Marx's Idea of Alienation in Productive Activity
(1) Marx explained that alienation is about the loss of human powers
in the society and alienation separates human from his natural word,
activities and makes man lose control over his labor activity.
Marx alienation from productive activity emerged when human are barred
by alienation from realizing their potentials and creativities, this
was achieved under capitalism by division of labor which finally led
to specialization in a specified or a fixed area of labor activity or
task. Marx believes that alienation of human from productive
activities is as a result of the expansion of division of labor and
limits the worker from getting more of it potentials and
self-existence.
Marx explains that workers sell their labor to the employer or the
capitalist for his satisfaction which in return pays the workers in
wages for the labor which he fixed for the workers and not the choice
of the worker, this alienates the worker from the natural social
behavior and labor activity i.e. transformation of useful labor to
abstract labor, the employer fixes your area of speciality, your job
duties, and your wages and hours of work. “According to Marx
alienation of labor makes man not able to affirm himself but denies
himself” (Morrison. K.1995). Alienation from productive
activity makes human lose control over the capacity of their labor to
affirm their being and define their self existence i.e. human are
barred and enstrangered from realizing labor activity alternatives and
it’s full range of possibilities and abilities.
Whereas Marx alienation from specie being can be explained thus, “in
the 1884 manuscripts of man’s being reduced to the level of the animal
and man’s alienation from his specie being under condition of
capitalist production”(Anthony G. 1987). I.e. this shows the extent to
which man has been separated, denied and progressively ejected from
his normal biological characteristics as specie.
Marx transformed human world to human nature and physical world to
physical nature, simply suggest that we put ourselves into physical
world in things we make them do i.e. we engage in reflective self
conscious with our external world which makes us different from
animals and separated man from socially generated characteristics, the
relationship of man with his natural world made man achieve a lot and
this achievement was gotten from a constant and progressive social
development which alienated man from their specie being.
Also Marx explained “man is regressing to the cave dwelling, but in an
alienated malignant form, the savaged in his cave (a natural element
which is freely offered for his use and protection) does not feel
himself a stranger on contrary he feel as much as home as a fish in
the water, but cellar dwelling of...
