The groundwork of Simmel's new "storey" beneath historical materialism

Jeffrey A. Shad

pp. 297-317

in: Michael Kaern, Bernard S. Phillips, Robert S. Cohen (eds), Georg Simmel and contemporary sociology, Berlin, Springer, 1990

Abstrakt

Whereas Marx's materialist conception of history emphasizes objective material interests as the driving force of the emergence of modern capitalism, with ideas serving as tools of the bourgeoisie in its exploitation of the proletariat (Marx 1978, pp. 163–176), Simmers "idealistic" conception of history as a "form" of human experience constructed by subjective ideas (Simmel 1977, pp. 185–202) compels him to consider the significance of capitalist exchange relations as a "form" of life which embodies only the "idea" of the fulfillment of material needs. Simme's project to construct a new 'storey" beneath historical materialism (Simmel 1982, pp. 53–56) anticipates Baudrillard's recent efforts to "deconstruct" Marxism by uncovering the ideological foundation of material "needs' in capitalist society (Baudrillard 1981, pp. 63–87).

Cited authors

Simmel Georg

Marx Karl