False Consciousness

In one of my policy courses we have been studying a Marxist criticism of Capitalism. The concept of false consciousness is the backbone argument as to why Marxists would contend that capitalists just simply except capitalism at face value, and more specifically the fact that capitalism always creates haves & have-nots. Another inevitability of capitalism is the development of the owning class, the top of the pyramid that feeds off the labor of others without their consent. Essentially, Marxists argue that the reason capitalists except the huge divide between the owning and working class, all while the working class continues to work to support the power of wealth of the owning class, is ultimately due to their blindness to their situation. False consciousness is the acceptance and act of support of the elite, and more particularly these are choices that may negatively impact the masses and benefit the elite. Keep in mind, by definition, the masses are unaware, or at least blindly supportive of the power of the elite.

Fundamentally, we all absorb certain truths and half-truths because of our environment. I think it is particularly powerful to understand that the things we support in ruling our lives, may be specifically requiring us to give in a way that is detrimental to us while being beneficial to securing the power of this ruling force. I do not believe that the Marxists are too far off on this point.

Much of my working life has been given to support owners or stockholders I will never meet. Many have given significant portions of their income to support purveyors of tobacco. Their dance of marketing their product while trying to appear supportive of the health and well-being of the general public is a world-class act of irony. Much of the media spins a story or a perspective that the public eagerly devours for the sake of perpetuating paranoia, or the power of a prejudice. The local news coverage here is easily the worst of any metropolitan area I have ever lived in. 80% of the coverage is targeted to herald the sordid, squalid acts in specific inner-city corridors, perpetuating the bias, fear, and continued investment in an ever increasing suburb. Many of means blindly support this with their choice of housing, purchases, and employment, all while moving the city closer and closer to a state of bankruptcy and perpetuating the lack of opportunity available to those in the urban core (you can hardly call it a core when it is square mile after square mile of the old city).

Why do we blindly accept so much? I do not desire to pretend that I am fully aware of my contribution to perpetuating a system that takes advantage of the bulk of humanity. I know it is much easier to shop at a department store in a suburb than to try to find what you want in a family five and dime. But we have become a culture of nomadic consumers who move our cookie cutter houses to where we can get what we want like we want it, now. All the while we may be condemning countless masses who lack the financial prowess and opportunity to live the same mobile lives, to a pattern of hunting new ways to gain access to basic things like education, health care, and shopping.

This is but a small example of the power of living blind to the impact of our choices. Where we bow a knee to the power of wealth, entertainment, materialism, and escapism we may reinforce a ruling circle of powers that may use our efforts to hurt the lives of those we know or those we do not yet know. Ask the children of a workaholic what they want more. Ask the man recovering from a stress heart attack if the hectic pace of meeting demands of the stockholders was worth it. Ask the woman with emphysema if smoking was worth forfeiting the last fifteen years of her life and not meeting her grandchildren. Ask the porn addict if the "secret" pleasures outweighed the loss of respect of his wife and children.

At the end of the day, we all make our choices. As our patterns of living repeat themselves we cannot become blind to what we may be sacrificing for the sake of keeping a system in place for a group or idea that is not aimed at our best interest. Ask the question, "What am I doing with my life?" We do not have to be subversive of the system, but we each have the right to stop supporting a cycle that burns our lives and produces a byproduct of poison for the bulk of humanity (be it fear, racism, poverty, abuse, neglect, addiction, etc). We need to be conscious to the power of our choices. Otherwise the world that we create with our spent lives will not be the one we want to share with future generations. We all must start the awakening process somewhere, so do not be discouraged if only one or two things come to mind. Start the journey; ask the question; envision where the pattern of your current life will lead you and evaluate whether that is the end you truly desire.