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Opinion Editorial on Human Dignity in Commerce Profession

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Wednesday, January 29, 2020

Karl Marx and Human Nature Essay Example for Free

Karl Marx and Human Nature Essay I have taken for my study one chapter from the book Marx and human nature by Norman Geras. In the second chapter Norman Geras deals with the human nature and historical materialism. Although many Marxists denied Marxs theory of human nature that there was a human nature to be found in Marxs words, there is in fact a Marxist conception of human nature which remains, to some degree, constant throughout history and across social boundaries. The sixth of the Theses on Feuerbach provided the basics for this interpretation of Marx according to which there was no eternal human nature to be found in his works. Feuerbach resolves the essence of religion into the essence of man human nature. But the essence of man is no abstraction inherent in each single individual. In reality, it is the ensemble of the social relations. Feuerbach, who does not enter upon a criticism of this real essence, is hence obliged: Human nature Thus, Marx appears to say that human nature is no more than what is made by the social relations. Norman Geras Marxs Theory of Human Nature, however, offers an extremely detailed argument against this position. In outline, Geras shows that, while the social relations are held to determine the nature of people, they are not the only such determinant. In fact, Marx makes statements where he specifically refers to a human nature which is more than what is conditioned by the circumstances of ones life. In Capital, in a footnote critiquing utilitarianism, he says that ’’utilitarian’s must reckon with human nature in general, and then with human nature as modified in each historical epoch. Marx is arguing against an abstract conception of human nature, offering instead an account rooted in sensuous life. While he is quite explicit that individuals express their life, so they are. Hence what individuals are depends on the material conditions of their production, he also believes that human nature will condition (against the background of the productive forces and relations of production) the way in which individuals express their life. History involves a continuous transformation of human nature, though this does not mean that every aspect of human nature is wholly variable; what is transformed need not be wholly transformed. Marx did criticize the tendency to transform into eternal laws of nature and of reason, the social forms springing from your present mode of production and form of property, a process sometimes called reification. For this reason, he would likely have wanted to criticize certain aspects of some accounts of human nature. Human beings collectively work on nature but do not do the same work; there is a division of labor in which people not only do different jobs, but according to Marxist theory, some people live from the work of others by owning the means of production. How this is accomplished depends on the type of society. Production is carried out through very definite relations between people. And, in turn, these production relations are determined by the level and character of the productive forces that are present at any given time in history. For Marx, productive forces refer to the means of production such as the tools, instruments, technology, land, raw materials, and human knowledge and abilities in terms of using these means of production. Human nature, Marxs ethical thought and alienation Gears says of Marxs work that: Whatever else it is, theory and socio-historical explanation, and scientific as it may be, that work is a moral indictment resting on the conception of essential human needs, an ethical standpoint, in other words, in which a view of human nature is involved . Alienation, for Marx, is the estrangement of humans from aspects of their human nature. Since as we have seen human nature consists in a particular set of vital drives and tendencies, whose exercise constitutes flourishing; alienation is a condition wherein these drives and tendencies are stunted. For essential powers, alienation substitutes disempowerment for making ones own life ones object, ones life becoming an object of capital. Marx believes that alienation will be a feature of all society before communism. The opposite of, alienation is actualization or self-activity- the activity of the self, controlled by and for the self. Human nature and the expansion of the productive forces It has been held by several writers that it is Marxs conception of human nature which explains the primacy thesis concerning the expansion of the productive forces, which according to Marx, is itself the fundamental driving force of history. If true, this would make his account of human nature perhaps the most fundamental aspect of his work. Geras writes, ‘‘historical materialism itself, this whole distinctive approach to society that originates with Marx, rests squarely upon the idea of a human nature. It highlights that specific nexus of universal needs and capacities which explains the human productive process and mans organized transformation of the material environment; which process and transformation it treats in turn as the basis both of the social order and of historical change. The tendencys autonomy is just its independence of social structure, its rootedness in fundamental material facts of human nature and the human situation. Historical progress consists fundamentally in the growth of peoples abilities to shape and control the world about them. This is the most basic way in which they develop and express their human essence. Historical materialism Historical materialism started from a fundamental underlying reality of human existence: that in order for human beings to survive and continue existence from generation to generation, it is necessary for them to produce and reproduce the material requirements of life. Marx then extended this premise by asserting the importance of the fact that, in order to carry out production and exchange, people have to enter into very definite social relations, most fundamentally production relations. Norman Geras analyzed historical materialism and postulated that society has moved through a number of types or modes of production. That is, the character of the production relations is determined by the character of the productive forces; these could be the simple tools and instruments of early human existence, or the more developed machinery and technology of present age. The main modes of production Marx identified generally include primitive communism or tribal society (a prehistoric stage), ancient society, feudalism, and capitalism. In each of these social stages, people interact with nature and produce their living in different ways. Any surplus from that production is allotted in different ways. Ancient society was based on a ruling class of slave owners and a class of slaves; feudalism was based on landowners and serfs; and capitalism based on the capitalist class and the working class. The capitalist class privately owns the means of production, distribution and exchange (e. g. , factories, mines, shops and banks) while the working class live by exchanging their socialized labor with the apitalist class for wages. Marx identified the production relations of society (arising on the basis of given productive forces) as the economic base of society. He also explained that on the foundation of the economic base their arise certain political institutions, laws, customs, culture, etc. , and ideas, ways of thinking, morality, etc. These constituted the political/ideological superstructure of society. This superstructure not only has its origin in the economic base, but its features also ultimately correspond to the character and development of that economic base, i. . the way people organize society is determined by the economic base and the relations that arise from its mode of production. Historical materialism can be seen to rest on the following principles: 1. The basis of human society is how humans work on nature to produce the means of subsistence. 2. There is a division of labor into social classes (relations of production) based on property ownership where some people live from the labor of others. 3. The system of class division is dependent on the mode of production. 4.  The mode of production is based on the level of the productive forces. 5. Society moves from stage to stage when the dominant class is replaced by a new emerging class, by overthrowing the political shell that enforces the old relations of production no longer corresponding to the new productive forces. This takes place in the superstructure of society, the political arena in the form of revolution, whereby the underclass liberates the productive forces with new relations of production, and social relations, corresponding to it. Human nature and historical materialism Marxs theory of history attempts to describe the way in which humans change their environments and (in dialectical relation) their environments change them as well. That is Not only do the objective conditions change in the act of reproduction, e. g. the village becomes a town, the wilderness a cleared field etc. but the producers change, too, in that they bring out new qualities in themselves, develop themselves in production, transform themselves, develop new powers and ideas, new needs and new language. The first premise of all human history is, of course, the existence of living human individuals. Thus the first fact to be established is the physical organization of these individuals and their consequent relation to the rest of nature. Thus History does nothing, it possesses no immense wealth, and it wages no battles. It is man, real, living man who does all that, who possesses and fights; history is not, as it were, a person apart, using man as a means to achieve its own aims; history is nothing but the activity of man pursuing his aims. So we can see that, even before we begin to consider the precise character of human nature, real, living humans, and the activity of man pursuing his aims is the very building block of Marxs theory of history. Humans act upon the world, changing it and themselves; and in doing so they make history. But even beyond this, human nature plays two key roles. In the first place, it is part of the explanation for the growth of the productive forces, which Marx conceives of as the driving force of history. Secondly, the particular needs and drives of humans explain the class antagonism which is generated under capitalism. Conclusion and critical remarks Here I would like to say that Marxist philosophical anthropology is one sided. Its conception of human nature and human good overlooks the need for self identity than which nothing is more essentially human. The consequence of this is held to be that Marx and his followers have underestimated the importance of phenomena, such as religion and nationalism, which satisfy the need for self identity. In the study of human nature and historical materialism, history is what is made by human beings and its nature. According to Marx human beings are working and changing the world, Marx ignored all other factors that at work in the development of history. History has been developed not only by human beings but also through various elements. Historical materialism is caused by the production of things and there by arising social relationships. Here it implies that economy is the basic structure of society that controls and develops. But it is a reductionist approach, it is impossible to reduce the basic structure as economic relations alone.

Tuesday, January 21, 2020

Main Themes in A Streetcar Named Desire :: English Literature

Main Themes in A Streetcar Named Desire Fantasy/Illusion: Blanche dwells in illusion; fantasy is her primary means of self-defense. Her deceits do not carry any trace of malice; rather, they come from her weakness and inability to confront the truth head-on. She tells things not as they are, but as they ought to be. For her, fantasy has a liberating magic that protects her from the tragedies she has had to endure. Unfortunately, this defense is frail and will be shattered by Stanley. In the end, Stanley and Stella will also resort to a kind of illusion: Stella will force herself to believe that Blanche's accusations against Stanley are false. The Old South and the New South: Stella and Blanche come from a world that is rapidly dying. Belle Reve, their family's ancestral plantation, has been lost. The two sisters, symbolically, are the last living members of their family. Stella will mingle her blood with a man of blue-collar stock, and Blanche will enter the world of madness. Stanley represents the new order of the South: chivalry is dead, replaced by a "rat race," to which Stanley makes several proud illusions. Cruelty: The only unforgivable crime, according to Blanche, is deliberate cruelty. This sin is Stanley's specialty. His final assault against Blanche is a merciless attack against an already-beaten foe. On the other hand, though Blanche is dishonest, she never lies out of malice. Her cruelty is unintentional; often, she lies in a vain effort to plays. Throughout Streetcar, we see the full range of cruelty, from Blanche's well-intentioned deceits to Stella self-deceiving treachery to Stanley's deliberate and unchecked malice. In Williams' plays, there are many ways to hurt someone. And some are worse than others. The Primitive and the Primal: Blanche often speaks of Stanley as ape-like and primitive. Stanley represents a very unrefined manhood, a romantic idea of man untouched by civilization and its effeminizing influences. His appeal is clear: Stella cannot resist him, and even Blanche, though repulsed, is on some level drawn to him. Stanley's unrefined nature also includes a terrifying amorality. The service of his desire is central to who he is; he has no qualms about driving his sister-in-law to madness, or raping her. Desire: Closely related to the theme above, desire is the central theme of the play. Blanche seeks to deny it, although we learn later in the play that desire is one of her driving motivations; her desires have caused her to be driven out of town.

Sunday, January 12, 2020

Comparison of Tragic Heroes: Othello and Willy Loman Essay

Tragic heroism dominates many of the plays written in the earlier years of literature. Many of the known authors and playwrights used them in their works to represent their main character. Among the more popular tragic heroes in the literary history are Othello from Othello, the Moor of Venice by William Shakespeare and Willy Loman from Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman. These two characters, although both fit the qualifications of a tragic hero, do so in different ways. In Aristotle’s Poetics, he outlined the characteristics of a tragic hero as follows; first, someone who has a noble standing or who has a high position relative to his culture; he should be great, but not to the point of perfection. Spectators must be able to relate to him as a man, not someone so godly. A fatal character flaw would cause his downfall and the consequences or punishments that he receives for it usually surpass the crime. However, the fall should not be limited to pure loss but may also be an increased awareness, some kind of self-discovery or self-realization or gained self-knowledge. Othello perfectly fit the standards provided above. He was a prominent man being the general and commander of the armed forces of Venice. People respect him and look up to him because of his noble stature. However, as the play progresses, it slowly unveils the character flaws of Othello. His being so trusting of Iago, which was partly because of his military mindset of fully giving total confidence to a comrade, led him to be manipulated easily. He was lured to believe that his wife was having an affair with another man. His jealousy took the better of him, thus he was not able to think clearly. This character flaw pulled him down from the pedestal for it showed that even though he was a very prominent person, he also have some weaknesses just like all humans do. As the story comes to an end, he was overcome by his suspicion of his wife’s dalliance, which made him kill her. It was only after that incident that he realized his foolishness for believing Iago. Thus, before he took his life, he stated â€Å"Speak of one that loved not wisely, but too well, of one not easily jealous but, being wrought, perplexed in an extreme†¦. † (Act V, Scene 2). Too late was his realization of his lack of wisdom and naivete, which led to the tragic ending of the story. Willy Loman, on the other hand, has a different story. He may not be a very prominent person just like Othello, but within the realm of his culture, he is at the higher post. He was a successful businessman; he has his own home, a car, and what he perceived as a wonderful family. He saw himself as someone very important in his family and a cut above his contemporaries. This claim is evident in his statement in Act 1 where he uttered â€Å"I’m the New England man. I’m vital in New England†. This prominence, although self-perceived made him qualify for the first qualification of a tragic hero. His flaws, however, also came from the perception he had of himself. He set a high standard for his son based on what he had accomplished, which the latter failed to achieve. As he got older, he became less effective as a salesman and things began going out of hand. He made major mistakes after another including an affair with another woman, which was discovered by his son making things worse. His faults, however, are not planned but were spontaneously derived from previous misfortunes. In the end, the once very happy and contented Willy Loman became very sad and miserable that he decided to end his life through a car crash. We can see in these two characters the fulfilment of the qualifications for a tragic hero in different ways. Othello, somehow manages to fit in classically while Loman had to achieve it by diving deeper into the criteria. Nevertheless, the main idea of being a tragic hero was met by both, thus they are considered as such. This only goes to show that literature is not limited, which is a good thing because it allows writers to explore different possibilities of meeting set standards.

Saturday, January 4, 2020

Analysis Of Dulce Et Decorum Est By Wilfred Owen - 736 Words

Dulce et Decorum Est, a poem by Wilfred Owen, explores the numerous horrors and cruel difficulties of WWI. It is a painful, emotional and blunt depiction of the horrible conditions and distressing experiences which had a permanent effect on the soldiers. â€Å" Dulce et Decorum est† is short for the Latin saying â€Å" Dulce est Decorum est Pro Patria Mori† which translates to, â€Å" It is sweet and honorable to die for your country.†. Owen seeks to persuade the reader that it is far from honorable to die for one’s country, as the title of the poem suggested. In the first stanza, â€Å" We cursed through the sludge†, Owen describes the state of the soldiers to allow the reader to visualize the cruel reality that war was for them. Their situation is made†¦show more content†¦This represents the soldier’s pain and suffering to the reader, reminding them of the personal face of war through the suffering of an individual person. This simile is extremely poignant as it highlights the range of his pain. The use of ‘fire or lime’ increases his torture as both are very vivid comparisons that allow the reader a glimpse of the suffering that he was enduring. Owen makes the effects of war sufficiently clear by describing his own nightmares, â€Å"in all my dreams, before my helpless sight†. This line clearly demonstrates the brutal impact that war also has on the lives of those who survive and is very effective as it highlights his torment as he has to relive the experience over and over in his dreams. The line ‘helpless sight communicates his failure as the fact that he was unable to prevent his friend’s suffering at the time and now is reduced to being a passive spectator. The brutal irony of the poem is uncovered in the last lines as he attacks the individuals who claim that death in war is glorious, â€Å"my friend, you would not tell with such high zest†. Owen utilizes the use of the second person to address the people at homes and the individuals who might urge young fellows to surrender their lives for their nation. The use of my friend is intensely ironic and betrays his anger as he holds these people reliable for what he thus numerous others had to experience and claims that if only they were to witness theShow MoreRelatedAnalysis of Dulce et Decorum Est by Wilfred Owen Essay485 Words   |  2 PagesAnalysis of Dulce et Decorum Est by Wilfred Owen In the poem, Dulce et Decorum Est written by Wilfred Owen, the speaker appears to be a soldier in the army, warning young people eager for war, â€Å"children ardent for some desperate glory,† that war is not what it seems. The soldier explains to the reader through first hand experience that fighting for one’s country is not as glorious a task as it may appear to be. One shouldn’t believe the lie that is told about how itRead MoreEssay on Analysis of Dulce Et Decorum Est by Wilfred Owen795 Words   |  4 PagesAnalysis of Dulce Et Decorum Est by Wilfred Owen The First World War saw the introduction of many new warfare technologies across its theatres due to industrial competition between rival nations. One of the most feared weapons amongst soldiers on both sides was gas. The usage of chlorine, phosgene and mustard gas caused the death of thousands of men by suffocation. Wilfred Owens poem Dulce Et Decorum Est gives a detailed description of a soldier dying from a gas attackRead MoreAnalysis Of Wilfred Owen s Poem Dulce Et Decorum Est1692 Words   |  7 Pagesare now studying Protest and Resistance poetry. The protest poem ‘Dulce et Decorum Est’, written by Wilfred Owen, challenges the dominant World War One ideologies of militarism and nationalism. You will find that this poem is a great example as it defies the dominant values and beliefs of war in Britain. Wilfred Owen Let’s discuss the poet. Wilfred Owen was one of the leading voices of the first world war. In January 1917, Owen was deployed but he was innocent to the realism of war. In April,Read MoreAnalysis Of Dulce Et Decorum Est By Wilfred Owen1688 Words   |  7 PagesDulce Et Decorum Est This poem is a reflection of the nightmarish experience that Wilfred Owen had encountered during his experiences fighting in France during WW1. This poem deals with both sadness and loss. The actual form of this poem consists of a rhyme scheme that goes ABAB CDCD EFEF. The meter of the poem consists of five beats that contain a short, unstressed syllable followed along by a longer, stressed syllable. Therefore, the meter of this poem is an iambic pentameter. EX: Knock kneedRead MoreAnalysis Of Wilfred Owen s Dulce Et Decorum Est938 Words   |  4 Pagessocial aspects thanks to many of the war poets during that time period. Wilfred Owen is known to be one of the most famous war poets during the twentieth century especially during the First World War when he wrote â€Å"Dulce et Decorum Est†. His poem details the horrors these soldiers faced in the trenches during World War 1 and conveys the hidden meaning that â€Å"it is sweet and honorable† to die for one’s country is untrue. Owen is able to deliver his message and express his ideas against this cruel warRead MoreAnalysis Of Wilfred Owen s Dulce Et Decorum Est994 Words   |  4 Pageswill continue to haunt them. The memories of killing, friends being killed, almosts, etc. War contains many horrors like these. The saying, â€Å"Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori,† was once believed; it means that it is sweet and fitting to die for one’s country. Because Wilfred Owen knew the horrors, he opposes this saying in his poem â€Å"Dulce Et Decorum Est.† The narrator provides vivid images of his experience in WWI which includes both the exhaustion the soldiers endured while walking to their nextRead MoreAnalysis Of Wilfred Owen s `` Dulce Et Decorum Est ``1256 Words   |  6 PagesWilfred Owen is remembered as one of the greatest poets to capture the war in words. His work was described as â€Å"the finest written by any English poet of the first War and probably the greatest poems about war in our literature† (Lewis 11) despite him only having had 4 poems published in his lifetime, though he did write many more. His poems truly did capture the terror and harsh truth of the hardships the soldiers faced in the trenches everyday during World War I, evident in â€Å"Du lce Et Decorum Est†Read MoreAnalysis Of Wilfred Owen s Dulce Et Decorum Est1015 Words   |  5 PagesWilfred Owen was born in Oswestry, England, on March 18, 1893. He became widely recognized as a British poet for his experience and impressions upon World War I. He was the eldest out of the four in his family. His father worked on the railway, and his mother was strict in her religious beliefs, yet still had affection for her children. At Owen’s christian household, they practiced biblical themes and teachings. They seem to be a very close-knit family and protect each other. He also utilized ChristianRead MorePoem Analysis : Dulce Et Decorum Est Written By Wilfred Owen1507 Words   |  7 Pagesof hell and opens a vein that bleeds a nation to death.† World War one has affected each and every one of us. Death did not only affect the afflicted with it, but also the ones surrounded by it. This is clearly shown in the poem Dulce ET Decorum EST written by Wilfred O wen. The author has portrayed this idea through the clever use of several language techniques with the main ones being metaphors, similes and onomatopoeia which will be covered throughout the rest of the essay. Through the use of theseRead MoreAnalysis Of Wilfred Owen s Anthem For Doomed Youth And Dulce Et Decorum Est1224 Words   |  5 Pagesa time afterwards. Wilfred Owen was a poet who became well renowned after World War I where he unfortunately died in battle. Anthem for Doomed Youth (Anthem) and Dulce Et Decorum Est (Dulce) by Wilfred Owen both portray various themes including horrors of war, the futility of war and the pity and sadness of war. War is full of horrendous acts that every side of war commits, even if it is for their own reasons which to them seem honourable, but Owen tells a different story. Dulce depicts the many terrors