Journal Article — Contrasting Simmel’s and Marx’s Ideas on Alienation — by Jorge Capetillo-Ponce

Aside from their many affinities, the fundamental difference between the two thinkers Marx and Simmel is that they address the problem of alienation from two very different standpoints and with very different moral preoccupations. Marx’s moral vision is that of a revolutionary thinker who seeks to guide the masses toward the fulfillment of an impossible task: “the solution of the riddle of history,” the construction of a totally new society, free of alienation, on the ruins of the existent one. What chiefly inspires Simmel is a concern for individualistic values. Simmel thus is more “micro” and Marx more “macro” in their respective sociological analyses. Simmel is particularly concerned with those values implicit in the idea of “cultivation”: scholarly or scientific attainment, intellectual integrity, and above all, aesthetic sensitivity. What he sees as being above all at stake in modern life, is the individual capacity to reflect on, understand, appreciate, and evaluate the events that impinge upon direct experiences, whether through participation in ordinary life or, better yet, through cultured and creative pursuits.