Simbolička razmjena i rad
Symbolic Exchange and Labour

Summary/Abstract: The paper questions themes and methods of critical theory in the realm of analysis of labour and related questions in the context of economy of the post-industrial society. The paper revitalizes often neglected the French philosopher Jean Baudrillard and his theory of labour which insists on symbolical dimension of labour. The paper accents importance of Baudrillard’s interpretations through theoretical concepts of Imaginary, Symbolic, and Real founded during the sixties by the French philosopher and psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan. The paper contextualizes his major thesis on character of labour in the post-industrial society, which he elaborates at the end of the seventies, and confronts them with contemporary critiques which, especially after the economic crisis in 2008, insist on returning to classical questions of the critique of political economy. By mapping differences between definitions of symbolic character of labour and materialistic interpretations which are founded in the heritage of Marx’s critique of political economy, paper warns on a necessity of including both theoretical paradigms, relating political- symbolical and economical-materialist approach. While insisting on a relevance of both approaches, the paper tries to elaborate present anomalies in the era of so called dematerialization of labour, as it is the case of, for example, paradoxical increasing of working hours at the cost of eight hours labour time.

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