Ontological characteristic of work: reflection on the concept of work in Karl Marx

Abstract

This study seeks to understand the ontological characteristic of the concept of "labor" in the works of Karl Marx (1818-1883). The method used is based on a qualitative approach, more specifically of a bibliographic nature, which will be mobilized together with the dialectical analysis of the concept. The Marxist works selected for the elaboration of the research were: The German Ideology (2001); Economic and Philosophical Manuscripts (2004) and Capital (2013), which have central elements for understanding the concept and its ontological characteristic. The ontological character of labor allows for an understanding of how human beings develop their physical and mental capacities as natural and social needs. In addition to using dialectics as a methodological part to understand the movement and development of the social being, through contradictions and overcoming, the research seeks to understand Marx's method, called historical-dialectical materialism. The objective of the research is to verify the role of human labor in social relations, being inherent to human beings for the full realization of their physical and mental capacities in society. The research structure follows three interconnected sections: (1) the historical dialectical materialist method as the foundation of the analysis; (2) the ontological dimension of work; and (3) the concept of work in the capitalist system.