[FRA:] Adorno & Horkheimer: towards a new Manifesto?

[Lev Lafayette]

On Sun, 2010-12-26 at 21:25 -0500, Ralph Dumain wrote:

> Adorno makes an interesting comment I don't understand:
> 
>     *Adorno:* But our task is to explain this by speculating on labour's
>     ultimate origins, to infer it from the principle of society, so that
>     it goes beyond Marx. Because exchange value seems to be absolute,
>     the labour that has created it seems to be absolute too, and not the
>     thing for whose sake it basically exists. In actuality the
>     subjective aspect of use value conceals the objective utopia, while
>     the objectivity of exchange value conceals subjectivism.

Exchange value appears to have an objective value, insofar it it
evaluated in dollars and cents (or whatever). However that value is
fraught with all sorts of subjective, and systematically induced,
distortions of value as Marx described in commodity fetishism (gold is
the classic example). 

In contrast use value is perceived to be subjective because it is
individually variable. However, because use value is the utility gained
to satisfy real needs it has an objective and factual status.

Ideally, exchange values reflect use values. A product is bought and
sold in accordance to its ability to satisfy individual wants and needs
and the available supply. In reality individual wants and needs become
system-orientated, thus suppressing real wants and needs in the quest
for future (and especially monopoly) profit. Economic disaster looms
when exchange values become highly variant to use values.

Hope this helps,



Lev