Editing Marx's theory of alienation (section)

==== Relations of production ====
Whatever the character of a person's consciousness ([[Will (philosophy)|will]] and [[imagination]]), societal existence is conditioned by their relationships with the people and things that facilitate survival, which is fundamentally dependent upon cooperation with others, thus, a person's consciousness is determined inter-subjectively (collectively), not subjectively (individually), because humans are a social animal. In the course of history, to ensure individual survival societies have organised themselves into groups who have different, basic relationships to the [[means of production]]. One societal group (class) owned and controlled the means of production while another societal class worked the means of production and in the [[relations of production]] of that ''status quo'' the goal of the owner-class was to economically benefit as much as possible from the labour of the working class. In the course of economic development when a new type of economy displaced an old type of economy—[[Agrarian society|agrarian]] [[feudalism]] superseded by [[mercantilism]], in turn superseded by the [[Industrial revolution|Industrial Revolution]]—the rearranged economic order of the social classes favoured the social class who controlled the [[Technology|technologies]] (the means of production) that made possible the change in the relations of production. Likewise, there occurred a corresponding rearrangement of the human nature (''Gattungswesen'') and the [[Value system|system of values]] of the owner-class and of the working-class, which allowed each group of people to accept and to function in the rearranged ''status quo'' of production-relations.

Despite the ideological promise of industrialisation—that the mechanisation of industrial production would raise the mass of the workers from a brutish life of subsistence existence to honourable work—the division of labour inherent to the capitalist mode of production thwarted the human nature (''[[Gattungswesen]]'') of the worker and so rendered each individual into a mechanistic part of an industrialised system of production, from being a person capable of defining their value through direct, purposeful activity. Moreover, the near-total mechanisation and automation of the industrial production system would allow the (newly) dominant [[Bourgeoisie|bourgeois]] capitalist social class to exploit the working class to the degree that the value obtained from their labour would diminish the ability of the worker to materially survive. As a result of this exploitation, when the proletarian working-class become a sufficiently developed political force, they will effect a revolution and re-orient the [[relations of production]] to the [[means of production]]—from a [[Capitalist mode of production (Marxist theory)|capitalist mode of production]] to a [[communist mode of production]]. In the resultant [[communist society]], the fundamental relation of the workers to the means of production would be equal and non-conflictual because there would be no artificial distinctions about the value of a worker's labour; the worker's humanity (''Gattungswesen'') thus respected, men and women would not become alienated.

In the communist socio-economic organisation, the relations of production would operate the [[mode of production]] and employ [[From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs|each worker according to their abilities and benefit each worker according to their needs]]. Hence, each worker could direct their labour to productive work suitable to their own innate abilities, rather than be forced into a narrowly defined, [[Wage slavery|minimum-wage]] "job" meant to extract maximal profit from individual labour as determined by and dictated under the capitalist mode of production. In the classless, collectively-managed communist society, the exchange of value between the [[Reification (Marxism)|objectified]] productive labour of one worker and the consumption benefit derived from that production will not be determined by or directed to the narrow interests of a bourgeois capitalist class, but instead will be directed to meet the needs of each producer and consumer. Although production will be differentiated by the degree of each worker's abilities, the purpose of the communist system of industrial production will be determined by the collective requirements of society, not by the profit-oriented demands of a capitalist social class who live at the expense of the greater society. Under the [[collective ownership]] of the means of production, the relation of each worker to the mode of production will be identical and will assume the character that corresponds to the universal interests of the communist society. The direct distribution of the fruits of the labour of each worker to fulfil the interests of the working class—and thus to an individual's own interest and benefit— will constitute an un-alienated state of labour conditions, which restores to the worker the fullest exercise and determination of their human nature.