Whose Productivity is it, Anyway?
Create your own definition of success
Brief disclaimer
This is the conclusion of a 12-part article series based on a paper I originally wrote for a University rhetoric course. If you missed parts 1–11 I recommend reading those first.
I broke my very long paper into many sections and made edits to make it easier to read, so I hope you enjoy.
Risk being overthrown by enthusiasm
In my last piece, I argued that before we can even take one step out from under the dark shadow of capitalism, we need to stop taking the soma.
In order to effect change, we need to collectively come to the realization that something being done a certain way for a very long time does not oblige us to continue in that vein.
“Stability isn’t nearly so spectacular as instability. And being contented has none of the glamour of a good fight against misfortune, none of the picturesqueness of a struggle with temptation, or a fatal overthrow by passion or doubt.”
— Aldous Huxley, Brave New World
Working ourselves sick just to make ends meet is actually not our only option, though it often feels that way.
Class consciousness and conscientización
The surplus class need not accept its lowly position in the social hierarchy, nor tolerate a hierarchal class structure at all. Our labour and labour potential are what enable the capitalist system to function. As a united force, the surplus population can push for and create significant change.
The capitalist structure of the Internet keeps people separate from one another. In order to produce surplus value, influencers must perpetually differentiate themselves others enough to earn attention, but not too far, as they must be nearly universally relatable.
Keeping content creators firmly in their corners until they come out to do battle is necessary to protect the interests of capital. Online communities create an illusion of connection while keeping us from joining in true solidarity. Content creators see each other as threats to success, competition for limited resources pits one against the other, making it nearly impossible for workers to unite and support each another.
Resistance requires dialogue and cooperation among the oppressed. A socialist media would encourage and facilitate open discussion amongst the members, and because they wouldn’t be in competition with one another, there would be fewer barriers to collaboration. Open dialogue enables us to develop greater awareness of our limiting situation, and to learn from the perspectives and experiences of others.
In their book Empire of Normality, Dr. Robert Chapman argues we can only overcome the hegemony of capitalism through “mass conscious-raising, critique, and collective imagining”. This is in the theme of conscientización, which Paulo Freire called “critical awareness”. We cannot address systemic inequalities if they have become so normalized we no longer recognize them as problematic.
We can neither become critically cognizant of these inequities, nor move to dismantle them, unless and until we unite as a community and work together for our mutual benefit. As Marx and Engels wrote,
“United action is one of the first conditions for the emancipation of the proletariat”.
It is only once we have awakened to the possibility of alternatives that we can envision alternative possibilities.
Conclusion
For any of the ideas shared here to be possible at the level of social media, the entire economic and political structure of our society would need to change. The freedom to create and pursue our interests without concern for our basic needs is not possible under capitalism. Working together for the benefit of a collective is not realistic when capitalism forces us to compete with one another for resources and for our very survival.
It may also be possible that a social media platform could not be successful without capitalism. Lacking an attention economy, I wonder if people would find enough value in creating and sharing content for its own sake. Without the excitement created by extrinsic rewards and the thrill of competition, I wonder whether creators would find themselves free to take risks and fully engage their creativity, or whether they would realize how empty and meaningless the quest for likes and shares really is.
I suspect a socialist media would be unsuccessful in that it would not be widely adapted as a tool which adds value to the lives people want to lead.
In a democratic socialist society, however, this would be considered a success either way because everyone would have the freedom to choose.
© Jillian Enright, Neurodiversity MB
Parts 6–11
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Parts 1–5
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