Marvin Harris: Technology, Society, and Alienation

Marvin Harris: Philosophical Implications of Technology

For Marvin Harris, technology has not necessarily brought progress for the individual, but it has had a beneficial effect on society. Harris identifies three stages in technological development:

• Hunter-gatherer societies
• Agrarian societies based on domesticated plants and animals
• Industrial societies

Each technological advancement impacts the use of leisure time. A hunter-gatherer needs approximately 3 hours a day to obtain food. During the Neolithic period, a farmer spent about 6 hours a day cultivating cereal or rice. In the 19th century, workers labored between 12 and 14 hours for minimal wages. Thus, technology may lead to a reduction of free time for individuals, but it has a beneficial influence on historical processes.

Linkage Between Technology and Morality

According to Marvin Harris, hunter-gatherer societies, with their technology, are compelled to share and support each other. The basis of their moral values lies in their utility for the group, as selfish behavior is detrimental to the society. Hunter-gatherers live in a form of primitive communism where private property is absent, and resources are shared.

Alienation

Alienation is the feeling of being estranged from oneself. Marx distinguishes several forms of alienation:

Religious Alienation

Religious alienation is a psychological state stimulated by religious leaders, who encourage belief in a perfect afterlife as a consolation for suffering in this life. This belief distracts individuals from changing the material circumstances of their real lives, fostering conformity.

Economic Alienation

Economic alienation arises when certain social classes control goods and services as exclusive possessions. The wealthy alienate those who are deprived of private property that should belong to everyone equally. Marx criticized the expropriation that forced British farmers off the land, leading to rural exodus. In industrial alienation, the means of production belong to the capitalist, while the worker's labor becomes a commodity. The added value, or profit, for the entrepreneur is seen as an injustice, as employees are not compensated for the full value generated by their labor.

Marx argued that laws are not designed to treat everyone equally but are biased in favor of the wealthy. Political alienation is characterized by a democratic system that allegedly defends the interests of all citizens but, in reality, only protects the property rights of a select few.

Planned Obsolescence

Planned obsolescence is a strategy employed by capitalist companies to deliberately shorten the lifespan of products, encouraging consumers to make frequent purchases.

The Frankfurt School

The Frankfurt School, a continuation of Marxism, argues that alienation is not solely due to class conflict and relations of production but also to the influence of technology. Technology becomes a mechanical system within the capitalist system, which humans cannot overcome through revolutions. H. Marcuse suggests that the alienation experienced by humans becomes insurmountable and irrational because reason itself becomes irrational. Thus, technical and scientific reason suffers a paradox, leading to irrational social and historical behavior.

The "Frankfurtian" solution is a return to Marx's natural communism. Society should be an economic community that abolishes private property, ensuring that everything is shared by all. In contrast, some members of the Frankfurt School advocate for a form of sexual communism.