Behind the masks of total choice: teaching alienation in the age of inequality

Geert L. Dhondt, Mathieu Perron-Dufour and Ian J. Seda-Irizarry

International Journal of Pluralism and Economics Education, 2018, vol. 9, issue 1/2, 36-49

Abstract: In this article we examine different ways for making the concept of alienation relevant and interesting for undergraduate students in relation to the present-day concerns regarding distributive dynamics and inequality, especially in the USA. We find inspiration for this in the theoretical and practical importance of alienation in Marx's critique of capitalism and how it is entwined with distribution. We first look at sources of alienation in the contemporary US economy, before deriving an analytical framework for its analysis using Marx's characterisation. We then offer different ways for making the concept of alienation accessible to students in the classroom, using examples from popular culture and linking them back to broader capitalist dynamics.

Keywords: teaching; inequality; alienation; commodity fetishism; Marxism. (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
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