Karl Marx's individualistic conception of the good life
This thesis provides an interpretation and critical examination of Karl Marxâs vision of the good life, a vision that is potent but also notoriously unspecified and opaque. It makes three major interpretive claims. First, it argues that at the heart of Marxâs vision is an uncompromising commitment to ethical individualism, the view that the ultimate value and goal of human societies is the self-realisation of individuals. This individualism is explored through an examination of Marxâs critique of the division of labour (Chapter 2) and hostility to social roles (Chapter 3). Second, it argues that Marxâs ideas about the good life are not of a piece but change in crucial respects throughout his lifetime. For instance, it is argued that Marx gives different arguments in different texts as to why community is necessary for self-realisation (Chapter 3), and different arguments, too, about whether labour or leisure constitutes the true realm of self-realisation under communism (Chapter 4). Third, while Marxâs views do indeed change in crucial respects throughout his lifetime, it argues that these changes cannot be understood in terms of a break between the âearlyâ and âlateâ Marx, as is commonly
Kandiyali, Jan
Karl Marx's individualistic conception of the good life. This thesis provides an interpretation and critical examination of Karl Marxâs vision of the good life, a vision that is potent but also notoriously unspecified and opaque. It makes three major interpretive claims. First, it argues that at the heart of Marxâs vision is an uncompromising commitment to ethical individualism, the view that the ultimate value and goal of human societies is the self-realisation of individuals. This individualism is explored through an examination of Marxâs critique of the division of labour (Chapter 2) and hostility to social roles (Chapter 3). Second, it argues that Marxâs ideas about the good life are not of a piece but change in crucial respects throughout his lifetime. For instance, it is argued that Marx gives different arguments in different texts as to why community is necessary for self-realisation (Chapter 3), and different arguments, too, about whether labour or leisure constitutes the true realm of self-realisation under communism (Chapter 4). Third, while Marxâs views do indeed change in crucial respects throughout his lifetime, it argues that these changes cannot be understood in terms of a break between the âearlyâ and âlateâ Marx, as is commonly
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