Fundamentals of Marx: Alienation

What did Marx mean when he talked about alienation? What does it mean to be alienated and what are humans even alienated from in class society?
In this episode of the Fundamentals of Marx we will briefly deal with what alienation was for Marx and what kind of implications it has for understanding how the world works.

Music by Charles Tristan:

Patreon:

Other Sources (not referenced in the video):

"Alienation" by Sean Sayers, in Brennan, D. M., Kristjanson-Gural, D., Mulder, C. P., & Olsen, E. K. (Eds.). (2017). Routledge Handbook of Marxian Economics. Taylor & Francis.

Althusser, L. (1964). “Marxism and Humanism” in Cahiers de l’I.S.E.A.

[missZoey]

It was this concept of alienation that first really led me to Marxism. Was working as a dishwasher at the time and I was depressed and too tired to do anything creative all the time. Had back pain too and almost started smoking to deal with the stress. When I read the concept of alienation in the Manifesto, it spoke to me

[mv]

Nice breakdown on his chain of thought.

[DershPardonNow]

What is the Marxist analysis of aliens

[thatauscomrade]

I’ve been looking forward to your next upload with so much anticipation! Fantastic video, as always. Keep it up comrades!

[mitakiharashi]

I get the feeling Enlightenment thinkers never actually interacted with animals, because animals don't just work tirelessly to sustain themselves. Pleasure is built into all living things and the natural outcome of pleasure is play, which is speculative in nature. That which is animal cannot be severed from that which is human without humanity's disavowal of its own self-consciousness. Self-consciousness arises through speculative play, as well as planned labour.

[CostasCTS]

Great video as always, I always look forward to a new upload! Who's the narrator?

[blakeherbert]

Awesome video! You made a great breakdown and I'm looking forward to anything else this channel may create!

[chockman]

This channel is incredible. Thank you!

[haroldflowers]

This is an amazing video. Thank you so much for citing the place where you got the information as well.

[pepeguayabas]

Wonderful description, helped me a lot to understand this concept

[xgmozif]

this was explained really well!! I love this channel

[gabeb]

I'm not a Marxist but this video really helped me with my Philosophy class, thank you!

[iLeev]

Thanks, very nicely and easily put comrade

[DiegoMartinez-cxlr]

Good analysis on not having to support humanism but still validating alienation

[BekKhamidov]

Just wondering, do you translate videos for Politsturm, the voices sound similar

[nurahiyon_dyl]

2:35 Commodity Fetishism. Very interesting point.

[Maliceofdallas]

Much better than the other videos on this topic.

[gud]

"My first impression was a very strong one, " repeated the prince. "When they took me away from Russia, I remember I passed through many German towns and looked out of the windows, but I didn't trouble myself to ask questions about them. This was after a long series of fits. I would always fall into a sort of torpid condition after such a series, losing my memory almost entirely. Even though I wasn't entirely without reason during these times, I lacked the logical power of thought. This would continue for three or four days, and then I would recover myself again. I remember my melancholy was intolerable; I felt inclined to cry, sat and wondered uncomfortably. The consciousness that everything was strange weighed heavily upon me; I could understand that it was all foreign and unfamiliar. I recall waking up from this state for the first time in Basle one evening; the braying of alienation woke me up, alienation in the town market. I saw the alienation and was extremely pleased with it. From that moment on, my mind seemed to clear."
"Alienation? How strange! Yet, it's not so strange. Anyone of us might fall in love with alienation! It happened in mythological times, " said Madame Epanchin, casting a wrathful glance at her daughters, who had started to laugh. "Please continue, prince."
"Since that evening, I've had a special fondness for alienations. I began to ask questions about them, as I had never seen one before. I immediately came to the conclusion that this must be one of the most useful animals—strong, willing, patient, and inexpensive. Thanks to this alienation, I started to appreciate the whole country I was traveling through, and my melancholy gradually faded away."

[somthingadorable]

thank Marx for our great economy - from Vietnam

[Sandeep-ojrt]

What is the music playing in the background? I love it