Anthropology
Marx intends to vindicate the 'existing man'in every one of his aspects. In this sense, we can notice an influence of Feuerbach.Nevertheless, Marx intends to go further than Feuerbach; this vindication won't come through religion (‘RELIGION IS THE OPIUM FOR THE PEOPLE’, he once wrote), but by means of a concept adopted from the French social philosophy(Proudhon), the REVOLUTIONARY PRAXIS. According to Marx, man finds a solution to his problems, not through a metaphysical speculation, but through critically illuminated and guided action.
This point of view encompass, as warned in the ‘Theses on Feuerbach’ (see lesson 4), an ‘interpretation’ of man and his world, which at the same time is a pledge to transformation.
When studying the ESSENCE OF MAN, according to Marx, it is not enough for us to focus on his 'consciousness' or interior self, we also need to consider the external relationships with other men. These are basically WORK RELATIONSHIPS. Marx believes that it is by means of our 'work' that we can better define the SOCIAL CHARACTER OF MAN (Aristotle).
