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Purposeless technology and chrematistic pursuits: The implicit subordination of homo economicus

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Version 2 2024-06-17, 22:26
Version 1 2017-01-28, 20:10
journal contribution
posted on 2024-06-17, 22:26 authored by AT Kirkpatrick
The threat to livelihoods posed by the increased mechanization of labour has led to the question of whether new technologies will eventually render human beings obsolete. However, this immediately raises another more fundamental question: ’what is the function, or utility, of human beings in modern society?’ Mainstream economics and the concept of Homo economicus tells us that human beings are little more than rationally calculating, profit maximizing machines devoted to the accumulation of capital. This paper will argue that the intellectual origins of Homo economicus can be traced to the mechanical philosophies of Descartes, Hobbes, Locke and Newton, and that these philosophies find their expression in the political economy of Adam Smith. It will be shown that the mechanization of labour (along with the subsequent obsolescence of human beings) is a central tenet of classic liberalism, the ends of which is the unceasing increase of capital through the division of labour. In light of this, Ancient Greek conceptions of wealth and economic activity—which prioritize human self-creation and notions of the good life—will be considered as alternatives to the norms presented in classic liberalism. Ultimately, it is argued that in order to avoid being eclipsed by new technologies we must reconsider what it means to be human and in doing so rediscover properly human ends.

History

Journal

Cosmos and History

Volume

13

Article number

13

Pagination

267-293

Location

Hawthorn, Vic.

Open access

  • Yes

ISSN

1832-9101

Language

eng

Publication classification

C1 Refereed article in a scholarly journal

Copyright notice

2017, The Author

Issue

1

Publisher

Cosmos and History Cooperative