A path of interpreting the “consumer society”: The perspective of Karl Marx and its significance

Abstract

When Western Marxist sociologists, such as Jean Buadrillard, constructed their critical theory of consumer society, they took the consumer society as an objective fact and methodologically restricted themselves to the non-historical method of sociology, making them unable to grasp the correct meaning of Karl Marx's historical materialist methodology. Thus, they were unable to adequately critique and transcend consumer society. After spending the early 1850s building a theoretical foundation, Marx pointed out in 1857–1858 Economical Manuscript and 1861–1863 Economical Manuscript that the governing model of capital was so complicated that it made consumption very important to the socio-economic form. Moreover, he explained the way of surpassing the conscious form of fetishism developed in consumer society from the perspective of the development of capitalist production.

摘要

鲍德里亚等西方马克思主义社会学家在建构其消费社会批判理论时, 只把消费社会当作一个客观的事实来看待, 在方法论上拘泥于非历史性的社会学方法, 无法进入马克思意义上的历史552F物主义的方法论视域。 这直接导致了他们不能准确地把握批判和超越消费社会的路径。 经过19世纪50年代初期的思想过渡, 马克思在 «1857–1858 年经济学手稿» 和 “1861–1863年经济学手稿» 中, 不仅从资本统治模式的复杂性的角度, 深刻地指出了消费过程对整个社会经济形态的重要性, 而且最终还从资本主义生产过程的发展性的角度, 阐释了由消费过程所滋生的观念拜物教的消解路径。