Concept Of Alienation By Karl Marx

Alienation Paper #1
The concept of alienation by Karl Marx continues to be relevant in today’s capitalistic society. Alienation is ingrained in capitalism. Alienation can cause one to feel unworthy, meaningless, powerless, and inhuman in the work that they do daily. Craftsmen were once able to create a product from beginning to end and sell it at the price they desired. They had their own schedule and could create things at their own pace. It was a way for people to be creative and express themselves. This is sometimes not the case in today’s society. Workers today are removed from the creativity and have zero control on the production process, how it is produce and sold. They also have no control over work hours. They are told when to show
Foxconn has dorms where 70,000 of their workers lived, at times stuffed 20 people to a three-room apartment (Duhigg & Barboza, 2012). These people work extreme overtime, are paid very little, and with the lack of privacy with those living conditions, they are just trying to exist. After a long shift, these workers come to rest in a place that is overcrowded, just to go back to work and do it all over again. Work is alienating because it serves solely to provide the means for maintaining physical existence (Appelrouth & Edles, 2016). That is exactly what these workers at Foxconn are doing; they are not living, they are trying to survive. These workers are not going out to enjoy a few drinks with some friends or catching the newest movie. They are simply working to just to live another
A banner hangs on the walls that states, “Work hard on the job today or work hard to find a job tomorrow” (Duhigg & Barboza, 2012). When they are not meeting the demand of the job, these factory workers are replaceable. These workers are selling their souls. They come to work and perform routinized tasks, such as cleaning iPhone screens, day in and day out. They are alienated from the production process and become alienated from themselves. The wage earner spends two-thirds of his waking hours engaged in a meaningless activity and is alienated from the rest of humanity and becomes just another commodity to be bought and sold (Appelrouth & Edles, 2016). The workers seem to be more like a robot than a human being, and are treated as such. The more the workers produce the cheaper their service is worth. They do not have time to socialize with co-workers. They are to complete their task for the next 12 hours or more and to come back the next day and do it