Re: Reification/commodification
Judy Diamondstone (diamonju who-is-at rci.rutgers.edu)
Tue, 17 Sep 1996 19:44:57 -0400
I haven't read Marx, but I'm in the middle of Engestrom --
(an _expansive_ reading experience, by the way) who uses the Marxist
definition of commodification - i.e., the form that the
"fundamental contradiction aris(ing) out of the division of
labor" (which is operative in all societies) takes in capitalist
societies. I don't yet understand all the theoretical implications
of this notion (commodification). Its dual nature (exchange value
vs use value) is apparently due to the division of labor (not
capitalism per se). Which leads me to think that Chris Francovich
is right to suggest that reification is a general function of
consciousness, which manifests variously according to the "objective"
character of the society (in capitalism, as commodification) - so
the commodity relation that generates "the pervasive forms of
objectivity and individuality" depends on the processes of
reification to do so.
Judy
Judy Diamondstone
Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey
Graduate School of Education
]10 Seminary Place
New Brunswick, NJ 08903