Suchergebnisse

The implications of Karl Marx's treatment of the connection between capitalism & the city for developing a critique of class within present-day US cities are examined. An overview of Marx's notion of commodity fetishism & its influence on succeeding generations of Marxist thinkers is presented; additional attention is dedicated toward exploring differences between the notions of urbanism & urbanization. Whereas urbanization has significantly benefited certain economic sectors, it is contended that such processes have negatively affected American urban centers. It is subsequently asserted that class in the urban US is now defined in relation to both urbanism & urbanization. After noting that Marx viewed class as a highly dynamic process, it is claimed that class consciousness has emerged within the urban US & has facilitated the creation of class-based movements in several American cities. The need for leftist organizers to capture & direct this class-conscious sentiment is stressed. J. W. Parker

The author describes a class he taught that used Marx's Capital as its text; the book was read cover to cover by all six students. They discovered that the book is accessible & has a lively style, in addition to which it reveals the inner dynamics of the capitalist labor process. Marx's book documents the laws that stop capitalism's drive toward limitless exploitation of labor power. It discusses despotism, anarchy, & mechanical invention. Marx is described as a rebel with a cause because he addresses the plight of the worker who is controlled by wealthy, unfeeling capitalist owners. The book has something to say for all socialists at all times. R. Larsen

The interaction between simultaneous trends of economic downsizing & capital accumulation in the US is investigated. An overview of Karl Marx's writings on class & capital accumulation, particularly his assertion that class is essentially a process, is presented. Marx's notion of the "financial aristocracy" is used to describe Wall Street practices & tendencies during the mid- & late 1990s. It is asserted that the 1990s US experienced low levels of inflation caused by the suppression of wages & raising of consumer prices. Economic downsizing's contribution to the suppression of wages between the late 1970s & the mid-1990s is studied. In addition, the absorption of the middle class into the working class & the abundance of subemployed workers in the US are discussed. Marx's notions of the stagnant & floating surplus populations are applied to delineate the US workforce. It is concluded that such trends in US economics & labor populations have resulted from the drive to accumulate capital. J. W. Parker