3 Capital’s real subsumption of consumption
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Costas Panayotakis
Abstract
This chapter interprets the rise of consumerism as the result of capital’s subsumption of consumption. Adapting Marx’s original distinction between capital’s formal and real subsumption of labor, this chapter shows how capitalism has, over time, not only commodified the means of subsistence, thus achieving capital’s formal subsumption of consumption; it has also used scientific research, advanced techniques, and cultural resources to reconstitute consumer preferences in ways that serve capital. The chapter traces this process to the dynamics of capitalist competition and the pursuit of profit, while also discussing its negative impact on human well-being and the ecological integrity of the planet. In this sense, this chapter represents a first step in the analysis of the destructive ways that capitalism uses the surplus it extracts from workers.
Abstract
This chapter interprets the rise of consumerism as the result of capital’s subsumption of consumption. Adapting Marx’s original distinction between capital’s formal and real subsumption of labor, this chapter shows how capitalism has, over time, not only commodified the means of subsistence, thus achieving capital’s formal subsumption of consumption; it has also used scientific research, advanced techniques, and cultural resources to reconstitute consumer preferences in ways that serve capital. The chapter traces this process to the dynamics of capitalist competition and the pursuit of profit, while also discussing its negative impact on human well-being and the ecological integrity of the planet. In this sense, this chapter represents a first step in the analysis of the destructive ways that capitalism uses the surplus it extracts from workers.
Chapters in this book
- Front matter i
- Contents v
- Confronting the capitalist virus vi
- Introduction 1
- 1 Rethinking the surplus 8
- 2 Surplus and freedom 18
- 3 Capital’s real subsumption of consumption 33
- 4 Consumerism and capital’s use of science and technology to undercut democracy 54
- 5 Capitalism as a force of destruction 67
- 6 Futile growth and mounting destruction 90
- 7 The crisis of capitalist democracy and the continuing relevance of the communist ideal 99
- Conclusion 123
- References 132
- Index 152
Chapters in this book
- Front matter i
- Contents v
- Confronting the capitalist virus vi
- Introduction 1
- 1 Rethinking the surplus 8
- 2 Surplus and freedom 18
- 3 Capital’s real subsumption of consumption 33
- 4 Consumerism and capital’s use of science and technology to undercut democracy 54
- 5 Capitalism as a force of destruction 67
- 6 Futile growth and mounting destruction 90
- 7 The crisis of capitalist democracy and the continuing relevance of the communist ideal 99
- Conclusion 123
- References 132
- Index 152
