Blog Two

Karl Marx critiques society in the late 19^th century. He comes up with the idea of alienation of the species being. All human beings want to reach their fullest amount of life, but as always, there are numerous obstacles. There are a few components of his alienation idea. An individual has alienation from:

-          Productive activity

-          Product

-          Fellow workers

-          Human potential

With this said, Marx believed that alienation is an indication of the industrial age and capitalism. A worker in a production line sees only the item he/she produces and has no control over the final product. This individual has no relationship with the product and works purely for the pay check. The worker has no satisfaction in the work he/she does.

There are many social behaviors that result from alienation. Suicide is the ultimate result of alienation, but also school shootings, drug and alcohol abuse, and also addictions such as gambling or shopping can occur from feeling so alienated from society. Work, in today’s society, is still depersonalized and alienation is well witnessed in today’s work places.

I’ve been thinking lately where I will end up working when I’m out of college…….most likely a cubicle, a small area divided off from everyone else’s tiny office. Do I look forward to this? Absolutely not. When I think about this, I become very sad. Then, I looked up a song I haven’t heard in a while, The Cubicle Song (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4NpBZ2jiH8). This song follows the theme of James Blunt’s song “You’re Beautiful,” except with much better lyrics. This song just makes me laugh and demonstrates how someone who works in a cubicle is severed from a lot of human contact, just a person and their computer, in their 6x6 board room. I’d love to end this blog on a brighter note, but Marx is right. Plus, even without alienation in the workplace, would individuals reach their fullest human potential without this obstacle?