We are bastards. You. Me. Your mom. Dad’s mom. Spectacled lady walking the ‘need to be spectacled’ Doberman. Us. All of us.
A guy, nay, a genius, born amidst the most destitute of the poverties, defies all odds, works his beard off, thesis in, thesis out, and changes the face of modern sociology and political philosophy all the while gifting us dank quotes.
And all we do is hate him for political movements he did not even witness ‘cause you know he was resting a long sleep by then.
Yes, Engelians. We’re talking Marx today. But not the polemicisty, Russo-Chinese, marxy Marx you’ve come to know (Read: Your uncle has stuffed you to a T with his Marx opinions) over the years. But the good ol’, early, philosophy researcher Karl. And the biggest idea to come out of that period of the man’s storied career: Alienation. A concept more overdue for recognition for forecasting the workplace conditions of the modern 21st century than Amy Adams is for an Academy Award.
Alienation, as Marx elaborates, is the inevitable consequence of capitalism whereby the worker feels isolated from the various aspects of the work itself, so much so, that her labor itself does not remain her own but is reduced to being a means to the end goal of earning money.
In a capitalist regime, workers are isolated from productive activity. If you are reading this article thinking of someone in your life who does not know what their role is or what they help the organization they are a part of accomplish, that is the alienation Karl talks about, my friend.
In a distinct yet adjunct scenario, I may be working at a suburban investment banking firm that pays me enough to keep the lights on and the bills tended to. But I, in no square or water, feel any connection to the product of the firm, that is the loans that we grant. If I was an extremist, I might feel antipathically to the whole banking system of my nation.
Karl Marx further delved into the alienation from our fellow beings as well as our own being while at the workplace which brings me to my final observation of Marx’s work: The modern cubicle.
An empty, straight-out-of-sci-fi, three-dimensional structure that embodies the very alienation that is at the core of early Marxian philosophy.
And we must thank Karl Marx for predicting it even if it seemingly serves no purpose now because you know what! Gestures and appreciation and the rest of the script.
