As a philosopher, Marx is a particularly interesting figure. While philosophers tend to offer their philosophical claims directly, with Marx, we often receive them tangentially. The reason for this is that Marx’s concern often lies in the world of political economy, so that much of what he actually writes takes the form of an analysis of that world. That is, he often writes about economics and politics. However, Marx’s real philosophical contribution lies in the method of his analysis. That is, his philosophical genius doesn’t necessary lie in the specific claims he makes about economics and politics, many of which do happen to be quite brilliant, but rather, it lies in the method that he uses to make these claims. It is this method that illuminated the world in a fundamentally new way, and it is this method that continues to do so. And while Marx does sometimes explain his method, oftentimes we only see it indirectly, when we reflect on how Marx managed to see what he reveals to us.

 

However, at times, Marx’s philosophical brilliance hits you in the face. And recently, this happened to me. The other day, I was reading Marx’s Capital, Vol. 1, and I came across a short passage that blew me away. Located in Chapter 1, a chapter whose main purpose lies in the realm of economic analysis (Marx is explaining the nature of a “commodity”), Marx breaks from the main narrative in order to offer a brief digression about Aristotle. And as brilliant as is Chapter 1 of Capital, it was this digression that bowled me over. And I thought some people might enjoy reading an analysis of this passage, because I think it really shows Marx at his best. No knowledge of Marx, Aristotle, economics, or philosophy required!!!

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