Discourse Strategies: The Anti-Work Movement and the Power to Play
One of the most important projects in philosophy is to contemplate utopia. By providing reasons and frameworks for a happier, just world, groups in civil society can make real what initially seems impossible. One such group interested in creating utopia is the current anti-work movement which seeks to do away with the economic order that underpins the modern workplace. Anti-work, which has roots in anarchist and socialist economic critique, argues that the bulk of today’s jobs aren’t necessary; instead, they enforce wage slavery and deprive workers of the full value of their output. I argue that the anti-work movement is in favor of a reimagination of life for all workers but lacks the discourse to conceive it. Through a Foucauldian analysis, I describe how discourse is a place of struggle for power. Language does not merely describe objects and observations; it constitutes subjects and creates knowledge. The anti-work movement has achieved significant gains in a very short time. But the greater goal of living a life of fun and fulfillment seems elusive for non-billionaires. The ongoing hegemony of capitalism prevents the movement from talking seriously about living the life one loves through play.