David Graeber: A Synthesis Essay
The phenomenon of bullshit jobs brought up some interesting points on society that resonated with me and led me to think the only solution to all these problems is a global revolution. In the article, David Graeber points out that jobs have been created that are effectively pointless and that because of this people end up being disenchanted with their lives and society that results in “a scar across our collective soul.” This scar is formed from people who go to their 9-5 jobs mainly as a means of survival, economic stability. Walmart is a major proponent in this economic system which limits people, exploits them and at the same time deprives them of any sort of prosperity because the system in place keeps the rich people rich while at the same time creating a disparaged underclass. This underclass is what Graeber argues to be the most important to our society. He rightly points out that without the teachers, the nurses, the mechanics our society would malfunction. These lower paid labourers are essence of our society yet our current system
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does not value them in the same way as higher end jobs in the corporate sector. Intriguingly, it is the high-end jobs, which seem to be the most dispensable to our society; these are the jobs that do not serve the needs of the greater good of society yet are rewarded far greater.
These are the type of jobs that benefits people who serve the agendas of other people or corporations.
This leads people to go to work because they have to sustain themselves, they are dependent on their jobs for survival and because of this they go to work because they have to, not because they want to. Instead of living life naturally without any outside influence from economic system, people are forced to live unfulfilled lives constantly trying to make ends meat, doing jobs they don’t care about because its their only means of survival, essientially they are not free but the opposite, they are stuck in a system which forces people to work for the sake of work, because work is good and good work fosters and increases economic prosperity for a small percentage of people that do not have the interests of the planet or humanity at heart and instead thrive on exploiting poor people and creating a massive economic
disparity.
I am firmly against Walmart coming to DC because I think it encourages this existing paradigm that is quite narrow and only serves and benefits a few people. In the article, Graeber mentions how its dangerous to have a large group of people who are happy and have free time on their hands because they are not susceptible to being seduced by consumerism and because of this inability to be stimulated by desire they are no longer beholden to the corporate and elitists that offer to resolve problems by buying products. Graeber reveals how we have chosen the path of ‘more toys and pleasures’ over free time and this has made us as society lose our cultural collective narrative that ties us to reality, our authentic reality that ties us to nature. Not living separate from nature but part of nature. Our cultural stories which keep us bonded and unified, to a degree being human are being lost and subjugated by mass consumerism, which makes people think in a selfish, insular and pathetic way. Society is trained by those who run it to accept what goes on as normal. Society establishes set paths for us to follow, change depends not only questioning these paths but also creating alternatives. If we can popularise through the techniques of branding and consumerism a different idea, a different narrative perhaps the world can change, after all it changes constantly its just the perceptions we have are governed by people with self interest which is not in alignment with the health and safety of us as individuals or a planet. The trouble is the public have become to be cynical to any other sort of alternative, they have adopted and accepted the injustices of life to be like the way it is and their capacity to do anything about it is extremely limited and their focus has to be towards the wellbeing of themselves and their families. It seems like the people in power maintain the idea that you cannot have any affect on the system so don’t waist your time trying. Many impoverished people see the problem as a personal problem, perhaps they’re not working hard enough, maybe they need another job rather than recognising it as a systemic problem. Most people are aware the system is formatted for the people at the top, the masses know the system is unfair the trouble is people just accept it and they think its just a fact of life, it’s a part of existence. If there were less big business like Walmart in the world there would be less economic disparity, less people would be exploited and the people’s needs would be addressed instead of governments servicing the needs of big corporations.
does not value them in the same way as higher end jobs in the corporate sector. Intriguingly, it is the high-end jobs, which seem to be the most dispensable to our society; these are the jobs that do not serve the needs of the greater good of society yet are rewarded far greater.
These are the type of jobs that benefits people who serve the agendas of other people or corporations.
This leads people to go to work because they have to sustain themselves, they are dependent on their jobs for survival and because of this they go to work because they have to, not because they want to. Instead of living life naturally without any outside influence from economic system, people are forced to live unfulfilled lives constantly trying to make ends meat, doing jobs they don’t care about because its their only means of survival, essientially they are not free but the opposite, they are stuck in a system which forces people to work for the sake of work, because work is good and good work fosters and increases economic prosperity for a small percentage of people that do not have the interests of the planet or humanity at heart and instead thrive on exploiting poor people and creating a massive economic
disparity.
I am firmly against Walmart coming to DC because I think it encourages this existing paradigm that is quite narrow and only serves and benefits a few people. In the article, Graeber mentions how its dangerous to have a large group of people who are happy and have free time on their hands because they are not susceptible to being seduced by consumerism and because of this inability to be stimulated by desire they are no longer beholden to the corporate and elitists that offer to resolve problems by buying products. Graeber reveals how we have chosen the path of ‘more toys and pleasures’ over free time and this has made us as society lose our cultural collective narrative that ties us to reality, our authentic reality that ties us to nature. Not living separate from nature but part of nature. Our cultural stories which keep us bonded and unified, to a degree being human are being lost and subjugated by mass consumerism, which makes people think in a selfish, insular and pathetic way. Society is trained by those who run it to accept what goes on as normal. Society establishes set paths for us to follow, change depends not only questioning these paths but also creating alternatives. If we can popularise through the techniques of branding and consumerism a different idea, a different narrative perhaps the world can change, after all it changes constantly its just the perceptions we have are governed by people with self interest which is not in alignment with the health and safety of us as individuals or a planet. The trouble is the public have become to be cynical to any other sort of alternative, they have adopted and accepted the injustices of life to be like the way it is and their capacity to do anything about it is extremely limited and their focus has to be towards the wellbeing of themselves and their families. It seems like the people in power maintain the idea that you cannot have any affect on the system so don’t waist your time trying. Many impoverished people see the problem as a personal problem, perhaps they’re not working hard enough, maybe they need another job rather than recognising it as a systemic problem. Most people are aware the system is formatted for the people at the top, the masses know the system is unfair the trouble is people just accept it and they think its just a fact of life, it’s a part of existence. If there were less big business like Walmart in the world there would be less economic disparity, less people would be exploited and the people’s needs would be addressed instead of governments servicing the needs of big corporations.