From: Michael Eldred (artefact@t-online.de)
Date: Mon Dec 30 2002 - 16:32:47 EST
Cologne 30-Dec-2002 Re: [OPE-L:8247] gerald_a_levy schrieb Mon, 30 Dec 2002 11:44:25 -0500: > Re Michael E's [8243]: > > > The prefix "Ge-" in "Gewinnst" signifies a gathering (e.g. as in Gesetz, > > which signifies the gathering of all that which is posited, i.e. gesetzt, > > as lawful regulation, i.e. law). Human being is essentially desirous, > > i.e. it directs itself toward and sets its heart on (Greek: _epithymia_) > > what it lacks. The essential lack in human being shapes and leaves its > > mark on human being's relation to the world. The Gewinnst is the > > historical consummation of desirous human being in which the world > > presents itself as the gathering of all that is desirous and as offering > > opportunities for acquisition (_ktaesis_). According to Plato (Book > > IV of the Politeia), human being itself (the _psychae_), i.e. the > > relation of human being to being, in its major part is desirous and > > acquisitive. > > Such desire is not merely gluttony and profligacy, but above all > > _philochraematon_, i.e. the striving to acquire useful things, assets, > > wealth, money. Today we call this self-interest. Human being is > > self-interested, i.e. motivated, moved by self-interest and at the same > > time, on the other hand, it is subject to inertia, i.e. it is > > habit-loving, complacent as long its self-interest is satisfied. I call > > this the law of social inertia, i.e. the tendency of social life to > > persist without change in its customs, habits, routines and ruts unless > > disturbed by intervening forces. In capitalist society, groundlessly > > shifting value is above all _the_ intervening force that removes the > > ground beneath social habit, custom, tradition and routine, thus > > forcing social change for both better and worse. > > The 'starting point' which is selected must be *specific* to the nature of > the subject that one is attempting to comprehend in thought. So if we > wish to comprehend capitalism, we must select a starting point such as > the commodity that allows us to reconstruct in thought the essential > character and dynamic tendencies of capitalism as a *specific* mode > of production. Yet, your subject matter above is not limited to the > subject of capitalism but rather is broadened to what you consider to > be the "essential" character of human beings. I think this runs the risk > of transplanting concepts appropriate to comprehending capitalism > to a 'universal' subject (i.e. the trans-historical comprehension of > human beings) and thereby making those concepts appear to be natural > and eternal. In any event, I think we know *very* little about the > 'essential' character of human beings as it relates to such subjects as > culture, habits, customs, routines, etc. And the major reason we can > say so little about our 'essential' social character of human beings is > precisely because our conceptions of 'who we are' are seen through > the kaleidoscope of value that alters our perceptions of all subjects > and tends by way of self-justification and rationalization to eternalize > and naturalize the specific forms of social relations that are > characteristic of capitalism. > > Consider the concept of 'self-interest'. While this is certainly a > concept that has importance for comprehending social behavior > under capitalism, there have been many pre-capitalist societies > for which _self_ interest was an alien and unrecognized and > undeveloped form of behavior. To posit 'self interest' as being > essential to the character of human beings is tantamount to > eternalizing the concept of value itself by asserting that it is a > social relation that human beings are somehow essentially and > mystically driving willy-nilly towards. > Jerry, I am talking very specifically, and not attempting to "eternalize and naturalize the specific forms of social relations that are characteristic of capitalism", as you put it. "Essence" is a specifically historical concept that makes sense _only_ in the context of the Greek questioning _ti estin...;_ (What is....?). I am indeed going beyond the capitalist-bourgeois epoch as it emerged from the medieval period, but only back to the beginning of the West with the Greeks -- a highly _specific_ beginning which is part of the tradition that binds us and which can be thought about. The West dates from about two-and-a-half millennia ago, not much considering how long humans have been around, and this specific beginning of Western history is to be distinguished from other historical ways of human living in other parts of the world. The Greeks, too, knew about chrematistics (money-making), and Aristotle's thinking on money and money-making is pertinent today -- and deeper than anything modern economics or political economy has to offer. We need to translate ourselves to this Greek world. Plato's and Aristotle's casting of human being is an historical event _which holds sway over us to this very day_. The significance of this is not appreciated. Their thinking is not something past, something that is over and done with. Reading these ancient Greek texts says something about us and our way of social living today. Plato's thinking on _philochraematon_, the love of and striving for goods and money, for instance, still speaks to us today if we are prepared to listen carefully. It says a lot about what goes under the name of 'self-interest' today. Plato's and Aristotle's thinking on the _psychae_ goes deeper than anything which modern psychology has to offer. It is not because Marx is interested merely in the history of ideas that he finds it necessary to carry on an altercation with Aristotle in the opening chapters of Capital, but because Aristotle's thinking on and the Greek experience of money and chrematistics is silently with us still. Of course, Greek society was not a capitalist society, just as little as it was a society dominated by our modern technology, but the Greek experience and thinking-through of _technae_ and _chrematistikae_ is also _our_ historical destiny. As Marx says in a different context "De te fabula narratur" (MEW23:12). The starting-point (_archae_) of the West, including modern capitalism, is the ancient Greek beginning. Michael _-_-_-_-_-_-_- artefact text and translation _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_ _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_- made by art _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_ http://www.webcom.com/artefact/ _-_-_-_-artefact@webcom.com _-_ _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_ Dr Michael Eldred -_-_- _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_
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