Sidney Mintz was heavily influenced by the ideas of Karl Marx. His mother belonged to a Marxist organization when he was a child and he continued to discuss Marx’s ideas with the Mundial Upheaval Society at Columbia (Smith). In Sweetness and Power, Mintz touches on Marx’s ideas of historical materialism and the separation of production and consumption within that system. Mintz’s object of study is sugar as a commodity and a means of subsistence (Mintz 1985: 6). His approach leaves room for culture at work in the societies as another way to understand the societies. Mintz’s main subject of study is how sugar helped to fuel colonialism and the Industrial Revolution (6). He also touches upon the “Commercial Revolution” as well; this underlies
…show more content…
The concept brings an idea of power and hierarchy to economic systems. There is a separation of the production of sugar in the sugar colonies and the consumption in the homelands of colonial powers, such as England and France (Mintz 1985: 188-9). This causes an inherent class struggle between the producers and consumers (179). Production and consumption, however, are still connected due to the supply and demand, though the demands are for different purposes for the higher and lower classes (180). Mintz makes historical materialism an inherent part of his subject and object of study because his entire project involved tracing sugar, his object, through time and space to see how it produces material life in the places where it goes, especially as it becomes increasingly common (CITE). This occurs prominently in England, where sugar became the major means of subsistence (191-2). The mass production of sugar on the plantations in the sugar colonies was the closest thing to industry in the 17th century (48). It constitutes another step toward capitalism, similar to Marx’s tracking of the economic systems (55). This also allowed for sugar to be consumed by the masses instead of it being a luxury item …show more content…
It is natural that some Marxist ideas would permeate into his own writings. In Sweetness and Power, historical materialism helps to drive the meaning of the book as Mintz tracks sugar and its uses and meanings through history. Unlike Marx, Mintz’s approach to historical materialism leaves room for cultural expression in the societies he studies. He relates culture to the material aspects of human life. He discusses material culture throughout the book as a process of intensification and extensification of behaviors because the meanings behind the material are what creates the
The concept brings an idea of power and hierarchy to economic systems. There is a separation of the production of sugar in the sugar colonies and the consumption in the homelands of colonial powers, such as England and France (Mintz 1985: 188-9). This causes an inherent class struggle between the producers and consumers (179). Production and consumption, however, are still connected due to the supply and demand, though the demands are for different purposes for the higher and lower classes (180). Mintz makes historical materialism an inherent part of his subject and object of study because his entire project involved tracing sugar, his object, through time and space to see how it produces material life in the places where it goes, especially as it becomes increasingly common (CITE). This occurs prominently in England, where sugar became the major means of subsistence (191-2). The mass production of sugar on the plantations in the sugar colonies was the closest thing to industry in the 17th century (48). It constitutes another step toward capitalism, similar to Marx’s tracking of the economic systems (55). This also allowed for sugar to be consumed by the masses instead of it being a luxury item …show more content…
It is natural that some Marxist ideas would permeate into his own writings. In Sweetness and Power, historical materialism helps to drive the meaning of the book as Mintz tracks sugar and its uses and meanings through history. Unlike Marx, Mintz’s approach to historical materialism leaves room for cultural expression in the societies he studies. He relates culture to the material aspects of human life. He discusses material culture throughout the book as a process of intensification and extensification of behaviors because the meanings behind the material are what creates the