to intellectually consider; Marx and Engels responded to these philosophic propositions in The German Ideology (1845).

Alienation (Entfremdung) is the systemic result of living in a socially stratified society, because being a mechanistic part of a social class alienates a person from his and her humanity. The theoretic basis of alienation within the capitalist mode of production is that the worker invariably loses the ability to determine his or her life and destiny, when deprived of the right to think (conceive) of himself as the director of his actions; to determine the character of said actions; to define his relationship with other people; and to own the things and use the value of the goods and services, produced with his labor. Although the worker is an autonomous, self-realized human being, as an economic entity, he or she is directed to goals and diverted to activities that are dictated by the bourgeoisie, who own the means of production, in order to extract from the worker the maximal amount of surplus value, in the course of business competition among industrialists.

In a capitalist society, the worker's alienation from his and her humanity occurs because the worker can only express labor - a fundamental social aspect of personal individuality - through a privately-owned system of industrial production in which each worker is an instrument, a thing, not a person. Marx explained it thus:

Let us suppose that we had carried out production as human beings. Each of us would have, in two ways, affirmed himself, and the other person. In my production I would have objectified my individuality, its specific character, and, therefore, enjoyed not only an individual manifestation of my life during the activity, but also, when looking at the object, I would have the individual pleasure of knowing my personality to be objective, visible to the senses, and, hence, a power beyond all doubt. In your enjoyment, or use, of my product I would have the direct enjoyment both of being conscious of having satisfied a human need by my work, that is, of having objectified man's essential nature, and of having thus created an object corresponding to the need of another man's essential nature…. Our products would be so many mirrors in which we saw reflected our essential nature.

The four types of Entfremdung are:

(I) Alienation of the worker from the work - from the product of his labor

The design of the product and how it is produced are determined, not by the producers who make it (the workers), nor by the consumers of the product (the buyers), but by the Capitalist class, who, besides appropriating the worker's manual labor, also appropriate the intellectual labor of the engineer and the industrial designer who create the product, in order to shape the taste of the consumer to buy the goods and services at a price that yields a maximal profit. Aside from the workers having no control over the design-and-production protocol, alienation (Entfremdung) broadly describes the conversion of labor (work as an activity), which is performed to generate a use value (the product) into a commodity, which - like products - can be assigned an exchange value. That is, the Capitalist gains control of the manual and intellectual workers, and the benefits of their labor, with a system of industrial production that converts said labor into concrete products (goods and services) that benefit the consumer. Moreover, the capitalist production system also reifies labor into the «concrete» concept of «work» (a job), for which the worker is paid wages - at the lowest possible rate - that maintain a maximum rate of return on the Capitalist's investment capital; this is an aspect of exploitation. Furthermore, with such a reified system of industrial production, the profit (exchange value) generated by the sale of the goods and services (products) that could be paid to the workers, instead is paid to the capitalist classes: the functional capitalist, who manages the means of production, and the reinter capitalist, who owns the means of production.

Alienation of the worker from working - from the act of producing.

In the Capitalist Mode of Production, the generation of products (goods and services) is accomplished with an endless sequence of discrete, repetitive, motions that offer the worker little psychological satisfaction for «a job well done». By means of commodification, the labor power of the worker is reduced to wages (an exchange value); the psychological estrangement (Entfremdung) of the worker results from the unmediated relation between his productive labour and the wages paid him for the labor. That division of labor, within the capitalist mode of production, further exploits the worker by limiting his or her Gattungswesen (species-essence) - the human being's power to determine the purpose to which the product (goods and services) shall be applied; the human nature (species-essence) of the worker is fulfilled when he or she controls the «subject of labor». Hence does capitalism remove from the worker the right to exercise control upon the value and the effects of his and her labor, which, in turn, robs the worker of the ability to either buy (consume) the goods and services, or to receive the full value from the sale of the product. The alienation of the worker from the act of producing renders the worker unable to specialize in a type of productive labor, which is a psychologically satisfying condition; within an industrial system of production, social alienation reduces the worker to an instrument, to an object, and thus cannot productively apply every aspect of his or her human nature.

Alienation of the worker from himself, as a producer - from his Gattungswesen (species-essence)

The Gattungswesen (species-essence), the human nature of a man and of a woman is not discrete (separate and apart) from his or her activity as a worker; as such, species-essence also comprises all of his and her innate human potential as a person. Conceptually, in the term «species-essence», the word «species» describes the intrinsic human mental essence that is characterized by a «plurality of interests» and «psychological dynamism», whereby every man and woman has the desire and the tendency to engage in the many activities that promote mutual human survival and psychological well-being, by means of emotional connections with other people, with society. The psychic value of a man consists in being able to conceive (think) of the ends of his actions as purposeful ideas, which are distinct from the actions required to realize a given idea. That is, man is able to objectify his intentions, by means of an idea of himself, as «the subject», and an idea of the thing that he produces, «the object». Conversely, unlike a human being, an animal does not objectify itself, as «the subject», nor its products as ideas, «the object», because an animal engages in directly self-sustaining actions that have neither a future intention, nor a conscious intention. Whereas a person's Gattungswesen (human nature) does not exist independent of specific, historically-conditioned activities, the essential nature of a human being is actualized when a man - within his given historical circumstance - is free to sub-ordinate his will to the external demands he has imposed upon himself, by his imagination, and not the external demands imposed upon him by other people.

Whatever the character of a person's consciousness (will and imagination), the worker's existence in society is conditioned by his or her relationships with the people and things that facilitate survival, which is fundamentally dependent upon co-operation with others, thus, a person's consciousness is determined inter-subjectively (collectively), not subjectively (individually), because Man is a social animal. In the course of history, to ensure human survival, societies have organized themselves into groups who have different, basic relationships to the means of production. One societal group (class) owned and controlled the means of production, while another societal class worked the means of production; in the relations of production of that status quo, the goal of the owner-class was to economically benefit as much as possible from the labor of the working class. Moreover, in the course of economic development, when a new type of economy displaced an old type of economy - agrarian feudalism superseded by mercantilism, in turn superseded by the Industrial revolution - the rearranged economic order of the social classes favored the social class who controlled the technologies (the means of production) that made possible the change in the relations of production. Likewise, there occurred a corresponding rearrangement of the human nature (Gattungswesen) and the system of values of the owner-class and of the working-class, which allowed each group of people to accept and to function in the rearranged status quo of production-relations.

Despite the ideological promise of industrialization - that the mechanization of industrial production would raise the mass of the workers, from a brutish life of subsistence existence, to the self-respect of honorable work - the division of labor inherent to the capitalist mode of production, thwarted the human nature (Gattungswesen) of the worker, and so rendered each man and woman into a mechanistic part of an industrialized system of production, from being a person capable of defining his and her value through direct, purposeful activity. Moreover, the near-total mechanization and automation of the industrial production system would allow the (newly) dominant bourgeois capitalist social class to exploit the working class to the degree that the value obtained from their labor would diminish the ability of the workers to materially survive. Hence, when the proletarian working-class become a sufficiently developed political force, they will effect a revolution and re-orient the relations of production to the means of production - from a capitalist mode of production to a communist mode of production. In the resultant Communist society, the fundamental relation of the workers to the means of production would be equal and non-conflictual, because there would be no artificial (class) distinctions about the value of a worker's labor; the worker's humanity (species-essence) thus respected, men and women would not become alienated, from themselves and their society.

In the Communist socio-economic organization, the relations of production would operate the mode of production and employ each worker according to his abilities, and benefit each worker according to his needs. Hence, each worker could direct his and her labor to productive work suitable to his and her innate abilities - rather than be forced into a narrowly defined, minimal-wage «job» meant to extract maximal profit from the labor of the individual worker, as determined by and dictated under the capitalist mode of production. In the classless, collectively-managed Communist society, the exchange of value between the objectified productive labor of one worker, and the consumption benefit derived from that production, will not be determined by or directed to the narrow business interests of a bourgeois capitalist class, but, instead, will be directed to meet the needs of each producer and consumer, of each member of society. Although production will be differentiated, by the degree of each worker's abilities (by what work he and she can do) the purpose of the communist system of industrial production will be determined by the collective requirements of society, not by the profit-oriented demands of an individualistic bourgeois social class who live at the expense of the greater society. Under the collective ownership of the means of production, the relation of each worker to the mode of production will be identical, and will have the social character that corresponds to the universal interests of the communist society. Therefore, the direct distribution of the profits generated by the labor of each worker - to fulfill the interests of the working class, and so to his and her own interest and benefit - will constitute an un-alienated state of labor conditions, which restores to the worker the fullest exercise and determination of his and her human nature.

Capitalism reduces the labor of the worker to a commercial commodity that can be traded in the competitive labor-market, rather than as a constructive socio-economic activity that is part of the collective common effort performed for personal survival and the betterment of society. In a capitalist economy, the businessmen who own the means of production establish a competitive labor-market meant to extract from the worker as much labor (value) as possible, in the form of capital. The capitalist economy's arrangement of the relations of production provokes social conflict by pitting worker against worker, in a competition for «higher wages», thereby alienating them from their mutual economic interests; the effect is a false consciousness, which is a form of ideological control exercised by the capitalist bourgeoisie. (See: Cultural hegemony) Furthermore, in the capitalist mode of production, the philosophic collusion of religion in justifying the relations of production facilitates the realization, and then worsens, the alienation (Entfremdung) of the worker from his and her humanity; it is a socio-economic role independent of religion being «the opiate of the masses».

Example of using and checking of Marx's theory of alienation.

«Marx's theory of alienation is a non-psychological concept and has to do with the relation of the worker to the means of production - it has nothing to do with how one feels. What indicators would you use to assess whether you were alienated or not? What conclusion would you come to?»

Marx's theory of alienation is based on the relationship of the worker to the means of production. It outlines four main aspects in which workers are alienated in today s society: alienated from the products of their labor, alienated from the process of work, denied the ability to be creative, and physically alienated from other people. Although Marx developed this theory in 1844 it is, in fact, even more applicable in today s mass production, developed society.

In order to assess whether I was alienated or not, I would use indicators relevant to each of the four categories espoused in Marx s original theory. Additionally, surveys are frequently performed in the area of job satisfaction; I would also use their indicators to determine whether I was alienated or not.

A series of University of Michigan studies, involving interviews with a sample of employed people, found that several key areas were deemed important in a job. This survey attempted to determine those attributes that can be found in the ideal job; the results typically can be mapped into the four areas of alienation that Marx defined: work that is interesting enough (ability to be creative); enough help, equipment, information, and authority to get the job done (the process of work); an opportunity to develop one s special abilities (ability to be creative); the opportunity to see the results of one s work (products of labor); good pay; and job security.

By answering these questions myself, I can use them as indicators of my own level of alienation, I can assess my job satisfaction level. Additionally, I could use other indicators to assess whether I was alienated or not. One of these would be to ask myself how often, and how hard, I looked for other employment. Another indicator I would use is, if I could start all over, would I choose a similar job in the same field.

An honest assessment would be that I exercise a degree of creativity, do not have as much control over the process of work as I would like (not enough resources, authority, poor environmental conditions), and see the products of my labor few and far between. In fact, the only area in which I felt relatively content was the issue of pay / rewards for my labor. The question of physical isolation did not come up; in fact I could argue that there are too many people around vice the opposite.

The other indicators would be answered in a similarly depressing manner. I do frequently look for other jobs and contemplate switching careers slightly, remaining in the general field of technology but changing my role. According to Marx and the indicators I used, I have a high degree of alienation, countered only by my relatively high degree of satisfaction with my salary.

I would argue that, to a large extent, this is probably the depressing norm even in today s post-industrial society. Alienation is an accepted part of work; people focus solely on meeting their immediate material desires. One could argue that in Maslow s hierarchy of needs, we are still struggling to fulfill the first three levels while accepting alienation as our due. Society looks enviously upon those few lucky individuals who have jobs that not only fulfill their needs for material necessities, security, belonging, and esteem, but also help them to develop their highest level of potential.

One could argue that alienation is self inflicted by each and every one of us. Perhaps the perfect job is out there for everyone; alienation is only suffered when you have a bad fit. Who hasn t talked about quitting their job to write that best-selling novel or to open that groovy book store come coffee shop? Perhaps we allow our materialism (fed and nourished in the industrial world) to subjugate our dreams. Caught up in the new mores and values of the post-industrial, consumer oriented society, we place higher emphasis on fitting in with society than we do on fulfilling our own personal wants and needs. We suffer alienation so that we can possess status items such as BMWs and TAG watches, and thus sell our dreams to the highest bidder.

stratified society alienation capitalist

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