El obrero entre la práctica y la ideología desde los siglos XIX al XXI

Workers’ culture and the labour movement previously were prominent fields of research. This had to do with their societal influence and to the fact that many scholars regarded a self-conscious labour class as a means to balance capitalism’s negative aspects, if not simply to overcome it as a system. Drawing from this background, the author argues that the common worker has hitherto not been satisfactorily understood as a subject of cultural history. Using investigations among workers at Denmark’s largest enterprise from the 19th to the 21st century, the author reveals the complexity and diversity of everyday working life of industrialism, the relations between workers as well as towards employers and society as a whole. The author argues that, as seen from the overall perspective of the state, the labour population –with varying intensity– played a very strategic role from around 1870 to 1990. During this period consideration for their well-being was understood as a precondition for societal cohesion: whereas, since the end of the Cold War, that understanding has changed. The author draws on the ethnological State-Form and Life-Mode analysis, also known as Life-Mode Analysis. La cultura y el movimiento obrero han sido hasta ahora campos de investigación prominentes. Esto tenía que ver con su influencia social y con el hecho de que muchos estudiosos consideraban a una clase obrera autoconsciente como un medio para equilibrar los aspectos negativos del capitalismo, si no simplemente para superarlo como sistema. Partiendo de este trasfondo, el autor sostiene que el trabajador común hasta ahora no ha sido entendido satisfactoriamente como un sujeto de la historia cultural. Utilizando investigaciones sobre obreros de la mayor empresa de Dinamarca desde el siglo XIX al XXI, el autor revela la complejidad y diversidad de la vida laboral cotidiana del industrialismo, las relaciones entre los trabajadores, las relaciones entre los trabajadores y los empleadores así como la sociedad en su conjunto. Sostiene que, desde la perspectiva general del Estado, la población laboral –con intensidad variable– desempeñó un papel estratégico desde alrededor de 1870 a 1990. En este período la preocupación por su bienestar fue entendida como una precondición para la cohesión social: mientras que, desde el final de la Guerra Fría, esa comprensión ha cambiado. El autor se basa en el Análisis Estructural de Formas de Estado y Modos de Vida también conocido como el Análisis de los Modos de Vida.

Etnologi som studiet af praksis: Enhed, flerhed, helhed - og forandring

At etnologi beskæftiger sig med menneskelig praksis, kan de fleste blive enige om. Men hvad indebærer dette udgangspunkt egentlig? I oplægget reflekteres der på baggrund af konkrete nutidige og historiske eksempler over de trinvise ræsonnementer, der følger af at anskue praksisser som på en gang differentierede og sammenhængende; de både adskiller sig fra hinanden og er indbyrdes forbundne

Arbejderen mellem praksis og ideologisering 1850-2000

The worker between practice and ideology: 1850–2000   Labour culture and the labour movement have previously been prominent fields of research. On the one hand, this had to do with the profound societal influence of the labour movement; on the other hand, it had to do with the fact that many scholars regarded a self-conscious labour class as a means to balance capitalism’s negative aspects, if not simply to overcome them. Based upon this background, the author argues that the common worker has hitherto not been satisfactorily understood as a subject of cultural history. Using detailed investigations amongst workers on the workshop floor at Denmark’s largest enterprise in the period from 1850 to 2000, the author emphasises how complex and diverse the everyday working life of industrialism actually was – and hence, also the relations between workers as well as employers and society as a whole. This bottom-up analysis is linked to a top-down perspective; here, the author argues that, as seen from the overall perspective of the state, the labour population – with varying intensity – played a very strong strategic role from around 1870 to 1990. Simply stated, consideration for the well-being of the labour population was understood as a precondition for societal cohesion. In theoretical terms, the author draws upon the structural state-form and life-mode analysis, where the idea of a ‘wage-earner’ life-mode is understood in its reciprocal relationship to the capitalist mode of production and, hence, not as a potential means to overcome capitalism. With this background, the labour movement’s alleged objective to overcome capitalism – whether through revolution or long-term reforms – is instead analysed as an effectual means in the movement’s struggles. The argument is as follows: the threat of societal transformation, which occurred over a number of decades – not least of all during the Cold War’s polarisation of capitalism and communism – led to significant attention being paid to workers’ claims of improving life conditions. Accordingly, the changed world order that followed the end of the Cold War is seen as a main reason for why concepts such as ‘worker’ or ‘labourer’ are infrequently used today, and for why the labour movement has experienced a severe debilitation in recent years

Forord

Intet resumé