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Marxism: Introduction
Class Relations, Capitalism and
Commodification2003 Spring
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Outline
Starting Questions
Focuses in this unit
Marx
Snowed Up
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Starting Questions (1): Economic
Determinism
Is money (or the economic relations we are in) the
most important determinant in our life?
The apparently non-materialist aspects of life
the mental: our belief, ideas and ideals;
the spiritual: oursoul
literature and all the cultural products.
Love -- Can love transcend the conditioning ofmoney
and the other social factors (e.g. class, educational
background, etc.)?
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Starting Questions (2):
Class Relations
Which class do you belong to? Are we all middle
class? What types ofclass relations do you see
in our society?What is capitalism? How does it influence our life?
What type ofrelations of production are there at
school and in between the teachers and students?
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Commodity Fetishism?
( 920415) Why do we want more than what is useful? Do we have
insatiable desire? If so, why?
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General Responses: (1)
Political Economy of Love
powerrelations
(e.g. )
( )
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General Responses: (2)
Relations of Production
Class -- not the most basic category in any kindof social analysis. Can be combined with the
other categories such as race and gender. Important in analyzing the power relations in
society and in literaturecontrol/exploitation,inequality, and dialectical relations(master/slave).
e.g. love between Daisy and Gatsby, Sons andLovers, Mulholland Dr.
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General Responses: (2) -2
Teacher & Student RelationsOne example
Are teachers authorities to rebel against?
Are students buyers free to choose what theywant? I dont think the school will like it.
Why does the father say that if the teachers
serves the students ascustomers,
the former
will not guide,
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General Responses: (2) -3
Teacher & Student Relations
Teacher-student: commercial relation and others
Teachers (like experts and those with technicalskills ) are professionalsthey can produce
more knowledge and thus more of their labor power
and values.
They, like the students, are still in the system of
domination and subordination. (Ref. Scase 80)
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General Responses: (3)
Our Consumption Habits
Why cant we stop buying?
Possible reasons:
Devaluation of the goods we buy or own; positional
goodsWhen more people own the goods, the satisfaction
it brings is reduced. (e.g. 40,000 dollar face cream; shark fin;
etc.)
Durkheim: human wants are in principle limitless; capitalism
develops too fast, always changing our expectations.Stoppable only by 1) repressive social morality; 2) regulating
capitalism.
Loss of Religion and Sense of Stability.
Marxist views: (later) capitalism creates false needs and
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Marxism: Topics & Schools on
Focus
1. Marx and Vulgar Marxism
2. Western Marxists :
Althussers theory of
Ideology & Gramscis
Hegemony
3. American & British Marxism:
Jameson and Eagleton
4. Foucault &
1. Dialectic Materialism,
Class and
Commodification2. Literature & Society
3. Marxist Literary Criticism
4.Literature as Discoure
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Marx: Basic Ideas
1. Economic Determinism; (previous Q & A)
2. Dialectic Materialism--(His Dialectic View of
History: Revises Hegels view of history)3. Critique of capitalism
Exploitation of laborers andAlienation of themfrom their productive process
Commodification of Human Identity and Relations
4. Social Structure: Base and Superstructure
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Dialectic Materialism:Marxs Two major Statements
It is not the consciousness of men that
determines their being, but, on the contrary,
theirsocial being that determines theirconsciousness.
(In other words-- Consciousness does not
determine our socio-economic existence; oursocio-economic existence determines
consciousness.) Economic Determinism
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Marx: Two major Statements (2)
The philosophers have only interpreted the world invarious way; the point is to change it.
Has Marxism failed after the fall of Berlin Wall, the
collapse of Soviet Union and the capitalization ofmainland China?
e.g. Soviet Union 3 years after their its collapse, ofRussias economy is private owned.
China capitalism has been developing since 1970s insome special economic zones an official stockexchange was set up to allow people to buy andexchange shares. (Saunders 4)
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Economic Determinism: Some
Basic TermsMeans of production --
e.g. Machines in industrial society; media andcomputerin our age of Information; those who ownthem, or know well how to use them, get to hold power
over those who don't.
Modes of production -- In the industrial society -- mechanical reproduction;
in our "post-industrial"age -- electronic reproduction.
Relations of production -- between the capitalist class who owns those means ofproduction, and the proletarian class whose labour-power the capitalist buys for profit.
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Economic Determinism: example
Production of a novel today: influenced by
Means of production
typing or handwriting;including only verbal language or also drawing.
Modes of production -- multimedia or print copy;
Relations of production from production (with
publishers) to distribution (with bookstores andnews media) to consumption (readers)
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Marxs Critique of Capitalism1. Capitalism caused by industrialisms
amplification of labor power(e.g.) with
machines surplus values
accumulation and expansion of capitals
Investment
(re-investment)
Productive process
(the laborers +
machine)
Economic surplus
(alienation)
Marketable
commodities
(Scase
13)
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Marxs Critique of Capitalism (2)
2. Consequences: exploitation and alienation of
laborers, exchange values over use values;
reification(
) and commodification ofhuman relations
Example: Modern Times ; Bicycle Thief
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Marxs Critique of Capitalism (2)
2. immiseration thesis -- exploitation and
alienation of laborers,
Note: Saunders argues that capitalism actuallyincreases human wealth (of the poor and the
rich alike) and improves human lives
What do you think?
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Marxs Solution
3. Marxs argument: State-owned properties
Communism
(example: clips ofThe Greatest Thinker: Marx) Pension funds or share-holding is not enough;
State-owned capital; possible problem, the
States inefficiency;
Commune (regional economy, self-sufficiency)
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Marxs Critique of Capitalism (3)
3. fetishism The charming and enigmatic nature of commodity
Use value Exchange values added to it;
abstract relations between the products
relations between men
Commodities as system of signs, hiding
the economic relations in the productionprocess.
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Critique of Capitalism (4) by
Western Marxism
Herbert Marcuse capitalism creates our
false needs, whereas ourreal needs
are repressively desublimated in a one-dimensional world of commodities. (Cf.
Saunders 79)
Ardorno: creates massified pseudo-identity
e.g. The Icicle Thief
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Social Structure:
Base and Superstructure
Base-- The sum total of [the] relations ofproduction constitutes the economic structure of
society, the real foundation
Superstructure--a legal and politicalsuperstructure, cultural institutions and forms ofsocial consciousness.
Relations between --
The mode of production of material life conditionsthe social, political and intellectual life process in
general.
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Social Structure:
Base and Superstructure (2)
Other ways to describe their relations:
reflect, determine ultimately, cause,
condition,sets the limit
e.g. Vulgar Marxisms reflectionism
(presupposes a homology in social structure)
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Social Structure:
Base and Superstructure (3)
Ideology: the ruling ideas of the ruling class;
imposed on the other classes.
Superstructure
Base as foundation, center
Parallel,
reflect
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Althussers idea of
social formation; de-centered
Relative autonomy of the social levels and
ultimate determination by the base
Superstructure
Base
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Snowed Up
1. What are the binary opposites in the story?2. How is Edie related to the men around her?
3. What gets "snowed up" in the story?
4. What do you think about the ending? Is Edie
finally subject to both the control of her society
and the belittling of her author?
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Binary Opposites
1. class difference:
Lord Bilbrton--> has power, Mr. Alderman Thrigg--> has money;
Aurelles--> Aurelles' playing chess -- "trying oh, sohard to play chess--which he does not understand--with papa; and all just because."
father's position: in financial trouble, to be saved onlyby being appointed by the government.
2. difference in age and appearance:Lord Bilbrton "wizened", Mr. Alderman Thrigg "stout"and Aurelles "strong, tall, noble-looking"
3. order vs. Edie's giddy head
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Edie in between these men
She prefers Aurelles over the other two suitors,
though she is aware of the former's clumsiness
in social games.reflected in her terms of address--> Aurelles or
Phillip or Phil; Lord Bilberton or Charlie
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Edie's change by the snow
Before the snow -- Edie's position against classdifference and social customs:
like a shuttlecock or tennis ball; 2. It is laughable . . . p. 20
Edie's rebelliousness and ambition as a writer:1.p. 20 the fur coat -- must wear it; interest in her own looks;2.not going to be sold exactly. p. 203.be a poetess someday.
4.hate their "coming to the point." --> will not marry them, willcry, quarreled; am cross.
5."entanglement with a penniless soldier."p. 216.her view of having a spouse p. 21
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The Other Peoples reponses:
1) 1/4 Lord B: "poor shivering ancient body
2) 1/5 "I shall perish with an angel!" Mr. Thrigg is
not good at using metaphors; Bilberton, silly
with fright. Papa, cynical.
* Mr. Thrigg as one trying to help;
3) 1/6 Mr. Thrigg in despair and struggle (p. 23)
1/14 p. 24
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The Other Peoples reponses : (2)
4) 1/14 All the servants left but the maid, papa an
invalid, Bilberton helpless; Thrigg trapped in
snow; the arrival of Phillip p. 25
5) 1/15 eat the cat;
6) 1/17 Papa and the Alderman may die. Philip is
the only one active to get food.
7) 1/18 the last try by Phillip
8) 1/19 a feast; The Alderman eats a long time.
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Edie's changing views of the
snow and the others
1)1/3 "Why it is beautiful! I wish I was snowballingAurelles." (21)2) 1/4 nothing to do; hate the snow p. 21 1/5 - 6, laughs
at her suiters.3) 1/10 "we shall be starved." Misses "Phillip." --a veryshort entry.* turning point: 4) 1/14 "Nothing but snow." "Such
fun! The Alderman has been helping me in thekitchen." Philip arrives; he is willing to rescue Thriggonly if he gives up his pursuit of Edie. Edie changesher tactics. p. 26
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Edie's changing views of the
snow and the others
5) 1/15 must write to pass away the time;* Edie's weakness and incisive comment on the"weakness of the snow": 1/17 cries; comments on
the snow. "the weak, feeble despised flakes of snow."1/18 waiting;* turning point: 1/19 he has all my heart1/22 the roughs invasion; nice to have a soldier
around. Hope for us at last--fog.1/15 Is aware of her being a commodity between twomen. Will be a good girl and make Phil a first rate wife.--Her diary ends with a bracket and blankness.
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Snowed Up: Its Contraditions
Although Jeffries writes a cautionary take aboutwhat happens when society is deprived of
technological support, there also appears to bean unarticulated desire for such a catastrophe tooccur, a desire for devastation and forreversion.
[He expresses] liberal anxiety but also areactionary 'back to nature' impulse. (Meynard139)
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References
Sauders, Peter. Capitalism: A Social Audit.
Buckingham: Open UP, 1995.
Scase, Richard. Class. Buckingham: Open UP, 1992. .
92/02/14.
Maynard, Jessica. A Marxist Reading of 'Snowed
Up.Literary theories : a case study in criticalperformance. Eds. Julian Wolfreys and William
Baker. London : Macmillan Press Ltd , 1996
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