Isf 100

Front 1

What is Hegel's theory of history

Back 1

Ideas move history. a goal, a point, a teleology getting out of alienation. It’s progressive, linear, from less perfect to more perfect. -Thesis + antithesis = synthesis

Front 2

What is the difference between materialist and idealist philosophy? -

Back 2

-Materialism – science based, even religion. What’s natural and can be proven. (Marx was a historic materialist). -Idealism – idealist – god, spirits, supernatural. (Hegel was more of a idealist) -Material drives the ideas that drive change. The material world changes as a result of those needs, wants. etc. vs. The changes in the world are driven by the ideas of man that come from something outside of man (spirit etc.)

Front 3

Marx talks about the natural division of labor in the family. What does this mean? -

Back 3

The woman and children are the first level of private property for the man. Latent slavery is the first property of the capitalist man. Man owns his family as laborers. Marx considers this natural. The contradiction in his analysis is that he does not consider the mode of production to be natural but thinks the family structure unchangeable. This is discussed in the German ideology. -Division of labor and private property are similar in that the family produces labor and the latter produces a product. -Definition: Marx was talking about the division of labor WITHIN the family – ie, men always gather wood, woman always raise children. Women and children are latent slaves of the man. -Capitalists don’t just buy the man’s labor, they buy the work of the woman at home too.

Front 4

Division of labor is an important Marx concept. Give some examples of what he means.

Back 4

-Divisions of Labor - Family is the first natural division of labor. Later in a higher developed capitalist system, the division of labor is seen in specialization of tasks in a factory. The way different labor is distributed in a society. example is the assembly line. -Marx's Division of Labor: A social construction that arises with a separation of the industrial and commercial from agricultural labor and results when a division of material and mental labor appears. The division of labor determines also the relation of individuals to one another, their social interactions or separations. Although he speaks of the contrast between those who own and control the means of production, and those who work for them, he does not discuss it in the context of "dominion" as does Weber. Weber makes a distinction between "economic power" and "social honor"-not all those who are wealthy have social honor, according to Weber (p. 180). For Marx, social honor is not as important because those who control production control society. Weber's definition of class is helpful and is on p. 181. Also Weber talks about his idea of the division of labor in public and private enterprises on p. 197. -Three stages of the development of the division of labor: Tribal societies, Ancient communal and state ownership, Feudal or estate, Capitalism -What he calls the first natural division of labor takes place in the family. The wife and children are slaves to the man and his first property. Then it moves up the way that different tasks are given to different people in society. (assembly line)

Front 5

What social valuations determine the price of the labor commodity?

Back 5

Population, size of IRA, demand for commodity, cost of labor, unemployment, market crash, your education, your dependents. -What’s going on in society that has the power to cause wages to change - such as unemployment, race and gender rights, immigration laws, etc

Front 6

What is the function of the superstructure according to Marx?

Back 6

-Used to legitimize the base. Religious, cultural and political institutions or anything socially constructed derived from the base is the superstructure. The base generates the superstructure and then the superstructure returns to validate the institutions of the base. -Anything socially constructed/derived from the base. The superstructure is education, family, mall media, politics, religions, etc. It is the culture of the economy the stories, myths, values, rationalizations, etc. It is manipulated by those in power to maintain the institution’s values – ie, women work for cheap, the rich dictating the values of the whole culture.

Front 7

What aspects of society operate in the base?

Back 7

The mode of production i.e. Feudalism, Capitalism, Socialism, Communism. Mode of Production includes political system/ideology and who owns and controls to the means of production. Division of labor operates within the base. Anything that perpetuates the economy operates in the base. Banks, stockmarket, international trade organizations. Businesses in general -The economic system that is the foundation of the rest of society. -The division of labor operates within the base – the interaction of people producing the economic system – capital owners and laborers

Front 8

What is the difference between money and capital? -

Back 8

- p.261 capital – The labor and its product – money is a symbolic means of exchange whereas capital is everything of value within an economic system – Money is a means of exchanging capital – money is a measure of the labor contained in commodities. -Capital is the labor and its product. Anything that has value within the economy is capital. -Money is currency – symbolic means of exchange. Money is only a measure of the labor contained in commodities. -Money is a symbolic means of exchange whereas capital is everything of value within an economic system

Front 9

What do feudalism, capitalism and socialism have in common?

Back 9

They are all modes of production. According to Marx, they are all comprise the base (as opposed to the superstructure). Give examples of how each functions

Front 10

What is the difference between use value and exchange value

Back 10

Exchange value is the cost of reproducing one worker in a 24 hour period and use value is based on the need/want of the commodity as determined by its the usefullness of its functions in society

Front 11

How are the social relations of the production of commodities mystified under capitalism?

Back 11

Pg. 320- a commodity is therefore a mysterious thing, simply because in it the social character of men’s labour appears to them as an objective character stamped upon the product of labour. PG. 321- the sum total of all these private individuals forms the aggregate labour of society. Since the producers do not come into social contact with each other until they exchange their products, the specific social character of each producer’s labour does not show itself except in the act of exchange. The social relations are mystified by the fact that all the laborers in the process do not interact or minimally interact because of the compartmentalization of the process itself.

Front 12

What is surplus value?

Back 12

-PROFIT, or the B to C part of the equation. The difference between the labor commodity and what it actually takes for the worker to work enough to produce enough money to pay for his wage/bring in enough to cover the money he earns.

Front 13

How does the capitalist increase profit through absolute surplus value?

Back 13

the capitalist increase profit through increasing productivity of labor, this is done by shortening the the time to produce necessary labor. Pg. 418- turns exclusively upon the length of the working day; the production of relative surplus-value, revolutionizes out and out the techincial processes of labor, and the composition of society. Exchange value- what they need to reproduce themselves. Maximum hours you can work beyond the full number hours workable in a day. To minimize exchange value and maximize surplus value. 248, 514. -What you can make in a 24 hour day by manipulating A-B-C – increasing productivity and maintaining or reducing cost.

Front 14

How does absolute surplus value differ from relative surplus value

Back 14

379- absolute surplus value is derived from the prolongation of the work hours while relative surplus value is derived from the corresponding alteration of the two components of the work day, which necessary labor and surplus labor. Pg. 405- the use of machinery produces relative surplus value. However, machinery only increases productivity of labor by diminishing the number of workmen employed by a given amount of capital. Therefore, converts formerly variable capital to constant capital, and does not produce surplus value. Relative surplus value is how to contract AB. Increase productivity. -Relative surplus value is how to contract A-B (decrease cost increasing productivity, IE, technology increasing what you can produce in 24 hours) -Absolute surplus value – extending work hours

Front 15

Who owns the means of production under capitalism?

Back 15

-The bourgeoisie owns the machines, factories, land, raw materals etc, which compose the means of democracy

Front 16

Who owns the means of knowledge production under capitalism

Back 16

the capitalists- super-structure and base- economy determines - ideological institutions- make natural and normal inequality. Those that dictate the education system owns the means of knowledge production. -anyone who pays for the educational system dictates what is taught, or stands to profit from what is taught.

Front 17

. In Marx, the worker is considered a commodity. What does that mean?

Back 17

Laborer sells work hours, his body, his labor as his means of barter. As a freeman, he is alienated from the product and labor is sold as a commodity. -The worker’s objectified labor has a value, and as such, is something that can be bought and sold as wage labor.

Front 18

What is Marx's ethical framework? -

Back 18

reason, vote and be educated and control their own lives "good life". rational and , democratic life, We should change social structures . ALL RIGHTS

Front 19

What is Marx's position on religion?

Back 19

It’s the opiates of the masses. Religion will just disappear of its own accord, in the evolution of man, once inequalities and poor systems are eliminated

Front 20

Why does Marx say that Hegel’s system is “alienated thought”?

Back 20

Blind faith, area- idealism.

Front 21

What does Marx like about Hegel?

Back 21

dialectic process he uses to analyze society and its development, idea to material = structural change. thesis + antithesis = synthesis structure. The historical material world that brings about the change, not the man’s idea that change the world. Not necessarily cause, but enabled the continuation

Front 22

In what ways is Marx a humanist?

Back 22

Believed in the proletariat’s to bring about change. Page 115- Feuerbach- idealist- puts faith in man, circular argument- human requirements-

Front 23

What does Marx like about Kant? What does he critique?

Back 23

T,A,N (Tara, Alleen and Nan) Democratizes reason, but not from the subject to object, but from object to subject- that people are limited from their perception.

Front 24

What does Marx like about Feuerbach? What does he critique?

Back 24

more than ideas but a sensual way of going about the world…ignore strictly idealist)
his sociological approach on religion (Criticizes his “contemplative” materialism (social phenomenon as a product of our thoughts)
his idealistic approach,
he fails to see religion itself as not part of the human essence but as our social creation(more than idealistically created, man/religion/society are all products of their time, thoughts are all produced and influenced by society)

Front 25

Both Marx and Hegel operate with the concept of dialectics. How do they differ?

Back 25

Hegel’s dialectic: thesisIDEAS-- antithesisACTIONS -- synthesisSOCIETY
Marx’’s dialectic: Thought follows the action, we act before we think, society shapes our actions and therefore our thoughts

Front 26

What moves history according to Marx?

Back 26

People, action as opposed to ideas, class struggles, forces of production, relations of production

Front 27

What is the difference between historical and dialectical materialism?

Back 27

Materialism= social/active production Historical Materialism= Marxist approach to theories of history Dialectical Materialism= Hegelian approach to history Again, it is history either seen as a social production or as produced/shaped by the ideas of men…what came first, the idea or the action?

Front 28

What are the productive forces of a mode of production and how do they determine historical possibility

Back 28

Productive forces (forces that drive/dictate production): labor, land, resources (natural or manufactured), systems of co-operation/division of labor/fragmentation of work, population, competition, technology (machines), size of industrial reserve army, demand for commodity Production depends on every one of these factors, economy is shaped by the outcome of these factors put together and therefore the times historical possibility, its latency. Please see my notes on the wiki page, pts 1 through 10 has quotes on each of these factors

Front 29

What are the four types of alienation that Marx describes?

Back 29

Adam lays it down pretty well…please see his notes on Four-Fold Alienation Adam: 1. Product ? commodity – first commodity is labor – objects grow in importance while human beings decrease in importance – “object bondage” p. 72 “Objectification as loss of an object…” – epitome of this is “fetishism” – objects and labor become fetishized/”mystical” – more agency is given to the objects made from human hands than the humans themselves 2. Process of Labor ? owners dictate everything in order to gain more capital for himself – human beings eventually just become appendages of the machine – ultimate goal of owners is to reinvest in machines – more and more streamline and odious labor interacting with the machines that do the labor for the humans – owner owns the means of production and thus the process of work becomes alienated from the worker

3. Self ? “species being” – what is absolutely fundamental about being human is taken away – laboring ones whole life for a pointless existence – The goal of life under Marx is to have a good life, to be authentic, to develop your human capacities to their fullest extent – working day in and day out in factories runs contrary to this life-goal – laboring under capitalism has mind-numbing psychic effects – What do you do? – Revolution is the only way to overcome alienation because the problem is systemic – cannot change the system alone – idealism ineffectual – belief that idea can change reality – Cannot change alienation with an ideal – only with a leap in consciousness from suffering

4. Other humans? from competition – a system of scarcity – clawing to get a grip of the scarce resources – must be a surplus population in order for people to be forced to sell their labor on the open market – high unemployment is systemic in a capitalist system because it devalues the commodity of labor – need a big surplus of unskilled, powerless labor – other human being are potential laborers who could take your job – IRA – Industrial Reserve Army = surplus of labor – thus laborers won’t organize against the system because they are to busy competing against one another

Front 30

What is the relation between Marx's concept of alienation and his ethics?

Back 30

Marx says people are endowed with reason and should thus be given right to vote and be educated and control their own lives within a system because of their endowment with the ability to think and reason • All people deserve the “good life” – ethical perspective o According to Marx, alienation under a capitalism system runs contrary to his ethical perspective.

Front 31

How does Marx’s concept of alienation differ from Hegel’s and Feuerbach’s?

Back 31

Opposite of alienation according to Marx is self-actualization Opposite of alienation according to Marx is self-ignorance Alienation - a concept from Hegel and Feuerbach Alienation can be seen as a foundational claim in Marxist theory. Hegel described a succession of historic stages in the human Geist or Spirit, by which that Spirit progresses towards perfect self-understanding and away from ignorance. In Marx's reaction to Hegel, these two idealist poles are replaced with materialist categories: spiritual ignorance becomes alienation, and the transcendent end of history becomes man's realisation of his species-being (i.e., our triumph over alienation; the establishment of an objectively better society). This teleological reading of Marx, which was supported in particular by Alexandre Kojève before World War II, has been criticized by Louis Althusser, in particular in his latter writings concerning "random materialism" (matérialisme aléatoire). Althusser claimed that this reading of Marx, which made of the proletariat the subject of history (as in Georg Lukacs' famous History and Class Consciousness, published in 1923 after the fall of the Hungarian Soviet Republic), was in fact tainted by Hegel's idealism and, more generally, by the "philosophy of the subject" that had been in force for five centuries, which was criticized as none other than the "bourgeois ideology of philosophy".

Alienation and Marx's theory of history In The German Ideology Marx writes that 'things have now come to such a pass that the individuals must appropriate the existing totality of productive forces, not only to achieve self-activity, but, also, merely to safeguard their very existence' [1]. In other words, Marx seems to think that, while humans do have a need for self-activity (self-actualisation, the opposite of alienation), this will be of secondary historical relevance. This is because he thinks that capitalism will increase the immiseration of the proletariat so rapidly that they will be forced to make the social revolution just to stay alive - they probably wouldn't even get to the point of worrying that much about self-activity. This doesn't mean, though, that tendencies against alienation only manifest themselves once other needs are amply met, only that they are of reduced importance. The work of Raya Dunayevskaya and others in the tradition of Marxist humanism drew attention to manifestations of the desire for self-activity even among workers struggling for more basic goals.

Front 32

How do Marx and Weber differ in terms of the original capital accumulation?

Back 32

Adam: Marx says that the original capital accumulation comes from some kind of theft - Marx suggests that the original or primitive accumulation of capital often occurs through violence, plunder, slavery, robbery, extortion and theft. Weber says that frugality, sobriety and saving – hard work and the protestant ethic are the sources of the original capital accumulation

Front 33

What aspects of Marx's project can be calculated formulaically? (give formulae)

Back 33

Use Value – exchange value = surplus value

-Exchange value – labor commodity – what it takes for the worker to reproduce each day C-M-C – Commodity-Money-Capital – Barter M-C-P-C-M = when advancement/profit is made Money-Commodity-Product-Commodity-Money

I. Absolute Surplus Value A ----- B ----- C A-B = The form of the wage – what it takes the worker to reproduce himself A-C = the whole work day B-C = Surplus value

II. Relative Surplus Value – A -- B ------------ C – contracting – machines cause the exchange value to decrease and expand the surplus labor Division of Labor increases

Front 34

According to the Communist Manifesto, in what way was the bourgeoisie a revolutionary class?

Adam:

Back 34

Before Capitalism, in a Feudal system, the bourgeoisie was the revolutionary class clamoring for change

(T,A,N) Page. 475. “the bourgeoisie, whereer it has the upper hand, has put an end to all feudal, patriarchal, idyllic relations. .. has left remaining no other nexus between man and man, than naked self-interest. ”

Front 35

How do human beings transcend alienation in Marx?

Back 35

484- abolition of private property., 293- ownership by the working class. Owner of the means of production- proletariats.

Front 36

What does the worker have the owner of the means of production lacks? What does the owner have?

Back 36

The worker has knowledge of production, and the owner has capital.

Front 37

How does the original emmiseration of the worker occur in the transition from feudalism to capitalism

Back 37

kendall-transition of feudalism-Can be designated as progressive epochs in the economic formation of society's modes of production • The elements of the old civil society included a directly political character; the property, the family and types of occupation had been raised, in the form of lordship, caste and guilds, to elements of political life. • Determined the relation of the individual to the state as a whole, his political situation, or in other words, his separation and exclusion from the other elements of society. • This organization separated property and labor from the body of the state, making them distinct societies within society • The vital functions and conditions of civil society remained political • They excluded the individual from the body of the state and transformed the particular relation, which existed between his corporation and the state into general relations between the individual and social life. • It appeared as the private affair of a ruler and his servants, separated from the people

Front 38

How important is agency in Marxist theory?

Back 38

Sharon - (From Wikipedia) In certain philosophical traditions (particularly those established by Hegel and Marx), human agency is a collective, historical dynamic, more than a function arising out of individual behavior. Hegel's Geist and Marx's universal class are idealist and materialist expressions of this idea of humans treated as social beings, organized to act in concert.

Front 39

What is the relation between ideas and modes of production, according to Marx?

Back 39

Allene - Man's material needs/wants will create consciousness of thought/ideas that are used to change the material world to meet his needs/wants (whatever he thinks that those things are, he'll change things accordingly). kendall-For Marx, we need organized modes of production involving people. Weber focuses on industrialization and the protestant ethic. Marx is for the people and Weber is for the capitalistic product, which ultimately servers the people

42. How does Marx characterize democracy? kendall-Our version of democracy, our freedom, our laws (private property, ownership, etc…) within the United States most definitely promote and adhere to capitalism, and is necessary for how capitalism is at this moment in time. But democracy, the political rule of the people, is not a pretext for capitalism. Keep in mind, though, that the growth of capitalism is linked to democratic laws. 83. Democracy intrinsic to capitalism? According to Adam Smith, 3 things are important to make capitalism work. Those are 1) pirvate property, 2) free trade, 3) laize-faire government. These three concepts were not available in feudalism, and would not be the case in communism. However, you can have a "democracy" that doesn't have these three requirements.



Man's material needs/wants will create consciousness of thought/ideas that are used to change the material world to meet his needs/wants (whatever he thinks that those things are, he'll change things accordingly). kendall-For Marx, we need organized modes of production involving people. Weber focuses on industrialization and the protestant ethic. Marx is for the people and Weber is for the capitalistic product, which ultimately servers the people

Front 40

Why does the worker need to be “free” under capitalism?

Back 40

Allene - Only a free man can objectify his own labor and sell it as a commodity because his objectified labor is his own private property to sell or trade or do whatever he wants with it.

Front 41

What is the relation between ideas and modes of production, according to Marx?

Back 41

Allene - Man's material needs/wants will create consciousness of thought/ideas that are used to change the material world to meet his needs/wants (whatever he thinks that those things are, he'll change things accordingly). kendall-For Marx, we need organized modes of production involving people. Weber focuses on industrialization and the protestant ethic. Marx is for the people and Weber is for the capitalistic product, which ultimately servers the people

Front 42

How does Marx characterize democracy

Back 42

Our version of democracy, our freedom, our laws (private property, ownership, etc…) within the United States most definitely promote and adhere to capitalism, and is necessary for how capitalism is at this moment in time. But democracy, the political rule of the people, is not a pretext for capitalism. Keep in mind, though, that the growth of capitalism is linked to democratic laws. 83. Democracy intrinsic to capitalism? According to Adam Smith, 3 things are important to make capitalism work. Those are 1) pirvate property, 2) free trade, 3) laize-faire government. These three concepts were not available in feudalism, and would not be the case in communism. However, you can have a "democracy" that doesn't have these three requirements.

Front 43

How has the focus in Marxism changed due to world historical events (ie: Russian Revolution, European fascism, fall of the USSR)?

Back 43

668-9 Further exploitation of the workers through usury and private property- workers pay for almost everything. Russia claimed that they had a revolution while they clearly did not: “ It is clear that the condition of the Russian peasants since the emancipation from serfdom has become intolerable and cannot be maintained much longer, and that for this reason alone if for no other a revolution is in the offing in Russia”- believed that Russia was ready for a bourgeois revolution- where the peasants overturn the class of bourgeoisie

Front 44

What other changes in capitalism have forced Marxists to retool their theories?

Back 44

Fall of the soviet union. Capitalist bureaucracy maintains even under what was supposed to be communist failed because it allowed the rise of the bourgeois elite, other than the way he planned it to be. Forgot- the capitalist failure to manipulate the media. The Russian revolution- bourgeoisie and bureaucracy- a bureaucracy of their development

Front 45

According to the Communist Manifesto, how does the bourgeoisie dig its own grave?

Back 45

kendall-The bourgeoisie owns the instruments of production in capitalism. The business elites have the capital to invest in the instruments of production and therefore they own those instruments and can use them to produce more capital and own more modes of production. Ex-For Bourgeoisie I came up with the idea of the merge between AOL and Time Warner. When these two companies came together many people were worried about a monopoly and in fact the merge of these companies created an almost super-company. This relates to Marx and his theory of the Bourgeoisie. He believes that the Bourgeoisie would slowly grow to control the proletariats and would lower their wages and become so powerful that the Bourgeoisie would have a monopoly on the economy and the nobody could afford anything and the proletariats would overtake the Bourgeoisie. Although the example with AOL and Time Warner is not to the extreme, it could be the first step to the point where the economy would be run by monopolies and eventually the proletariats (the workers) would revolt Feudalism and capitalism are both economic systems that rely on the division of labor. In feudalism, however there is no chance for social mobilization and the lower classes are tied to the land and constantly in debt to the aristocracy. In capitalism, the proletariat is kept oppressed by the bourgeoisie who own the means of production and use those means to keep themselves in power.

Front 46

According to Marx, how do capitalists get their original capital to invest?

Back 46

kendall-According to Marx, capitalists see workers as commodities or capital goods, equivalent to machinery or anything else that produces value. As such, workers are dehumanized and made as efficient as possible, through techniques like Fordism and mechanization. Capitalists only produce use-values because they are the material substratum, the depositories of exchange-value. Capitalists have two objects in view: first, the want to produce a use-value that has a value in exchange, that is to say, an article destined to be sold, a commodity, and secondly, he desires to produce a commodity whose value shall be greater than the sum of the values of the commodities used in its production. His aim is to produce not only a use-value, but a commodity also; not use-value, but value, not only value, but at the same time surplus-value. This is in regards to the production of a commodity. (Pg. 531)

Front 47

. What is “leap in consciousness” according to Marx

Back 47

kendall-*Leap in consciousness: A "leap in consciousness" was what Marx thought would happen to the proletarian class because of crises in capital. These crises are usually solved by the capitalist thrugh imposing upon the workers speed ups, layoffs, cuts in pay or benefits etc. This causes the worker to suffer and have a leap in consciousness that will move the worker to change the conditions of work...ie Labor organizing, riots, revolution, strikes etc. The worker will understand her own interests and form a counter-ideology that will express the desire of the proletariat for authenticity and full flourishing of life. Marvin Gaye's song that I mentioned "Makes me wanna holler, the way they do my life! This ain't livin, this ain't livin!" this is an example of a leap in consciousness similar to what Marx predicts. Think about this: Leap in consciousness is a concept developed by Hegel and Marx. If there is a relationship between institution-building in the sphere of rights and consciousness, why did the leap in consciousness inacted by the women’s movement not materialize in significant institution building for the rights of women?

Front 48

. What laws change to allow for the functioning of capitalism

Back 48

Private property and civil law. Page 187

Front 49

What is the essence of a commodity according to Marx?

Back 49

it “is a thing that satisfies human wants of some sort or another” (302). It has use value attached to its foundation and also exchange value, that it must be a substance of value. 304. it is the product of labor which is derived from the abstraction and materialization of labor.

Front 50

How is consciousness determined for Marx

Back 50

the way in which consciousness is, and in which something is for it, is knowing. Knowing is its sole act. It then, knows the nullity of the object because it knows the object as self-alienation, that is, it knows itself—knows knowing as the object, because the object is only the semblance of an object” (117)

Front 51

What kind of definition of ideology does Marx work with

Back 51

Historical materialism. Class struggle.

Front 52

Who are the lumpen-proletariat?

Back 52

kendall-The Lumpen-Proletariat is: The lowest, most degraded stratum of the proletariat. Used originally in Marxist theory to describe those members of the proletariat, especially criminals, vagrants, and the unemployed, who lacked class consciousness and is the underclass of a human population.

Front 53

What is the IRA (gives some modern day examples)?

Back 53

Industrial Reserve Army – all of these people who could take your job, so you won’t complain, because you might end up with less. And you’re too busy trying to keep your job, so you don’t revolt. You don’t realize that others are feeling the same way you are, and you won’t gather together to fight.
Includes women, lumpen proletariat, foreigners

Front 54

How does machinery affect the worker under capitalism?

Back 54

It removes/alienated him from the craft of his work, makes him into a button pusher/switch puller. He becomes an appendage of the machine.
(T,A,N) By raising the productive powers of labour with the continual improvement and usage of machinery, it incrases division of labour which “enables the worker to do the work of five, ten or twenty” and the workers do not only compete by one selling himself cheaper than the other, they compete amongst themselves. (214) the result is that the more he works the less wages he receives … and in the last resort he competes with himself, with himself as a member of the working class. (215)

Front 55

Why does Black Elk criticize dialectical materialism

Back 55

Black Elk assumes that by dialectical, Marxists mean the relational approach in interacting with each other. 1. first it is hypocrisy- the “amen”= all men relationship, too much influenced by the Christian church. Ignorant of other cultures such as the Lakota. Page. 148-9. one sided intercultural ignorance is the term used by Black Elk. Also the fact that they believe that religion is the “opiate of the masses.” Full of contradictions. “it does work thorugh the same logical systems as the bourgeois theorists it says it opposes by taking a cause and effect understanding to a problem rather than a truly relational approach” materialism is thus European religion.

Front 56

What is Black Elk’s position on religion

Back 56

A stimulate, a social agent requiring a perpetual pursuit of dialectical knowledge and action which would consolidate relations- sweatlodges and spiritual guidance. “the sweat itself facilitates thought, introspection and realization. Reconcile harmony, not possessing arrogant notion of their own mental omnipotence, they call their spirituality spirituality, not science.” And also not religion. Allene - Our process of the sweatlodge is criticism and dialectical process, it's not religion

Front 57

What is Weber's methodological approach?

Back 57

He was multi-causal – interested in how many factors contribute to a situation.
Used a comparative method – looks at other religions, comparing factors.
Elitist and ethnocentric - more interested in learning more about his own culture by comparing to others.
Sharon: a. Weber – Multi-causality (as opposed to Marx where the economy is the base, period.). Different social factors that seem to be correlated to certain social phenomena. b. Weber’s method is value-free, objective, scientific c. The basis of the comparison is only text-based; he doesn’t actually do any fieldwork. He sits in his house and has panic attacks and writes about Western Capitalism.

60. How does Weber correct Marx?

steph: Brief: Weber wants to disprove Marx – he doesn’t like his critique of capitalism.

Sharon: a. Against Marx’s conception of religion as the “Opium of the Masses,” and the other superstructure areas. Religion changed capitalism, not the other way around (capitalism creating religion) b. Weber says that Marx is wrong for saying that the base creates the superstructure and that the institutions are generated by the mode of production. Weber proposes that an institution was one of the main causes of a mode of production – capitalism. Protestantism is an institution, and it is one of the root causes of capitalism, which is a mode of production, therefore Marx got it wrong.

Front 58

What is Weber's primary project

Back 58

Sharon: a. Critique or the study of (analysis) of The Protestant Ethic. He basically became really enthralled with the sociology of religion, and spent most of his energy in this area. The Protestant Ethic in particular in the way that it supports the development of capitalism.

Front 59

How does the Protestant Ethic support capitalism?

Back 59

Sharon: The Protestant Ethic raises the work ethic to the level of personal religious salvation, so it becomes every persons duty to work hard, be productive, be honest, frugal, deny pleasure, defer gratification, all of the things that help keep the capitalist system running. The key is that it has that religion conviction, a doctrine of salvation, so living up to that dogma means they will be saved and they will to heaven. This means that there is a constant source of people who always supporting the capitalist system. Work on earth is related to the salvation of getting to heaven, and because people (according to Weber)need to have a sense of meaning in what they do, this religious conviction gives thier lives meaning. The wealth and success in an individual's profession is a sign of grace, a sign that those people are blessed by god. The Protestant Ethic de-politicizes poverty: you're not poor because of a dominating system, you're poor because you arent working hard enough; the poverty is on you as an individual, rather than on the system that is exploiting you.

steph:

The Protestant Ethic encourages hard work, stoicism, and a deferred gratification which makes for an army of hard workers that complain little

Front 60

How did the concept of calling/vocation link to Berufspflict

Back 60

Sharon: a. This is the initial concept for the argument of the Protestant Ethic. He says that the idea of having vocation is a purely modern, and began when Luther translated the Latin Bible into German, at around the same time of the printing press increasing access of it to more people. He translated the Latin word vocatio (“call”) into the concept of a calling, and now it is a new concept that isn’t based on Latin or Greek. It’s the difference between “calling” and a “career” or “job.” In the Greek there was no such translation. It comes to mean more of “occupation” as opposed to calling to Christ. Now according to Luther, everyone has a calling, we’re all calling in whatever field we are in, as opposed to only certain people being “called” to god, everyone has a faith-based relationship with god, it’s very individualistic.

Front 61

Weber develops a theory of power. What does it consist of

Back 61

Sharon: a. This is the initial concept for the argument of the Protestant Ethic. He says that the idea of having vocation is a purely modern, and began when Luther translated the Latin Bible into German, at around the same time of the printing press increasing access of it to more people. He translated the Latin word vocatio (“call”) into the concept of a calling, and now it is a new concept that isn’t based on Latin or Greek. It’s the difference between “calling” and a “career” or “job.” In the Greek there was no such translation. It comes to mean more of “occupation” as opposed to calling to Christ. Now according to Luther, everyone has a calling, we’re all calling in whatever field we are in, as opposed to only certain people being “called” to god, everyone has a faith-based relationship with god, it’s very individualistic.

64. Weber develops a theory of power. What does it consist of?

steph:

Three types of authority:
Charismatic – people conferring power onto a powerful, charismatic leader. Tends towards hero-worship, superhero status. An irrational, unstable form of authority -> what happened when the leader dies? The only way to sustain charisma is the routinization of charisma. Then it becomes less about the personal qualities of the leader, and more about certain set rules.
Traditional – adherence to the ways of the past, traditions. “This is the way my ancestors did it, and I do it the same way.” Irrational, however it can be rationalized if it can be systemized.
Legal – a stable, rational system. This is the future of capitalism, leading to more systemization and mechanization. Will eventually cause capitalism to self destruct because you need specialists to run it, and then you don’t have a democracy anymore.
Sharon: a. This is presupposed in the Protestant Ethic. He says that the masses create religion out of an internal need for meaning, and they submit to it for the same reason, and of their own will. Weber talks about three types of religious authority, which according to his theory, represent a hierarchy of developmental order. Progress is made from charismatic authority to traditional authority, and culminate in legal authority, which corresponds with liberal democracy. i. Charismatic: This consists of a type of conferred power. People develop something like “hero” worship and confer superhero like characteristics on to their chosen leaders. Their authority generates from something appealing about their individual charm, something in their personality. People give them their allegiance because they believe in what they have to say. Whatever the elusive quality of it is that differs in its manifestations, these leaders have charisma. Examples are Jesus Christ, Hitler, Alexander the Great, Napoleon, Gandhi, Bill Clinton, etc. Weber says that this kind of power is irrational and unstable – it doesn’t last. In order to survive in that position, you need a “routinisation” of that charisma. This is the difference between “Jesus” and “the Church.” In order for the power to continue once that charismatic leader is gone, it has to be systematized, and then it becomes something else. ii. Traditional Authority: This is authority that rests on the position of “the fathers,” the ancestors. People want to carry on in the same way as those that went before them. The legitimacy of authority comes from the tradition. Monarchs have this kind of legitimacy. This is also irrational, but according to Weber when it becomes systematized and routinised it can tend towards a more rational system eventually, because it has to become legal in order to sustain itself. You go from Moses (the charismatic leader) to “the laws of our fathers” and then to the Torah (the codified book of laws). iii. Legal: 1. (From my Notes) Domination by legality. This is the most efficient system of legitimated authority according to Weber. He sees the future always moving closer to this rational system. He sees the future of capitalism leading towards bureaucratization which necessitates people who specialize in more and more specific tasks, and you need people who can run the whole thing, and then its no longer a democracy. People will end up doing the jobs they do not because they are elected to do them, but because only they have the specialized knowledge to run the entire system. 2. (From Wikipedia) Legal authority, also known as legal-rational authority, is where an individual or institution exerts power by virtue of the legal office that they hold. It is the authority that demands obedience to the office rather than the office holder; Weber identified "rationally-created rules" as the central feature of this form of authority. Modern democracies are examples of legal-rational regimes. People also abide by legal-rational authority because it makes sense to do so for their own good, as well as for the greater good of society.

Front 62

. How did the concept of calling/vocation link to Berufspflict

Back 62

This is the initial concept for the argument of the Protestant Ethic. He says that the idea of having vocation is a purely modern, and began when Luther translated the Latin Bible into German, at around the same time of the printing press increasing access of it to more people. He translated the Latin word vocatio (“call”) into the concept of a calling, and now it is a new concept that isn’t based on Latin or Greek. It’s the difference between “calling” and a “career” or “job.” In the Greek there was no such translation. It comes to mean more of “occupation” as opposed to calling to Christ. Now according to Luther, everyone has a calling, we’re all calling in whatever field we are in, as opposed to only certain people being “called” to god, everyone has a faith-based relationship with god, it’s very individualistic.

Front 63

] What do Machiavelli, Hobbes, Nietzsche and Weber have in common?

Back 63

steph: They are biological materialists – believe in a will to power, a human need to control and dominate. It’s biological because it’s inherent to human beings to control. This need is biologically based.

Sharon: a. It’s a naturally competitive/aggressive world, and people are naturally (innately) aggressive and violent. It’s Dog Eat Dog World. The Ontology of Biological Materialism, as opposed to Marx who was a Historical Materialist

Front 64

What is the difference between class and status group?

Back 64

Sharon: a. A status group is “a group of people (part of a society) that can be differentiated on the basis of non-economical qualities like honour, prestige and religion. Weber says bureaucracy is the most powerful of all status groups” (Wikipedia). By contrast, Social class is determined based on an economically determined relationship to the market (owner, renter, employee etc.).

Front 65

What is social or cultural capital?

Back 65

steph: Nouveau riche-ness, your level of cultural eliteness. Factors that contribute to your social capital are the schools you went to, your social circle, the language you speak, manners.

Sharon: a. These are the definitions from wikipedia: i. Social capital: resources based on group membership, relationships, networks of influence and support. Bourdieu defines social capital as "the aggregate of the actual or potential resources which are linked to possession of a durable network of more or less institutionalized relationships of mutual acquaintance and recognition." ii. Cultural capital: forms of knowledge; skill; education; any advantages a person has which give them a higher status in society, including high expectations. Parents provide children with cultural capital, the attitudes and knowledge that makes the educational system a comfortable familiar place in which they can succeed easily. b. This is from my notes more or less: This is a concept articulated by sociologist Pierre Bourdieu. Cultural capital is about more than just money. This is another mechanism of social reproduction, and its not just economic, its cultural. Cultural capital is a privilege that some people enjoy for having the right mannerisms, getting the right education, moving in the right social circle, speaking the right language, having the right religion, and being the right “race.” Although this is conceptually separate from economic capital, one could argue that the two are virtually impossible to separate. Generally the people who enjoy this privilege also happen to be those who have the highest socio-economic status in society, and they set the standards for what is “right” and what isn’t.

Front 66

Social cohesion is a major concept in Durkheim’s sociology of religion. How does it explain different rates of suicide?

Back 66

steph: One factor that Durkheim believes is behind different rates of suicide is the difference in social cohesion between groups. People need to be united with people. When social order is lost, they get depressed. They need a sense of community, of belonging. Relating to people in a unified way.

Sharon:

a. The stronger the social cohesion in a religious group, the lower the rates of suicide will be among that group of people. Low levels of social cohesion (or social integration – how attached you are to your group, which is what I keep finding it referred to as in different articles and such) result in a disorganized society, people feel lost and alone, and they have nowhere to turn

Front 67

Why does Weber study the city?

Back 67

Tara: Weber studies cities very closely because they have concentrations of social classes (ie. artisans) and can study the elements that contribute to the evolution of Capitalism. But he studies only certain types of cities (because he's ethnocentric) thus only studies European cities.

Front 68

Which social group is crucial for the evolution of capitalism according to Weber? Why?

Back 68

Tara: The Protestant artisans and merchants

Front 69

Which group in China and India is comparable?

Back 69

Tara: Chinese Literati and Indian Brahmans. China: The Chinese Literati. India: The Brahmins in India. Both are responsible for their own cultures meaning production and respective social stratum. In Hinduism, you can be in any social strata, because its a religion. The Chinese Literati are Confusious and they carry the dogma of Confusionism - they are the bearers of the knowledge production in Confusionism, just like the Brahmins are the carriers of the dogma and the knowledge production, they are the intellectuals. THey maintain the class seperations. Class, strata, or caste seperations.

Front 70

Why did capitalism not emerge in India, according to Weber?

Tara:

Back 70

According to Weber, capitalism did not emerge in India because the controlling class and the bearers of knowledge production, the brahmans, were governed by an rigid caste system did not allow for growth outside of your born class. Also, cities in India were strictly divided so the social groups never intermingled thus the western idea of rights never emerged because the rigid structure of the cast system did not allow for class struggle or clashes of the classes. As well as the primary religion, Hinduism, didnt believe in worldly possestions. Their priorities were not here in this world.

Front 71

Why did capitalism not emerge in China, according to Weber?

Back 71

The carriers are the literati, men who are learned and do not work.
Major religions (Buddhism, Confucianism) eschew worldly government
Filial piety, ancestor worship. Ancestral lands make it difficult to alienate land.

Front 72

Why is inheritance a major feature in the evolution of capitalism, according to Weber

Back 72

steph: You need to be able to pass on money, property, and status to your children to keep your family in your class. Important in maintaining cultural capital.

Front 73

Weber is a pessimist. Why?

Back 73

He believes that only a select few will ever be happy.
Bureaucratic systemization will increase, we’re all cogs in the machine.
Believes we are destined for “The Iron Cage” – the future of capitalism, the bureaucratic mess.

Front 74

In what way is Weber ethnocentric?

Back 74

He’s studying these other cultures and religions in order to better understand his own culture. He doesn’t really care about China, India, etc

Front 75

What does bureaucracy do to a democracy, according to Weber?

Back 75

It will cause democracy to self destruct, because it cannot be maintained without specialists running the show, therefore becoming not a democracy anymore.
The Iron Cage: the world through secularization becomes increasingly magicless. (See last page of Protestant Ethic)
Allene: pg 149-159, He believed rationality only came from the West and existed nowhere else. He goes further to claim that art, music, application of mathematics, architecture, and organization of the free labour all were rationalized in the West. He acknowledges these things existed in some form in other societies but his argument rationalizes the rise of capitalism is due to the rational thought that only existed in the West

Front 76

What is the essence of die entzauberung der welt or disenchantment?

Back 76

nan:“the elimination of magic from the world’s occurrences-, with the doctrine of predestination its final stage. Rejected all magical means to the quest for salvation as superstition and sacrilege” which results “spiritual isolation of believers, when combined with the harsh teaching that he body was separated absolutely negative position toward all aspects of culture and religion oriented to the sensuous and to feelings; they wer useless for salvation and they promoted sentimental illusions and idolatrous supersition” (60)

Front 77

What is the difference between civil society and political society for Gramsci?

Back 77

The two major superstructure societies: the civil society and the political society. Civil society- the ensemblement of organisms that are commonly perceived as private. Political societies are “the state” (12). Political party as to civil society, state as to political society.

Front 78

. In Gramsci, how do ruling groups gain the consent of the masses?

Back 78

Allene: pg 12, Hegemony that evolves from "civil society" as ideals and laws that are spontaneously consented to by the masses and "Political society" or that of direct domination through force i.e. police, courts, army, prison that "legally enforce the laws that have been consented to by the masses

Front 79

What is the Southern Question

Back 79

nan: The industrialization of the north was creating a negative impact on the citizens in the south… “in other words, the north concretely was an octopus which enriched itself at the expense for the south, and that its economic-industrial increment was in direct proportion to the impoverishment of the economy and the agriculture of the south. ” (69- 71).

Allene: Pg.71, The North concretely was an "octopus" which enriched itself at the expense of the South, and that its economic-industrial increment was in direct proportion to the impoverishment of the South. The ordinary man from Northern Italy thought rather that, if the Mezzogiorno made no progress after having been liberated from the fetters which the Bourbon regime placed n the way of a modern development, this meant that the causes of the poverty were not external, to be sought in objective economic and political conditions, but internal, innate in the population of the South.

Front 80

What is a passive revolution?

Back 80

nan: “a revolution without a revolution- as put forth by cuoco.” 59. “The concept of passive revolution must be rigorously derived from the two fundamental principles of political science: I. that no social formation disappears as long as the productive forces which have developed within it still find room for further forward movement; 2. that a society does not set itself tasks for whose solution the necessary conditions have not already been incubated, etc. ” pg. 106

Front 81

What is Gramsci's position on Fordism?

Back 81

nan: Page. 279- one could say that Americanism and Fordism derive from an inherent necessity to achieve the organization of a planned economy, and that the various problems examined here should be the links of the chain marking the passage from the old economic individualism to the planned economy. Problems arise from the various forms of resistance to this evolution encountered y the process of development, the source of the problems being difficulties inherent in both the societas rerum nd the societas hominum, which is the society of things and the society of men.

Front 82

How does Fanon’s concept of civil society different from Gramsci’s

Back 82

nan: Fanon’s concept of civil society is based on this process of colonization, of defiance against the settlers and the violence brought upon by the settlers for colonies, or capitalism. Gramsci, on the other hand, does not take into consideration of the third world countries since he focuses more on European countries and the development thereof. (Gramsci- 12, Fanon- never mentioned the concept of civil society, or even if does, portrays it in a rather negative light)

Front 83

How does this difference affect Fanon’s revolutionary strategy?

Back 83

nan: Last page- that force and violence cannot bring about the proper change that we want to see in the world, he argues that “this huge task wich consists of reintroducing mankind into the world, the whole of mankind, will be carried out with the indispensable help of the European peoples, who themselves must realize that in the past they have often joined the ranks of our common masters where colonial questions were concerned. To achieve this, the European people must firest decide to wake up and shake themselves, use their brains, and stop laying the stupid game of the sleeping beauty

Front 84

How does Gramsci’s view of history differ from Marx’s?

Back 84

nan: That it essentially “results from the organic relations between State or political society and ‘civil society’”; whereas marx recognizes history as a constant struggle between the classes. (52- Gramsci

Front 85

What is an organic intellectual?

Back 85

nan: “organic intellectuals … are for the most part specializations of partial aspects of the primitive activity of the new social type which the new class has brought into prominence” (6)- the mass of the peasantry, although hit performs an essential function in the world of production, does not elaborate its own organic intellectuals, nor does it assimilate any stratum of traditional intellectuals, although it is from the jpeasntary that other social groups draw many of their intellectuals and a high proportion of traditional intellectuals are of peasant origins.

Front 86

Does an organic intellectual need to also be a subaltern?

Back 86

Page. 14-15- the distinction between organic intellectual and traditional intellectual. The traditional intellectual functions like a subaltern officer who has no autonomous initiative in elaborating plans for construction. Their job is to articulate the relationship hetwene the entrepreneur and the instrumental mass and to carry out the immediate execution of the production plan decided by the industrial general staff, controlling the elementary stage of work. so basically, the answer is no.

Front 87

How does Gramsci's concept of an intellectual differ from Weber's concept of status group

Back 87

Gramci's concept of an intellectual: Anybody is an intellectual, and you don't need to be classically educated. Weber's concept of status group: Only the elite few educated can be considered intellectuals and thus be of a higher status like the Chinese Literati

Front 88

Who is Gramsci’s “modern prince” and how does this prince differ from Machiavelli’s

Back 88

(wrong answer)nan: Gramsci’s modern prince consisted of “the political party, in its relations with the classes and the State: not the party as a sociological category, but the party which seeks to found the State” it also represents: “the communist party- who must organize and express a popular collective will, in other words, must be a Jacobin force, binding the peasants beneath the hegemony of the proletariat, and rejecting all forms of economism, syndicalism, spontaneism. ” (123).

Front 89

Compare and contrast these differing views of the connection between language, consciousness, and material reality. Be sure to address the issues of sex and gender, colonization and agency.

Back 89

1. Freudian slips & subconscious
2. Worf hypothesis, which states that our vocabulary shapes what we are able to think about.
3.c) Organic intellectuals. Intellectuals of the people that are able to communicate in their language and validate their own views and educate themselves. Grasci idea of democritzation of intellectualism, as a counter-hegemony.
4. As Fanon points out, Black Skin, White Masks “A man who has a language consequently possess the world expressed and implied by that language?” (pg 18) Fanon is pointing out what was happening to the Negro of the Antilles, who were colonized by the French, and his concern was that people cannot have real power to change their situation because they are not ‘taken seriously’ if they do no have a good command over the dominate culture’s languge. “Historically, it must be understood that the negro wants to speak French because it is the key that can open doors which were still barred to him fifty years ago.” (pg. 38)Double consciousness(black: stereotypes, internal conflict, racism exclusion)
5. James c scott Domination and the arts of resistance. Three forms of false consciousness. (1) Thick Hegemony – Absolute Belief, (2) Thin-Hegemony – People resign to it, not totally buying into it (marx, industrial soceity (3) Paper Thin – belief in social mobility, class is temporary, ‘the American dream’

6. Hill Collins and womenStand point of black women in feminism

Front 90

Compare and contrast these views of knowledge production and their consequences for justice struggles.

Back 90

The ideas of the ruling class are in every epoch the ruling idea i.e., the class which is the ruling material force of society, is at the same time its ruling intellectual force. The class which has the means of material production at its disposal, has control at the same time over the means of mental production, so that thereby speaking, the ideas of those who lack the means of mental production are subject to it.” Marx, German Ideology p. 172

Front 91

. Explain how Stuart Hall’s quote (and theory of Rastafarianism) is an example of Scott’s theory of hidden transcripts and hegemony. Include any other examples from the readings that would substantiate Scott’s theory

Back 91

flourished in the 50s-70s, when half a million Jamaicans were thrown off their lands. The landless people moved to Kingston, where Rasta culture was born
1. ). Scott refers to the unique realities of subjugated groups and their ability to discuss them and to imagine a different reality their “hidden transcripts
2. not physically rebel instead in imagination & groups (pulled over racism)
action vs thought
3. gramatski-political vs. civil society, common sense, hegemonic power-consent
4. Rastas not only have a different perception of the world than what the ruling class preaches, they also put this perception into practice. The shift between simply having a hidden transcript and acting out that transcript is discussed by Patricia Hill-Collins in Fighting Words: Black Women and the Search for Justice. She explains how “drawing on traditional African-American cultures of resistance, conversations around the kitchen table become classrooms of learning about how to deal with white oppression” (49). She acknowledges that this type of learning gives African-Americans another dimension of knowledge: they know both the public world, where the knowledge is produced by the ruling class, and their private world, where they can discuss what is unjust about the public
Hidden transcripts are one way of escaping the hegemonic discourse imposed by the ruling class whilst still avoiding the consequences of public rebellion. There are many examples in real life, ranging from Rastafarianism, to black women’s poetry, to schoolgirls talking about sex.

Front 92

How does Spivak expand on Gramsci’s concept of the role of intellectuals? Can we do away with the need for intellectuals? What sort of power relations make that unlikely?

Back 92

1. gramaski-need intellectuals to organize society
2.

Front 93

Liberation theology has been critiqued by some for being Marxist and by others for not being Marxist enough; for being a “materialist” theology when done from the male perspective but “idealist” when analyzing women’s situation. Feminist Theology is likewise criticized for not doing an economic analysis. Explain.

Back 93

1. Marx's discourse lacked a gender consciousness in his materialist perspective and rather confined this theory to one gender—male and therefore liberation theology can be accused on not being materialist enough
2. “Chain of Love” Film
-women outnumber men in immigration because they are ones who can apply for domestic care jobs and receive higher wages to send back to the family in the third world countries
-Thus Marx's “materialist” solution was not liberating because only really incorporated the male perspective
-Feminist Theology is accused of not doing an economic analysis, I think predominantly on the issue of prostitution
-to them, prostitution is bad and is not seen as a means to support oneself financially
3. latin american The difficulties that feminist theology in Latin America was going to encounter were not only the patriarchal construction of liberation theology and Christianity itself but a methodologically inherited trap. That trap comes from the underdevelopment of gender materialist analysis during the last twenty years on the continent. Feminist theology in Latin America started from the concrete experiences of women, but never reached the peaks of social and political gender analysis that male liberationists had in their time. Dussel read Marx and theology, but the feminists in Latin did not.” Althaus-Reid, p.35.

Front 94

In what ways does Rastafarianism represent a kind of liberation theology? Use as many concepts as you can to show how this is a particular example of broader phenomena in counter-hegemonic religious and cultural practices.

Back 94

1. ’Babylon’ is articulated in Rastafarianism in terms of the experience of ‘suffering’, ‘oppression’, ‘endless pressure’ in the here and now by the chosen people…Babylon overtly uses repression to keep the Rastas down, but –being subtle and clever—also draws out or steals the Rastaman’s energy and creative power. The promised destruction of Babylon, the release into Zion and the dawning of a new age gives Rastafarianism the classic millenarian structure of many religious sects…” Hall, p. 286.
2. Rastafarianism is a type of liberation theology. Like other counter-hegemonic religious and cultural practices, it Rastafarianism takes the common sense of a group of people and makes it critical; it moves a hidden transcript of these people into the public sector under a biblical code; and it uses the articulation of a leader (Marcus Garvey in particular) to galvanize the material reality and consciousness of these people.

Theorists: Gramsci, Scott, Hall, Bob Marley, Hill-Collins
3. Rastafarianism is a type of liberation theology. Like many lib theos, uses codes to express hidden transcripts in public sector. Concepts: Babylon=Rome. To Rastafarians, Rome is the oppressor. Haile Selassie=the black Messiah. There was a mythology created around him which was rooted in the Biblical story of King Soloman. He had an affair with Queen Sheeba, who represents Ethiopia (in just Rastafarianism, or in other cultures?), and Haile Selassie is believed to be the product of this affair. Rastas believe Haile Selassie is the good/just king who will return them from Babylon. Marcus Garvey=Prophet. He predicted that black people should move “back to Africa,” and that this is where they would find liberation.
4. Scott refers to as “hidden transcripts”—they speak about their own reality between themselves, while acting compliantly with the public reality of oppression. Since their own reality is often a threat, and therefore criminalized or at least looked down upon in the public sector, hidden transcripts are often put into code when mentioned in public
5. Rasta as a cultural rebellion: One of Antonio Gramsci’s focuses in his notebook is on cultural rebellions. Speaks highly of folk culture; emphasizes that you cannot dismiss the common sense of people, but instead have to take them where they are at and use their common sense to make things better for them

Front 95

. Explain why sexuality has been heretofore beyond the limits of liberation theology. Why is it important to the liberation of the poor to address sexuality?

Back 95

1. brazilian favelas
2. Themes of Liberation Theology:
-dominion, salvation, obedience, love, to name a few
-all of which can be manipulated to validate Marx's theory of the “natural division of labor.”
3. “Leave it to Beaver”
-women are altruistic by nature
-maternal drive and no drive to be part of the workforce
-this changes when there is an economic crisis and women were forced to enter the workforce
5, threatened sex through violence

Front 96

Expound on the connections between the Protestant work ethic, the American dream and Paper-thin Hegemony.

Back 96

1, the Asian ‘model minority’ discussed by Grace Change in Disposable Domestics.
2. Chang also discusses the American dream in her book. She writes “Whether through toiling in the fields or in their employers’ households, Mexican immigrant women fulfilled the Americanists’ dream, if not the American dream” (100 plus the change nuclear family
4 his Domination and the Arts of Resistance, James Scott proposes that the ruling class is able to do this through what he calls “Paper-thin Hegemony.” He suggests that as long as there “exist a strong probability that a good many subordinates will eventually come to occupy positions of power,” that even subjugated groups who know something is fundamentally wrong with the system will feel that it is better to work for it and hopefully gain some social and economical mobility than to fight against it. Although social mobility is extremely hard for subjugated groups to obtain in America (African-Americans, Latinos y Latinas, all other non-whites, single mothers, homosexuals, transgenders, homeless, disabled, etc), the ruling class has ways of spreading false-consciousness, and making people believe that all they have to do is work hard.

Front 97

How can women and non-citizens, be characterized as the IRA in the economic restructuring that has taken place in the past 3 ½ decades? How does Marx's concept of alienation from other workers fit the paradigm?

Back 97

is essentially a reference to the unemployed in a capitalist society who are willing to compete for low wages in order to attain a job.
2. Women and non-citizens are thus characterized as being part of the IRA because they are the new workforce that are willing to work for lower wages and thus are competing with “local” workers.
-ex.) “Chain of Love”
3Marx's four types of alienation (cut and copied from the midterm review):
-The worker is alienated from the product of his labor. He is making a commodity for someone else, so it is related to him in an alien way. His product even has power over him: the more he produces, the worse off he is.
-The worker is alienated from his own activity (the process of labor). His activity is not owned by him, and he cannot take pride in it. What he does is completely dictated by someone else. While in Feudalism the worker owned his tools, in capitalism the master owns the means of production, and therefore the process of production itself. This alienation gets worse as capitalism becomes more technical: eventually all a worker is doing all day long is pushing a button over and over.
-The worker is alienated from his own species. His life his only a means to life, only a way to get by, and his own intrinsic human nature, which is to work with the environment, is handed over to fulfill someone else’s desires.
-Finally, the worker is alienated from other individuals. This happens both as a consequence of alienation from the species and as a consequence of competition.

Front 98

How do both traditional Marxism and the new international division of labor elide or capitalize upon “women’s work” as part of a “natural” division of labor in the family?

Back 98

1Another woman, seeking specifically to hire an ‘illegal’ immigrant, said: “I want someone who cannot leave the country, who doesn’t know anyone in New York, who basically does not have a life. I want someone who is completely dependent on me and loyal to my family.’” Chang, p.109-110.
2 Prior to the rupture of society into classes, the social division of labor was almost exclusively based on kinship relations, within a relatively closed circle, wherein the character of an individual’s labor was determined by their age, sex and position within the family. The single family is becoming the economic unit of society.

Marx describes the natural division of labor in the family as being the “original” type of division of labor, the “original” oppression. He claims that the wife and kids are the first properties of the man, and that they are basically his slaves. Marx thinks this is a natural division, and doesn’t historicize it like he does other modes of production.
3 Although there have been all kinds of women’s rights movements and social change since his time, women are still working for free all around the world. Not only are they performing the usual “women’s work” such as cooking for the family, cleaning the house, doing the laundry, and raising the children, but they are also often picking up part- or full-time jobs in order to supplement their husband’s meager salaries. This entry of women into the public workforce has created a distinct shift in the way the traditional “women’s work” is done about the globe—now instead of performing these “female duties” for their own families, many women are performing them for families from a higher (and whiter) class, while their own children are left at the hands of either another woman (not white, most likely an immigrant) who is willing to work for even less, or a female relative or friend.