Marvin Harris on Work Evolution: Hunter-Gatherers to Agriculture
Work According to Marvin Harris
Hunter-Gatherer Societies: 3-Hour Workdays and Shared Resources
Marvin Harris argued that work evolved in a way that ultimately hurt working people. Hunter-gatherer peoples worked approximately 3 hours daily. When they hunted prey, all members of the group were of little use, and no one was privileged with respect to the rest of the tribe. Thus, the prevailing morality was based on sharing and solidarity. Selfish behavior did not have any utility in hunter-gatherer societies. Technology led to a primitive morality of sharing that came from the use of tools such as spears and knives.
Similar Tropical Climate Agrarian Societies
In the South Pacific islands and, in general, in societies that have a humid and mild climate, our ancestors began to domesticate animals and plants. People became sedentary, which led to a barter society, notwithstanding the restrictions imposed by ecology. Companies with a cumulative production of products do not get any benefit from the appropriation or accumulation of products that can easily be corrupted. Therefore, each tribal chief shares what the other has with neighboring tribes. The social rank of the chief is determined by their success or ability to organize the best banquets throughout the year.
Agricultural Societies in Arid Climates
This type of society emerged in the Fertile Crescent of Mesopotamia and used the domestication of cereals for survival. The cultivation of these foods and the technology used to collect and accumulate them caused the greatest change in organization and creation in human history. Wheat and rice could be conserved in barns for years. At first, the use of technology seemed harmless, as the first chiefs tried to prevent periods of scarcity and famines caused by crop failure.
The Nature of Work
Work: A Burden or a Dignifying Aspect?
Humans are not made to work; fatigue is a testament to this. The conception of work can vary considerably: from experiencing it as a burden and an obligation to seeing it as a dignifying and perfecting aspect of ourselves. In fact, the concept of work can be discussed and used polemically. To meet our needs, like the rest of the animals, we turn to productive activity in nature. Work is a conscious and intentional manipulation and modification of nature to obtain what we need to subsist. Work is a constitutive and specific activity of the human condition.
Work as a Job and the Diversification of Activities
The most ordinary way of looking at work is as a job, something we would do in exchange for a salary. Only in primitive times was each individual directly involved in the production of what they needed. Quickly, a diversification of activities emerged, and each person specialized in one task. Through bartering, they obtained the rest. Even though no particular job directly produces goods of primary necessity, if it is a productive activity, it can indirectly result in obtaining what we need through exchange for money.
Locke and Marx on Work and Property
Locke defended that everyone has the right to private property. He argued that while nature does not belong to anyone because it is not a human creation, the result of our actions belongs to those who carry them out. Recognizing private property and its relation to work depends on the cultural, economic, and political system of each society. For Marx, work (economy) is fundamental to understanding the human being.