Jordan Peterson Doesn’t Understand Marx

Who’s afraid of Karl Marx? (Jordan Peterson, obviously)

In the world of Jordan Peterson, there’s arguably few thinkers more troubling than one Karl Marx. But can really investigating his take on Marxism tell us anything about how Peterson functions as a thinker? And more importantly, does Peterson even understand The Communist Manifesto? Let's find out in this Philosopher Reacts to Jordan Peterson on Marxism.

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[markbanks]

Jordan Peterson: valiantly defending the integrity of the intellectual tradition by publicly debating about authors he hasn't read

[isidoreaerys]

The craziest part of the debate is that Peterson starts by admitting he had to Re-read The manifesto for the first time since highschool… which means his career of advocacy against Marxism in the political and academic sphere has been based on a half remembered reading of the communist manifesto from when he was a teen.

[urtctftv]

I will never forget how Peterson had to concede to Zizek that he has no idea who Hegel is, says it all about him.

[karebushmarebu]

Jordan Peterson is the epitome of speaking about things you know nothing about and everyone just believing you because you said it with confidence

[leparfumdugrosboss]

My drunk uncle made just as uninformed but much more entertaining rants about communism than JP ever could, and he did it for free.

[frieda]

Some german newspaper summarised the debate as going into an artillery battle with a pocket knife and I think that sums it up perfectly. Cant imagine what it must have been like for Zizek who practically breathes Hegel, Marx etc.

[joelcasseus]

Already when I was doing my MA in sociology people who discussed Marxism by only quoting The Manifesto were never taken seriously

[snowmonster]

Of all the bad habits JP has, I think the worst is treating every other thinker like they are a glib college sophomore. The next worst is a related issue and it's his habit of criticizing other people's work based on things that it isn't about. Criticizing someone for acting like nature doesn't exist when the essay is about urban factory workers is ridiculous. It's like saying Bach was a moron because his jazz doesn't swing. Sitting in faculty meetings with him must have been a special kind of hell.

[arvinbuenaagua]

"Why is this pamphlet made for unionizing easy to understand?"

[ryancouture]

Peterson tends to practice "lazy" philosophy, also known as strawman philosophy, in which he privileges himself/his argument by constructing the opposing argument in a way that weakens it from the get go. This channel is absolutely correct in identifying this sort of pseudo-philosophizing as dangerous. It is not a tactic that Peterson devised on his own (its been around for a long time), and unfortunately it has become the main form of commuinication in modern politics. this video definitely earned itself a subscription. Thanks, team!

[toxicdermyillunary]

Jordan Peterson is a living proof of "act calm and collected, be confident and people gonna believe you"

[dstinnettmusic]

“I have read all of the works of Marx, all of your works, and you.”

— Zizek —

Most badass line any philosopher has ever said.

[krikorklenjian]

I was really looking forward to this debate with Zizek. The day before the event I watched Jordan on his channel. He said that he hadn't truly prepared for it and that he was only going to focus on the Communist Manifesto. The Munk debate showed him to completely shallow about Marxism. One has to remember that he spent a good year telling folks that no one wanted to debate him on Marxian thought which was completely untrue. There were plenty of offers. For Jordan it was about the money. No one could afford the 50, 000 grand that he was asking. Charlatan.

[petercliffe]

16:03 "The tradition of all dead generations weighs like a nightmare on the brains of the living." This video was worth it for that quote alone. Excuse me while I go make it into a graphic and plaster it all over those design-your-own-merch sites.

[Slamagotchi]

Just to clarify a point, Engles often gets way more discredited than he should with regard to many of these texts. He had a significant influence on all the volumes of capital, including volume 1, and of course volume 2 and 3 which were largely constructed into a book form by Engles from Marx's notes. Not a huge point but just worth reiterating because I think Marx gets all the spotlight when many of the seminal works of Marx were collaborative in nature, and i think that strengthens the ideas because its not just the thinking of one person but of a shared experience and analysis of the world.

[jacksquat]

Why should Jordan Peterson read anything when his opinion is always right?

[AudibleApathy]

Feels like peterson reversed engineered marx's perspective from animal farm.

[TimNorton]

I think I have finally identified the problem I have with Peterson. It is that he is like that guy in college who writes a paper, defends a dissertation, gives a verbal presentation, etc. in such a way as to cover for the fact that he has not actually studied the subject matter enough to have a decent opinion.

In other words, he can speak the language of academia so well, he often SOUNDS like he knows what he is talking about when he really does not have a firm grip on the subject at hand.

For example, the classic move he goes to often is "Well, yes, you are not wrong, but I think the more profound point here is what
do we really mean when we ask "What do we mean?"" Followed but a diatribe about meaning. Evade the point, sound smart, and don't really have a decent argument.

[GeahkBurchill]

Speaking of a priori, Peterson starts with the premise that ‘hierarchies are good actually’, as his most fundamental guiding principle, and his entire career is working backwards and justifying that premise.

[kiwioppaz]

Psychologist pretending to be a philosopher