What was the premise behind Marx's work "On the Jewish Question?"
By: Chris at: 5th December, 2009
Status:
Answered
Answer:
Probably there are two fundamental premises to part 1 of "On the Jewish Question".
(1) Human beings are intrinsically social and universal beings who have a need to realise their sociality and universality by associating with each other.
(2) The modern form of association consists of a dual system of civil society (essentially the market economy) and the political state. The former is a realm of egoism and competition, the latter of concern for the common good. But people overwhelmingly live their lives in civil society, and experience the political state as alien to them.
From these premises Marx draws three main conclusions:
(1) In this modern dual system humans beings can only realise their
sociality and universality in a minimal and alienated way.
(2) Instead they experience themselves overwhelmingly as isolated and egoistic.
(3) The constitutions of modern states themselves reflect the isolated and egoistic self-conception of their citizens, for they are couched in terms of individual rights.
In part 2 Marx conceives money as another form in which human sociality and universality is realised in an alienated way.
Neither part 1 not part 2 is really about Judaism, although in part 2 Marx does draw on a standard anti-semitic trope that associates Jewishness with the pursuit of money.