Marxism: Introduction

1. Marxism: Introduction Class Relations, Capitalism and Commodification 2003 Spring

2. Outline • Starting Questions • Focuses in this unit • Marx • “Snowed Up”

3. 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: our “soul” • literature and all the cultural products. • Love -- Can love transcend the conditioning of money and the other social factors (e.g. class, educational background, etc.)?

4. Starting Questions (2): Class Relations • Which class do you belong to? Are we all “middle class”? What types of “class relations” do you see in our society? • What is capitalism? How does it influence our life? • What type of “relations of production” are there at school and in between the teachers and students?

5. Commodity Fetishism? • 林立雯承認自己的個性孤僻，不喜歡出門逛街，但為了滿足自己的購物慾望，所以她整日「掛」在購物或拍賣網站上，上個月，她就瘋狂訂購了十幾雙帆布鞋，她說：「現在購物網站很發達，連台灣沒有的限定品都可以買得到，而且送貨到家，非常方便。」她笑說自己看到喜歡的就會忍不住買下來，幾乎把賺來的錢都「敗」在上面了 (中國時報 　 影視娛樂 　 920415) • Why do we want more than what is “useful”? Do we have insatiable desire? If so, why?

6. General Responses: (1)Political Economy of Love • 「如果不答應我，就是不愛我。」這句話的邏輯其實包括：一、說話者認為對方應該接受他對於愛情的理解與要求；二、如果不接受就等於背叛愛情，甚至會引來報復。 power relations • 曾幾何時，金錢已經變成愛情的衡量標準，贈金送鑽買花購禮，成為情人之間的主要語言。(e.g. 真金真性情) • 日前一位百貨公司的年輕專櫃小姐，嫁給了年老多金的老闆，許多電子媒體紛紛以「麻雀變鳳凰」來形容。(賴)

7. General Responses: (2)Relations of Production • Class -- not the most basic category in any kind of social analysis. Can be combined with the other categories such as race and gender. • Important in analyzing the power relations in society and in literature– control/exploitation, inequality, and dialectical relations (master/slave). • e.g. love between Daisy and Gatsby, Sons and Lovers, Mulholland Dr.

8. General Responses: (2) -2Teacher & Student Relations • One example • Are teachers authorities to rebel against? • Are students buyers free to choose what they want? “I don’t think the school will like it.” • Why does the father say that if the teachers serves the students as “customers,” the former will not guide,

9. General Responses: (2) -3Teacher & Student Relations • Teacher-student: commercial relation and others • Teachers (like experts and those with technical skills ) are “professionals”–they 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)

10. General Responses: (3) Our Consumption Habits • Why can’t we stop buying? • Possible reasons: • Devaluation of the goods we buy or own; “positional goods”– When 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 Commodity Fetishism

11. Marx and Vulgar Marxism Western Marxists : Althusser’s theory of Ideology & Gramsci’s Hegemony American & British Marxism: Jameson and Eagleton Foucault &文學社會學的多重互動模式 Dialectic Materialism, Class and Commodification Literature & Society Marxist Literary Criticism Literature as Discoure Marxism: Topics & Schools on Focus

12. Marx: Basic Ideas • Economic Determinism; (previous Q & A) • Dialectic Materialism--(His Dialectic View of History: Revises Hegel’s view of history) • Critique of capitalism – • Exploitation of laborers and Alienation of them from their productive process • Commodification of Human Identity and Relations • Social Structure: Base and Superstructure

13. Dialectic Materialism: Marx’s Two major Statements • It is not the consciousness of men that determines their being, but, on the contrary, their social being that determines their consciousness. • (In other words-- Consciousness does not determine our socio-economic existence; our socio-economic existence determines consciousness.) Economic Determinism

14. Marx: Two major Statements (2) • The philosophers have only interpreted the world in various way; the point is to change it. •  Has Marxism failed after the fall of Berlin Wall, the collapse of Soviet Union and the capitalization of mainland China? • e.g. Soviet Union – 3 years after their its collapse, ½ of Russia’s economy is private owned. • China –capitalism has been developing since 1970’s in some special economic zones an official stock exchange was set up to allow people to buy and exchange shares. (Saunders 4)

15. Economic Determinism: Some Basic Terms • Means of production -- 製造媒介（工具﹚． • e.g. Machines –in industrial society; media and computer in our age of Information; those who own them, or know well how to use them, get to hold power over those who don't. • Modes of production -- 製造形式． • In the industrial society -- mechanical reproduction; • in our "post-industrial"age -- electronic reproduction. • Relations of production -- 製造關係 • between the capitalist class who owns those means of production, and the proletarian class whose labour-power the capitalist buys for profit.

16. 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 and news media) to consumption (readers)

17. Marx’s Critique of Capitalism • Capitalism – caused by industrialism’s amplification of labor power(e.g.) with machines surplus values accumulation and expansion of capitals (Scase 13)

18. Marx’s Critique of Capitalism (2) 2. Consequences: exploitation and alienation of laborers, exchange values over use values; reification(物化) and commodification of human relations Example: Modern Times ; Bicycle Thief

19. Marx’s Critique of Capitalism (2) 2. “immiseration thesis” -- exploitation and alienation of laborers, Note: Saunders argues that capitalism actually increases human wealth (of the poor and the rich alike) and improves human lives  What do you think?

20. Marx’s Solution 3. Marx’s argument: State-owned properties  Communism (example: clips of The Greatest Thinker: Marx) • Pension funds or share-holding is not enough; State-owned capital; possible problem, the State’s inefficiency; • Commune (regional economy, self-sufficiency)

21. Marx’s 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 production process. –誰來問凱蒂貓是否也流了汗﹖

22. Critique of Capitalism (4) –by Western Marxism Herbert Marcuse – capitalism creates our false needs, whereas our “real needs” are “repressively desublimated” in a one-dimensional world of commodities. (Cf. Saunders 79) Ardorno: creates “massified” pseudo-identity e.g. The Icicle Thief

23. Social Structure: Base and Superstructure • Base-- “The sum total of [the] relations of production constitutes the economic structure of society, the real foundation” • Superstructure--a legal and political superstructure, cultural institutions and forms of social consciousness. • Relations between -- The mode of production of material life conditions the social, political and intellectual life process in general.

24. Social Structure: Base and Superstructure (2) • Other ways to describe their relations: • reflect, determine ultimately, cause, condition,sets the limit • e.g. Vulgar Marxism’s reflectionism (presupposes a homology in social structure)

25. Social Structure: Base and Superstructure (3) • Ideology: the ruling ideas of the ruling class; imposed on the other classes. • Superstructure Parallel, reflect Base as foundation, center

26. Althusser’s idea of social formation; de-centered • Relative autonomy of the social levels and ultimate determination by the base

27. “Snowed Up” • What are the binary opposites in the story? • How is Edie related to the men around her? • What gets "snowed up" in the story? • What do you think about the ending? Is Edie finally subject to both the control of her society and the belittling of her author?

28. Binary Opposites • class difference: • Lord Bilbrton--> has power, • Mr. Alderman Thrigg--> has money; • Aurelles--> Aurelles' playing chess -- "trying oh, so hard to play chess--which he does not understand--with papa; and all just because." • father's position: in financial trouble, to be saved only by 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

29. 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

30. Edie's change by the snow • Before the snow -- Edie's position against class difference and social customs: • like a shuttlecock or tennis ball; 2. It is laughable . . . p. 20 • Edie's rebelliousness and ambition as a writer: • p. 20 the fur coat -- must wear it;  interest in her own looks; • not going to be sold exactly. p. 20 • be a poetess someday. • hate their "coming to the point." --> will not marry them, will cry, quarreled; am cross. • "entanglement with a penniless soldier."p. 21 • her view of having a spouse p. 21

31. The Other People’s 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

32. The Other People’s 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.

33. Edie's changing views of the snow and the others • 1)1/3 "Why it is beautiful! I wish I was snowballing Aurelles." (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 very short entry.* turning point: 4) 1/14 "Nothing but snow." "Such fun! The Alderman has been helping me in the kitchen." Philip arrives; he is willing to rescue Thrigg only if he gives up his pursuit of Edie. Edie changes her tactics. p. 26

34. 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 two men. Will be a good girl and make Phil a first rate wife.--Her diary ends with a bracket and blankness.

35. “Snowed Up”: Its Contraditions • Although Jeffries writes a cautionary take about what happens when society is deprived of technological support, there also appears to be an unarticulated desire for such a catastrophe to occur, a desire for devastation and for reversion. • [He expresses] liberal anxiety but also a reactionary 'back to nature' impulse. (Meynard 139)

36. References • Sauders, Peter. Capitalism: A Social Audit. Buckingham: Open UP, 1995. • Scase, Richard. Class. Buckingham: Open UP, 1992. • 賴祥蔚. 〈情人的政治經濟學〉中國時報 　92/02/14. • Maynard, Jessica. “A Marxist Reading of 'Snowed Up.‘”Literary theories : a case study in critical performance. Eds. Julian Wolfreys and William Baker. London : Macmillan Press Ltd , 1996