Adrian Johnston, "Infinite Greed: The Inhuman Selfishness of Capital" (Columbia UP, 2024)
Jun 22, 2024
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Adrian Johnston discusses 'Infinite Greed' merging Marxism and psychoanalysis, exploring libidinal economics in capitalism. Topics include Freud's skepticism of socialism, drive as a theoretical bridge between Marxism and psychoanalysis, Lacan's concept of desire in capitalism, and the intertwining of theological notions and capitalist economic concepts.
Marx equates capital's relentless pursuit of surplus value with Freud's drive theory, revealing capitalism's driving force.
Lacan's surplus enjoyment mirrors Marx's surplus value, highlighting desire's role in economic functions.
Interest-bearing capital reflects commodity fetishism, reshaping economic landscape akin to Freud's screen memory concept.
Deep dives
Capitalism's Dual Meaning of Greed: Infinite vs. Finite Greed
Capitalism's essence goes beyond finite greed, where capitalists' pursuit of endless accumulation overrides personal consumption desires. The misconception of human nature's inherent selfishness deterring Marxist projects fails to grasp capitalism's true logic and consequences for society.
Drive in Marx's Analysis of Capital: Compulsive Repetition in Economic Circuits
Marx's depiction of capital's drive represents a compulsive repetition akin to Freud's notion of drive and Lacan's concept of desire. The relentless pursuit of surplus value overrides personal consumption goals in a perpetual cycle of accumulation, revealing the driving force behind capitalism.
Surplus Enjoyment in Economic and Libidinal Economies: Lacan's Analysis
Lacan's concept of surplus enjoyment parallels Marx's analysis of surplus value generation, underscoring the intertwining of libidinal and economic dynamics in capitalism. The insatiable desire harnessed by capitalism reflects a central component of the economic system, highlighting the profound impact of desire on economic functions.
Interest-Bearing Capital: Freud's Screen Memory in Marx's Analysis of Capitalism
Marx's examination of interest-bearing capital as the culmination of capitalism's development resonates with Freud's concept of screen memory. Interest-bearing capital functions both to reveal and conceal economic realities, reshaping the economic landscape in a way that aligns with the dynamics of screen memories in psychoanalysis.
Marx's Exploration of Interest-Bearing Capital and Commodity Fetishism
Marx explores interest-bearing capital as the clearest manifestation of commodity fetishism in Capital Volume 3. He highlights how interest-bearing capital, different from industrial capital, signifies a shift towards financial capitalism detached from production. The formula M M' in interest-bearing capital signifies a self-referential aspect of money, creating a fetishistic illusion of self-enhancement.
Psychoanalytic Reflections on Belief and Money
The discussion delves into psychoanalytic interpretations of belief, particularly regarding money in capitalism. It examines how individuals, though aware of the illusion of money's value, still participate in economic transactions due to societal expectations and beliefs. The interplay between individual enlightenment and social conformity in relation to money is explored, revealing a complex dynamic shaped by both personal awareness and communal norms.
Revitalizing Marxist Theory and Dialectical Materialism
Johnston advocates for a return to economic and scientific engagement within Marxist theory, challenging the Western Marxist tradition's adversity to economic reductionism. He proposes a non-reductive form of Marxism that acknowledges capitalism's inherent drive towards economic reduction while emphasizing human subjectivity and potential for transcending reductionism. By reactivating a science-oriented Marxism grounded in economic realities, he aims to develop a nuanced understanding of capitalism and human agency within socio-economic systems.
Marxism and psychoanalysis have a rich and complicated relationship to one another, with countless figures and books written on the possible intersection of the two. Our guest today, Adrian Johnston, returns to NBN to discuss his own latest entry into the genre, Infinite Greed: The Inhuman Selfishness of Capital (Columbia UP, 2024). While the book does retread some already-covered territory, Johnston’s book stands out as a unique entry in a crowded field by emphasizing the theoretical overlap of psychoanalytic concepts with the economic core of Marx’s thinking. Libidinal economics are turned into, well, economics and vice-versa in this detailed and rigorously written study that deserves to become one of the canonical texts in the Freudo-Marxist tradition.
Adrian Johnston is Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at the University of New Mexico and a faculty member of the Emory Psychoanalytic Institute. He is the author of numerous books, including three previously discussed on this podcast; A New German Idealism: Hegel, Zizek and Dialectical Materialism, and Prolegomena to Any Future Materialism volumes one and two. He is also the coeditor, with Slavoj Zizek and Todd McGowan of the book series Diaeresis.
