REVIEW By Chris Wright
Referring to cultural Marxism, especially the Frankfurt School, Noam Chomsky once said
, “I don’tfind that kind of work very illuminating… The ideas that seem useful also seem pretty simple, andI don’t understand what all the verbiage is for.” While I think there’s much of value in the so -called Western Marxist tradition—for instance, I’m partial to Georg Lukács (more so than to Adorno and others in the Frankfurt School)
I have to admit I strongly sympathize with Chomsky.But his criticism generalizes, and is even truer in other areas: since well before the mid-twentieth century, a large amount of work in the humanities has been prone to unnecessary and sometimes incomprehensible verbiage. Later this tendency came to be associated with postmodernism, for itwas most pronounced in the writings of such luminaries as Derrida, Lacan, Kristeva, Deleuze, and Foucault, as well as their hordes of epigones. By the end of the twentieth century, a vast field of “Theory ” had reached maturity, encompassing much of philosophy, anthropology, psychoanalysis,and literary, film, and cultural studies.As an anthropologist, David Graeber works in this broadly conceived “interpretive” tradition (I call it that because it consists essentially of endless cultural and social “interpretations” or “theories,” often playful and highly verbose conceptual exercises). He has an advantage over many of his peers in that, while not a particularly great writer, he can at least write clearly and informally enough to be widely read. Presumably this lucidity helps account for his fame as do, more importantly, his heterodox ideas, his ability to capture a cultural mood even in the titles of his books (Debt ,The Utopia of Rules,Bullshit Jobs), and his impressive productivity.
Perhaps he’s too productive: while reading his latest book, I couldn’t help thinking
it would have packed a greater punch if he had shortened it by a third. It meanders and meanders, repeats and repeats, and,well, I didn’tunderstand what all the verbiage was for. The full title of his book is Bullshit Jobs: A Theory I wasn’t able to find the “theory,” unless it be that bullshit jobs do in fact exist. And Graeber marshals abundant evidence to test and confirm that theory. The most entertaining, and probably the most valuable, parts of the book are the many testimonies he presents from poor souls who spend their lives in a bullshit job, which is to say a job they think shouldn’t exist because it contributes nothing to the world.
The numbers of people who believe this are incredibly high. One poll in the United Kingdom found that only 50 percent of people with full-time jobs were sure their job made a meaningful contribution to the world, while 37 percent were sure theirs didn’t. A poll in Holland put the latter number at 40 percent.
, “I don’tfind that kind of work very illuminating… The ideas that seem useful also seem pretty simple, andI don’t understand what all the verbiage is for.” While I think there’s much of value in the so -called Western Marxist tradition—for instance, I’m partial to Georg Lukács (more so than to Adorno and others in the Frankfurt School)
I have to admit I strongly sympathize with Chomsky.But his criticism generalizes, and is even truer in other areas: since well before the mid-twentieth century, a large amount of work in the humanities has been prone to unnecessary and sometimes incomprehensible verbiage. Later this tendency came to be associated with postmodernism, for itwas most pronounced in the writings of such luminaries as Derrida, Lacan, Kristeva, Deleuze, and Foucault, as well as their hordes of epigones. By the end of the twentieth century, a vast field of “Theory ” had reached maturity, encompassing much of philosophy, anthropology, psychoanalysis,and literary, film, and cultural studies.As an anthropologist, David Graeber works in this broadly conceived “interpretive” tradition (I call it that because it consists essentially of endless cultural and social “interpretations” or “theories,” often playful and highly verbose conceptual exercises). He has an advantage over many of his peers in that, while not a particularly great writer, he can at least write clearly and informally enough to be widely read. Presumably this lucidity helps account for his fame as do, more importantly, his heterodox ideas, his ability to capture a cultural mood even in the titles of his books (Debt ,The Utopia of Rules,Bullshit Jobs), and his impressive productivity.
Perhaps he’s too productive: while reading his latest book, I couldn’t help thinking
it would have packed a greater punch if he had shortened it by a third. It meanders and meanders, repeats and repeats, and,well, I didn’tunderstand what all the verbiage was for. The full title of his book is Bullshit Jobs: A Theory I wasn’t able to find the “theory,” unless it be that bullshit jobs do in fact exist. And Graeber marshals abundant evidence to test and confirm that theory. The most entertaining, and probably the most valuable, parts of the book are the many testimonies he presents from poor souls who spend their lives in a bullshit job, which is to say a job they think shouldn’t exist because it contributes nothing to the world.
The numbers of people who believe this are incredibly high. One poll in the United Kingdom found that only 50 percent of people with full-time jobs were sure their job made a meaningful contribution to the world, while 37 percent were sure theirs didn’t. A poll in Holland put the latter number at 40 percent.
Even jobs that aren’t bullshit, like nurses and professors, are being increasingly bullshitized, as paperwork, meetings, and other administrative duties crowd out more meaningful tasks like taking care of patients and teaching. (Nurses reported to Graeber that as much as 80 percent of their time is now taken up with meetings, filling out forms, and the like.) Considering these facts, as well as the existence of many second-order bullshit jobs (jobs done in support of those directly engaged in bullshit), Graeber estimates that well over half of all work being done in society could be eliminated without making any real difference.What sorts of jobs are we talking about? Not most lower-tier jobs: not street cleaners, bus drivers,repairmen, restaurant workers, store clerks, gardeners, construction workers, etc. These people make a contribution to the world. Graeber suggests a rough five-fold classification of bullshit jobs.
MY CLASSIFICATION OF A BULLSHIT JOB HAS ALWAYS BEEN THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS AN ANARCHIST ACADEMIC, GRAEBER PROVES IT AS DO OTHERS IN THE ACADEMY BY BEING ACADEMIC ANARCHISTS, THEY ARE ALL THEORY AND "THEY SPEAK IN LANGUAGE NO ONE UNDERSTANDS OF THE RIGHTS WE HAVE GRABBED WITH OUR OWN BLEEDING HANDS"....ONCE AGAIN THE ANSWER IS RIGHT IN FRONT OF HIS NOSE, HIS JOB IS USELESS, HIERARCHICAL, PRIVILEGED, AND IN THE AGE OF THE INTERNET IRRELEVANT, I CAN TEACH MYSELF THANKS, FIRST LESSON OF DIY.
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