Keywords
Marx, Nussbaum, Philosophy, Dignity, Labour
Abstract
Both Martha Nussbaum and Karl Marx examine human dignity. Whereas Marx’s account describes how the capitalist mode of production harms individual dignity, Nussbaum’s account is more general. She provides both a positive account of dignity as based on her capabilities approach, while also providing an explanation as to how dignity comes to be violated. She endeavours to describe what features a dignified life ought to possess. Despite this, Nussbaum fails to identify the role that the capitalist system plays in depriving individuals of a dignified life. Chiefly, the position of ‘wage slavery’ is both a product of the capitalist system, and constitutes a dignity violation as the individual is unable to exercise their innate ability to self-determine as autonomous agents by leveraging the threat of material deprivation to force workers into an exploitative relationship
Primary Advisor
Jeff Noonan
Program Reader
Radu Neculau
Degree Name
Master of Arts
Department
Philosophy
Document Type
Major Research Paper
Convocation Year
2023