Monday, December 29, 2008

Philosophy 118: 10 December, 2008

These notes were taken from my class with Dr. Reyes for Philosophy 118 last 10 December.

.:Economics Is The Driving Force Of History:.

Marx believes that history moves with economic movements in the world. Historical actions affect all of us, but these actions are determined by various economic forces at work. Marx is rather single-minded in this regard, mainly because he focuses solely on economic factors as that which defines our history.

.:The History Of Work, Part II:.

After feudalism, where agriculture was the main mode of production, and where each feudal unit was self-sufficient, a small anomaly arose, known as the roving merchants. Certain industrious people who do not wish to become beholden to a land owner by exchanging goods from feudal unit to feudal unit. The forces of production became the horse, particularly using the carriage. Now, you have another set of skills needed by the merchants who need to travel by horse, such as that of the artisan and the blacksmith.

Eventually, the measure of travel became not just in terms of feudal unit to feudal unit, but instead travel by sea. Thus, there was a need to produce boats and ships.

Eventually, these people come together and become the townsmen. As they are not dependent on the landlords, they were the free men. They were the bourgeois.

At this point, the form of production became individual ownership.

For Marx, not everything is possible except at a precise historic point.

Eventually, the shift went into industrialism and capitalism. The factory became one of the forces of production. This meant that in place of individual ownership, it has become a social mode of production.

.:Quotable Quotes:.

“All the 'burgs. Hamburg, Freiburg... although 'Hamburger' is a different story.”

“The caricature is one factory worker performs only one motion! So that even in your sleep, you still go 'uhhkkk, uhhkkk...'”

- Dr. Reyes

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