ATR 220: Cultural Anthropology

Transcription

1 ATR 220: Cultural Anthropology Marc Healy Chapter 2: The Laborer in the Culture of Capitalism Capitalism, Labor and Alienation work vs labor People have always worked, but in the capitalist system work has been re defined as labor selling your work to others This is a historical shift (the term capitalism is coined in 1861) We might consider labor to mean work in which the worker experiences alienation from the products of work In the process of work In the social relationships surrounding work 1

2 1. A Primer on the Elements of Capitalism The 5 elements of capitalism Commodities Consumer goods, capital goods Money (standardized exchange medium) Labor power (transforms materials into products) Means of production (capital goods) Production (Lp + Mp = C) Use value vs. exchange value Precapitalist: C C M C Mercantilism: M C M Capitalism: M C P C M The Cycle of Capitalist Production Production C (Mp/Lp) Money/investment M Product C Sale M The Cycle of Capitalist Production Production C (Mp/Lp) Keep as low as possible Money/investment M Product C Sale M Get as high as possible 2

3 The Cycle of Capitalist Production Production C (Mp/Lp) Money/investment M Product C Sale M These have constraints as well The Baptism of Money The major feature of capitalism is that money can be used to make more money We often talk about money as if it were alive and capable of reproduction. Colombian peasants would baptize money and expected that such blessed money would create more money as a result. Commodity fetishism attributing life, power, and autonomy to inanimate objects Masks exploitation of land, labor and people takes agency off the hands of people and places it in commodities. 2. The Construction and Anatomy of the Working Class The creation of the modern consumer was largely an American, 20 th century phenomena. The creation of the modern laborer was largely a 19 th century British invention. So what s new here? 1. Mobility 2. Segmentation 3. Discipline 4. resistance 3

4 Labor Mobility Workers began leaving their fields and moving to factories Smaller land holders were more likely to lose their land, and larger landowners consolidated holdings Cheaper commodities coming from larger landowners intensified this shift Factories were located in cities, so urbanization resulted Ireland, Germany, Italy, Poland, Austria Hungary and Russia sent many immigrants to the US Waves of immigrants replaced previous waves from other areas Segmentation By race, religion, age, gender and ethnicity 4

5 Segmentation Unions and politically well represented groups formed a labor aristocracy Others (newcomers, Irish, African Americans, Chinese) had to settle for the worst jobs and the lowest wages. Segmentation National identities in the US often clashed with more localized identities in the home country Ethnic groups were often pitted against each other (African Americans and Irish) 5

6 Discipline Early factories were modeled after penal workhouses. Task oriented societies became time oriented Formal school enculturated children to attend to rigid schedules Leisure and idleness was looked upon a wasteful and sinful. Resistance 1848 de Tocqueville notes winds of revolution and Marx and Engels write the Communist Manifesto Short lived revolutions break out across Europe Malthus blamed the poor, Marx blamed the wealthy Bourgeoisie and proletariat Resistance Adam Smith and David Ricardo produced a scientific theory of the rise of Capitalism Marx and Engels attempted to devise one of the fall of capitalism 6

7 The Growth of Overseas Assembly Plants Brands can be seen as commodity fetishes high prices beyond the use value of their products Profit margins are widened by controlling the means of production and the price of labor Surplus value of labor The Growth of Overseas Assembly Plants Ways to keep labor prices down: Import foreign, low skilled workers Compelled labor convicts, chattel slaves, bonded labor Off shoring Poor governments produce free trade zones Rich governments tax products based upon their labor, not price (consumers get taxed on price, not labor when importing) Costs of off shoring: Environmental degradation Low wages, uncertain futures as companies leave Poor working and living conditions (child labor) Heavy handed government intervention (anti union) The Creation of Free Labor Why do people trade self sufficiency for wage dependency? Colonial governments transformed land into plantations Governments privatized communal lands Without land, all you can sell is your labor Rich governments pressure poorer governments to adopt trade based development strategies 7

8 The Segmentation of the Workforce Foreign assembly plants prefer young female labor Emic reasons: women are more capable (trainable, patient, detailed, etc) Etic reason: by segmenting the labor market you can choose the groups that will accept the lowest wages because they have the least power The Segmentation of the Workforce Primary Industries high skilled, higher wage, less competition and higher profit margins (heavy industry, public services) Secondary Industries low skilled, low wage, high competition and lower profit margins (fast food, agriculture, garments) Off shoring expands the secondary labor market Loss of jobs in the core Wider gap between primary and secondary in core Keeps the periphery poor with few opportunities The Segmentation of the Workforce Skilled/unskilled based on vulnerability, not skill level Maquiladora 8

9 The Segmentation of the Workforce Unskilled = Undervalued Easier to control (discipline) Groups can escape this work only if a replacement acceptable to corporations is available Control and Discipline Nineteenth century communities policed themselves with rigorous social mores Migrants away from home were free from scrutiny, and young workers could behave badly without sanction Control and Discipline (Malaysia) Malaysian women finding freedom Consumerism, dating, choosing a spouse considered immoral No similar backlash against upper class Malay women who do similar things in college. Employers want cheap labor who will spend their earnings, but also a reliable, disciplined workforce. Employers cement ties with communities where workers originate, stress Islamic values, and portray their factory as a family where the owners are parents. Uniforms, surveillance, and temporal regimentation 9

10 Resistance and Rebellion The price of surrendering control The price of enforcing control Resistance and Rebellion AihwaOng and spirit possession Resistance in the US 10