Historical materialism

1. Historical materialism Materialism as inversion of idealism: Marx turns Hegel upside down: economic conditions determine ideas, not the other way around.

2. Historical materialism Materialism as inversion of idealism: Marx turns Hegelaround: economic conditions determine ideas, not the other way around. Marx turns Hegel back on his feet.

3. The materialist conception of history starts from the principle that production, and with production the exchange of its products, is the basis of every social order; that in every society that has appeared in history the distribution of the products, and with it the division of society into classes or estates, is determined by what is produced and how it is produced, and how the product is exchanged. According to this conception, the ultimate causes of all social changes and political revolutions are to be sought, not in the minds of men, in their increasing insight into eternal truth and justice, but in changes in the mode of production and exchange; they are to be sought not in the philosophy but in the economics of the epoch concerned. (Engels)

4. The materialist conception of history starts from the principle that production, and with production the exchange of its products, is the basis of every social order; that in every society that has appeared in history the distribution of the products, and with it the division of society into classes or estates, is determined by what is produced and how it is produced, and how the product is exchanged. According to this conception, the ultimate causes of all social changes and political revolutions are to be sought, not in the minds of men, in their increasing insight into eternal truth and justice, but in changes in the mode of production and exchange; they are to be sought not in the philosophy but in the economics of the epoch concerned. (Engels)

5. Historical materialism Materialism as inversion of idealism: Marx turns Hegelaround: economic conditions determine ideas, not the other way around. Marx turns Hegel back on his feet. (Economic) base – (political and cultural) superstructure

6. Economicexplanation: late 18th and early nineteenth century America

7. Material explanation: late 18th and early nineteenth century America

8. Material explanation: late 18th and early nineteenth century America

9. Material explanation: late 18th and early nineteenth century America

10. Material explanation: late 18th and early nineteenth century America

11. Material explanation: late 18th and early nineteenth century America

12. Material explanation: late 18th and early nineteenth century America

13. Material explanation: late 18th and early nineteenth century America

14. In order that a manner of life so well adapted to the peculiarities of capitalism could be selected at all, i.e. should come to dominate others, it had to originate somewhere, and not in isolated individuals alone, but as a way of life common to whole groups of men. This origin is what really needs explanation. Concerning the doctrine of the more naive historical materialism, that such ideas originate as a reflection or superstructure of economic situations, we shall speak more in detail below. At this point it will suffice for our purpose to call attention to the fact that without doubt, in the country of Benjamin Franklin's birth (Massachusetts), the spirit of capitalism (in the sense we have attached to it) was present before the capitalistic order. (Max Weber)

15. In order that a manner of life so well adapted to the peculiarities of capitalism could be selected at all, i.e. should come to dominate others, it had to originate somewhere, and not in isolated individuals alone, but as a way of life common to whole groups of men. This origin is what really needs explanation. Concerning the doctrine of the more naive historicalmaterialism, that such ideas originate as a reflection or superstructure of economic situations, we shall speak more in detail below. At this point it will suffice for our purpose to call attention to the fact that without doubt, in the country of Benjamin Franklin's birth (Massachusetts), the spirit of capitalism (in the sense we have attached to it) was present before the capitalistic order. (Max Weber)

16. Cultural explanation: Question of origin: a mode of life originating elsewhere (Puritanism) gets “selected” because it happens to suit capitalism

17. Cultural explanation: Question of origin: a mode of life originating elsewhere (Puritanism) gets “selected” because it happens to suit capitalism (agency lies with capitalism) Question of (ultimate) determination:

18. Cultural explanation: Question of origin: a mode of life originating elsewhere (Puritanism) gets “selected” because it happens to suit capitalism (agency lies with capitalism) Question of (ultimate) cause: sometimes ideas transform economic relations

19. Marx (visionary) –

20. Marx (visionary) – Lenin (formulate doctrine; founder of party)

21. Marx (visionary) – Lenin (formulate doctrine; founder of party) Socrates -

22. Marx (visionary) – Lenin (formulate doctrine; founder of party) Socrates - Plato (formulates doctrine; founder of party)

23. Marx (visionary) – Lenin (formulate doctrine; founder of party) Socrates - Plato (formulates doctrine; founder of party) Jesus –

24. Marx (visionary) – Lenin (formulate doctrine; founder of party) Socrates - Plato (formulates doctrine; founder of party) Jesus – St. Paul (formulates doctrine; founder of party)

25. KarelČapek (1890 – 1938)

26. KarelČapek (1890 – 1938) Journalist

27. KarelČapek (1890 – 1938) Journalist Interest in pragmatism, William James. (Dr. Gall: “People who have ideas should never be allowed to have any influence on the events of this world.”)

28. KarelČapek (1890 – 1938) Journalist Interest in pragmatism, William James. (Dr. Gall: “People who have ideas should never be allowed to have any influence on the events of this world.” Science fiction or future-oriented works

29. R.U.R. (1920) Opening scene:

30. R.U.R. (1920) Opening scene: Office work

31. R.U.R. (1920) Opening scene: Office work Global capitalism

32. Comedy:

33. Comedy: Domin finishes Helen’s sentences; keeps holding her hand

34. Comedy: Domin finishes Helen’s sentences; keeps holding her hand Surprise inversion: Rossum [“Reason”] was mad

35. Comedy: Domin finishes Helen’s sentences; keeps holding her hand Surprise inversion: Rossum [“Reason”] was mad Helen does not believe that Stella is a robot and thinks the other managers are robots

36. Comedy: Domin finishes Helen’s sentences; keeps holding her hand Surprise inversion: Rossum [“Reason”] was mad Helen does not believe that Stella is a robot and thinks the other managers are robots Humans playing robots (Bergson’s theory of laughter: an organism acting mechanically)

37. Robots: the products of industrialization when young Reason takes over from his father (“[Rossum] had no idea at all about industrial production”)

38. Robots: the products of industrialization when young Reason takes over from his father (“[Rossum] had no idea at all about industrial production”) New type of laborer

39. R.U.R. = Rossum’s Universal Robots

40. R.U.R. = Rossum’s Universal Robots Robota = serf labor, hard, manual work

41. R.U.R. = Rossum’s Universal Robots Robota = serf labor, hard, manual work Rozum = reason

42. Fabry: “to give birth to a machine is wonderful progress. It’s more convenient and it’s quicker, and everything that’s quicker means progress. Nature had no notion of the modern rate of work. From a technical point of view, the whole of childhood is quite pointless. Simply a waste of time.”

43. to give birth to a machine is wonderful progress. It’s more convenient and it’s quicker, and everything that’s quicker means progress. Nature had no notion of the modern rate of work. From a technical point of view, the whole of childhood is quite pointless. Simply a waste of time.

44. Ten years later War leading to revolution, comp. to WWI and Russian Revolution

45. Ten years later War leading to revolution, comp. to WWI and Russian Revolution The Robot Manifesto: “Proclamation to all Robots in the world” “Robots of the world! Many humans have fallen. We have taken the factory and we are masters of the world. The era of man has come to its end. A new epoch has arisen! Domination by robots!”

46. Busman: Dear lady, what I mean is that the price of labour is getting cheaper! Even with its food, a robot costs no more than three quarters of a cent per hour! It’s wonderful; every factory is buying robots as quick as they can to reduce production costs, and those that aren’t are going bankrupt. Helena: Yes, that’s right, and throwing their workers out on the streets. Busman: Haha, well of course they are! [ . . ]

47. Busman: Dear lady, what I mean is that the price of labour is getting cheaper! Even with its food, a robot costs no more than three quarters of a cent per hour! It’s wonderful; every factory is buying robots as quick as they can to reduce production costs, and those that aren’t are going bankrupt. Helena: Yes, that’s right, and throwing their workers out on the streets. Busman: Haha, well of course they are! [ . . ]

48. Economic explanation Industrialization created a class that will overthrow bourgeoisie: the workers (Robots)

49. Economic explanation Industrialization created a class that will overthrow bourgeoisie: the workers (Robots) Reforms (Helen), seeking recognition of workers as human, are useless

50. Economic explanation Industrialization created a class that will overthrow bourgeoisie: the workers (Robots) Reforms (Helen), seeking recognition of workers as human, are useless Only nationalism can avert united front of workers