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Structure, agency and Marx's analysis of the labour process∗
Abstract
From the persepective of the transcendental realist account of science and critical realist elaboration of the relationship between human agency and social structure, this paper examines the methodological approach Marx adopts in his analysis of the labour process. The agency-structure relation as detailed by critical realism is set out and placed in the context of wider debates surrounding the notion of structure. In particular the transcendental realist position, which has emerged in recent controversies in the philosophy of science and which underpins critical realism, is considered. The links between Marx's method and critical realism are then explored as a preliminary to the discussion of his analysis of the labour process. The main contention of the paper is that Marx's analysis of the labour process is in line with critical realism and that it can be viewed as a useful example of what a substantive analysis consisitent with this perspective can look like.
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“However, what endures is a focus on the human who is shaped in many ways and where alienation has both a specific and a general relevance (see also Pratten 1993).”
From Species Being in the Twenty-First Century (2018) · cites this paper as Pratten 1993
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Cited by
Species Being in the Twenty-First Century
Morgan, J. (2018) · Review of Political Economy · doi:10.1080/09538259.2018.1498583 · Cited by 17
Metadata
- Authors
- Pratten, S.
- Affiliations
- University of Cambridge (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Pratten, Stephen
- ORCID
- Pratten, Stephen
- Venue
- Review of Political Economy
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 1993-10
- Volume
- 5
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 403-426
- ISSN
- 0953-8259 (ISSN-L)
- 1465-3982
- OpenAlex
- W2048754903
- Cited by
- 45
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2021: 1 · 2020: 3 · 2019: 1 · 2018: 1 · 2017: 1 · 2014: 3 · 2012: 1
- FWCI
- 5.07
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Review of Political Economy (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Critical Realism in Sociology
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Philosophy › Marxism and Critical Theory
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Political Economy and Marxism
- Keywords
- Karl Marx, labor process, critical realism, transcendental realism, social structure, Marxist methodology, philosophy of science
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- Pratten, S. (1993). Structure, agency and Marx's analysis of the labour process∗. Review of Political Economy. https://doi.org/10.1080/09538259300000029
