| This question <96|96> overall <103|105> Bird: <59|183>. graded A |
| Question 220: Why does Marx explore the mysterious character of the commodity, which is bland and abstract, instead of picking up one of the many striking outwardly mysterious phenomena of capitalism? |
| [104] Bird: Bland vs. Mysterious. Wouldn't it be wonderful if all of life's problems could be solved 30 - 60 minutes the way they are in sit-coms and TV dramas? In order to do this, one need only address the most obvious, superficial and easily manipulated aspects of life. Marx was not about addressing the character of commodities at this level, he was looking at something deeper. |
| Imagery expressing Marx's intention has come in several forms. Bobcat [96] said that, “Marx does it this way because he cares to lay the foundation before the building.” Rizzo [2003fa:139] suggests that Marx is “trying to get at the root....that is in the secrets of commodities.” Che [2003fa:147] views Marx as “laying a framework for the rest of his book.” All these images reflect a common process employed by Marx. A process (as emphasized by Prof. Ehrbar) in which he acknowledges the surface but then moves beyond to reach the core of the issue. |
| Che [2003fa:147] expresses well Marx's effort to move beyond the ‘obvious and trivial’ and draw our attention to the depth of the commodity. As Marx explores the mysterious character of the commodity, he opens the door to meanings that might have been easily missed. But I don't think Marx had any intention of the exploration stopping there. When Marx moves us to this level he calls us to deal with underlying aspects of capitalism that may not receive extensive media attention, but which form the foundation on which it stands. |
| The ‘obvious and trivial’ might be said to equal use-value. That is, the properties of the product that encourage us to buy it. But there is much more to a commodity. Marx explores aspects that I do not believe most of us want to see. The “mysterious” portions are the parts that will challenge our thinking and perhaps our consumption habits. |
| What if, beyond the use-value and price of a shirt purchased at a discount chain store, I have to also think about the treatment of the workers who made the shirt? Or the wages of the store workers where I bought the shirt? What if, beyond the use-value and price of an SUV, I have to think about the pollution expended or volume of fuel consumed and the impact of these things on the environment? These are the “mysteries” for which Marx is building a foundation. They are the hard questions that can not be changed by tweaking the prime lending rate. |
| Why does Marx explore the mysterious character of the commodity? Because until we understand these aspects we will always be dealing with only the symptoms of the disease and not the root cause. |
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