| This question <258-2|35> overall <32|34> AntonioGramsci: <3|211-30>. graded A– |
| Question 105: When Marx wrote that labor is the father and the earth the mother of use-values, should he also have included produced means of production in addition to nature and labor? |
| [33] AntonioGramsci: Labor and Nature. Is the statement ‘Labor is the father and the Earth the mother of use-values’ accurate? Should produced means of production be added to this statement to make the description of use-values more complete? This question tempts the reader to put produced means of production on the same level as nature and labor. Once all layers have been stripped away we arrive at the foundation, the point at which we can abstract no longer. In Marx's view, this foundation is comprised of both labor and nature. Each of these is a necessary component in the production process. Each of these is equally necessary if we want to arrive at produced means of production, and hence the discussion of the use-value of any given commodity. |
| To speak of labor, nature and produced means of production as though they were some sort of Holy Capitalist Trinity is exactly what capitalism wants of us. Just as capitalist society indoctrinates its citizens to believe that the market comes before commodity production, proponents of such a society also claim that produced means of production share an equal footing with labor and nature. This argument fails to pass the validity test of even a beginner to the rules of logic. The answers to the following four questions demonstrate that labor and nature are necessary and sufficient to commodity production, whereas the reverse proves invalid. |
| 1. Can we have produced means of production without labor? Answer: No |
| 2. Can we have produced means of production without nature? Answer: No |
| 3. Can we have produced means of production without both labor and nature? Answer: No |
| 4. Can we have labor and nature without produced means of production? Answer: YES |
| In order to have use-values, Marx would say that there must first be produced means of production. In order to have a discussion of use-value at all, we must recognize that, at least for Marx, a produced means of production must be present. Every commodity has use-value. If by ‘produced means of production’ Marx is referring to a commodity then ‘produced means of production’ must be present, otherwise there could be no use-value to speak of. However, I understand Marx to be asking whether produced means of production (commodities) be of equal importance as labor and nature. The answer to this is a resounding no. |
| Capitalism wants its children to believe that there is indeed a father and a mother. The father they have chosen is indeed labor and their mother is produced means of production. They speak as though nature is an irrelevant and unnecessary step in the process. In fact, they go further and pretend that they not only control nature, they actually ‘invent’ and ‘create’ nature. Instead of recognizing and being grateful to nature for the many opportunities it affords them, they act as though nature is a hindrance to an otherwise efficient economic system. Through labor, the elements of nature can be put together and/or separated in different, specific ways. Man acting alone does not possess the power to create a single use-value. |
| At best, produced means of production can be viewed as nothing more or less than the corrupted offspring of labor and nature. Despite the rhetoric of those who profess that produced means of production is the God of all that is good and holy, it will never share a place of equal importance as labor and nature. Labor and nature existed before produced means of production. Labor and nature exist together with produced means of production. Labor and nature will exist long after produced means of production has gone the way of the dodo. Until society recognizes produced means of production for what it is (the vehicle of those who control wealth to exploit everyone else and keep them in poverty), labor and nature will continue to be forcibly subjected to the blasphemous doctrine that capitalism and commodity production are the rulers of mankind. |
| Hans: You are sometimes writing “commodity” where you should have written “product.” A commodity is something produced for sale. |
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