Tatiana Llaguno (Pompeu Fabra University, Barcelona) will give a presentation entitled “The Realm of Necessity and the Realm of Freedom: Schiller, Marx, and Morris on Labour” as part of the activities of the Philosophy of Work Network.

The activities of the Philosophy of Work Network are open to researchers and graduate students with research interests in this area. Please write to the organizers, Denise Celentano (denise.celentano@umontreal.ca) and Pablo Gilabert (pablo.gilabert@concordia.ca), to receive the zoom link.

Abstract

This paper considers Marx’s distinction between the realm of necessity and the realm of freedom in light of Schiller’s philosophy. While Marx argues that these two realms give rise to different types of freedom, I maintain that this distinction needs to be reexamined. Drawing on Schiller’s critique of modern societies –particularly his diagnosis of a socially impeded totality and his proposal to reconcile the material and formal drives through the playful drive—I argue that Marx’s framework inadvertently perpetuates a dualistic understanding of freedom. However, rather than resolving this tension through aesthetic education, I suggest that the active reconciliation of drives can occur through the form-giving activity of labor, thereby integrating Schiller’s insights with Marx’s materialist tenets. Finally, I contend that William Morris’s philosophy of work envisions labor as a living form and offers a promising alternative that synthetizes key lessons from both Schiller and Marx. The paper thus illuminates the political task Schiller’s diagnosis sets before us, the philosophical questions opened up by Marx’s critique of political economy, and the prefiguration of an alternative view of work in Morris.