ChapterPDF Available

Living thinkwork - Prologue & introduction

Authors:
  • Barefoot Documents

Abstract

This is an extract from a digital version of the hard-copy volume by CSE Books, 1980. Available in print-on-demand or pdf eBook at <https://www.lulu.com/shop/search.ep?contributorId=1295273> This unique 'analytical autobiography’ is a travelogue of journeys in what the author calls class geography, of academic radicalism and professional employment in industry in the late 1970s: life in the Rationality Factory.
Living thinkwork
Where%do%labour%
processes%come%from?%
Mike%Hales%
2016%
Prologue%&%introduction%
This%is%part%of%a%rough-cut,%interim%digital%version%of%the%
hard-copy%edition%of%Living%Thinkwork%by%CSE%Books,%
1980.%The%full%text%can%be%found%on%Lulu%as%a%PDF%eBook.%
A%revised%edition%is%planned,%perhaps%in%2017,%which%will%
include%a%substantial%critical%Afterword.%
First%published%by%CSE%Books,%1980.%
This%version%published%by%
Mike%Hales,%Brighton,%England,%
November%2016.%
Public%domain.%
The%book%is%available%from%Lulu%as%a%PDF%eBook%:%
<Lulu.com>%search%on%‘Mike%Hales%Living%Thinkwork’.%
ISBN%:%978-1-326-87412-4%
In%the%full%text,%original%typos,%style%sheet%botches%and%
layout%errors%(notably,%the%imposition%of%pages%in%Part%
Three,%Saying%it%without%semicolons)%have%been%
corrected,%but%the%digital%text%has%not%been%fully%
checked.%Page%numbering%is%continuous%only%within%
chapters.%Bibliography%is%omitted%from%this%version.%
Contents
Prologue(&(introduction(
Part%One%|%Strange%days%at%the%rationality%
factory%
1( Ideological(journey(
2( Thinkwork(
3( Coordinate(point(
Part%Two%|%Politics%of%production%
4( Why(theorise?(Architects(&(labourers(
5( Capital(&(class(
Part%Three%|%Saying%it%without%semicolons%
Part%Four%|%Adventures%in%class%geography%
6( Making(labour(power(
7( Working(for(Chemco(
8( Living(abstraction(
9( Postscript(-(Write(on!
Prologue
1" The"unknown"citizen"-"To"JS/07/M/378"this"marble"
monument"is"erected"by"the"State"
He#was#found#by#the#Bureau#of#Statistics#to#be#
One#against#whom#there#was#no#official#complaint,#
And#all#the#reports#on#his#conduct#agree#
That,#in#the#modern#sense#of#an#old-fashioned#word,#he#
was#a#saint#
For#in#everything#he#did#he#served#the#Greater#Community.#
Except#for#the#War#till#the#day#he#retired#
He#worked#in#a#factory#and#got#never#got#fired#
But#satisfied#his#employers,#Fudge#Motors#Incorporated.#
Yet#he#wasn't#a#scab#or#odd#in#his#views#
For#his#union#reports#that#he#paid#his#dues#
(Our#report#on#his#Union#shows#it#was#sound)#
And#our#Social#Psychology#workers#found#
That#he#was#popular#with#his#mates#and#liked#a#drink.#
The#press#are#convinced#that#he#bought#a#paper#every#day#
And#that#his#reactions#to#advertisements#were#normal#in#
every#way.#
Policies#taken#out#in#his#name#prove#that#he#was#fully#
insured#
And#his#Health-card#shows#he#was#once#in#hospital#but#left#
it#cured.#
Both#Producers#Research#and#High-grade#Living#declare#
He#was#fully#sensible#of#the#advantages#of#the#Instalment#
Plan#
And#had#everything#necessary#to#the#Modern#Man#
A#phonograph,#a#radio,#a#car#and#a#frigidaire.#
Our#researchers#into#public#opinion#are#content#
That#he#held#the#proper#opinions#for#the#time#of#year;#
1
LIVING#THINKWORK
When#there#was#peace,#he#was#for#peace;#when#there#was#
war,#he#went.#
He#was#married#and#added#five#children#to#the#population,#
Which#our#Eugenist#says#was#the#right#number#for#a#parent#
of#his#generation,#
And#our#teachers#report#that#he#never#interfered#with#
their#education.#
Was#he#free?#Was#he#happy?#The#question#is#absurd:#
Had#anything#been#wrong,#we#should#certainly#have#heard.#
WH"Auden"
#
2" The"return"of"the"native"
# “I#am#astonished,#Clym.#How#can#you#want#to#do#better#
than#you've#been#doing?”#
# "#.#.#.#But#I#hate#that#business#of#mine,#and#I#want#to#do#
some#worthy#thing#before#I#die#.#.#.#.”##
# “After#all#the#trouble#that#has#been#taken#to#give#you#a#
start,#and#when#there#is#nothing#to#do#but#keep#straight#on#
towards#affluence#.#.#.#It#disturbs#me#Clym,#to#find#that#you#
have#come#home#with#such#thoughts#as#those.#I#hadn't#the#
least#idea#that#you#meant#to#go#backward#in#the#world#by#
your#own#free#choice.#Of#course,#I#have#always#supposed#you#
were#going#to#push#straight#on,#as#other#men#do#-#all#who#
deserve#the#name#-#when#they#have#been#put#in#the#way#of#
doing#well.”#
# "I#cannot#help#it,”#said#Clym,#in#a#troubled#tone#.#.#.#
# “Why#can't#you#do#it#was#well#as#others?#.#.#.#Yet#you#
might#have#been#a#wealthy#man#if#you#had#only#persevered#.#.#
.#I#suppose#you#will#be#like#your#father;#like#him,#you#are#
getting#weary#of#doing#well?”#
# “No,”#said#her#son;#“I#am#not#weary#of#that,#though#I#
am#weary#of#what#you#mean#by#it.#Mother,#what#is#doing#
well?”#
Thomas"Hardy,"The#Return#of#the#Native"
"
""2
Prologue#&#introduction
3" Bring"in"Winkhorst"
When#young#Sutherland#asked#me#to#procure#him#a#
commission#with#the#Nova#Police,#I#jokingly#answered:#
# "Bring#in#Winkhorst,#technician#and#chemist#for#the#
Lazarus#Pharmaceutical#Company,#and#we#will#discuss#the#
matter."#
# “Is#this#Winkhorst#a#nova#criminal?"#
# "No,#just#a#technical#sergeant#wanted#for#
interrogation."#
I#was#thinking#of#course#that#he#knew#nothing#of#the#
methods#by#which#such#people#are#brought#in#for#
interrogation#-#It#is#a#precision#operation#-#First#we#send#out#
a#series#of#agents#(usually#in#the#guise#of#journalists)#to#
contact#Winkhorst#and#expose#him#to#a#battery#of#stimulus#
units#-#The#contact#agents#talk#and#record#the#response#on#
all#levels#to#the#word#units#while#a#photographer#takes#
pictures#-#This#material#is#passed#along#to#The#Art#
Department#-#Writers#write#"Winkhorst",#painters#paint#
"Winkhorst",#a#method#actor#becomes#'Winkhorst"#and#
then#"Winkhorst"#will#answer#your#questions#.#.#.#.##
William"Burroughs,"Nova#Express"
"
Introduction
IN"THIS"BOOK"I'm"trying"to"talk"to"academics"and"workers."Those"are"
two"labels"I"don't"hold"with,"but"I"use"them"here"because"they"carry"
many"of"the"complications"and"contradictions"that"I'm"going"to"have"
to"get"to"grips"with"in"this"book."The"latter"label"on"its"own"implies"
that"academic"work"isn't"real"work."Well,"I"struggled"on"and"off"for"
over"eight"years"to"write"a"doctoral"thesis;"before"that"I"was"a"
""3
LIVING#THINKWORK
technically"trained"'professional'"worker,"and"a"dilettante"in"ideas"-"
and"now"I"know"that"serious,"scholarly,"rigorous"work"with"ideas"is"
very"hard"work."To"be"clear"what"you"think,"to"understand"its"limits,"to"
find"ways"of"expressing"yourself"in"what"you"think,"to"create"forms"
through"which"it"can"be"linked"to"what"others"think;"and"to"set"things"
up"so"that"your"hard"work"can"be"used"by"others"-"these"conditions"of"
work"impose"demands"of"a"high"order."But"on"the"other"hand,"the"
label"'academic'"is"used"by"some"as"cover"for"shameful"confidence"
tricks."There"is"an"alternative"word""-"intellectual"-"which"I'm"much"less"
nervous"about;"but"'academic'"amounts"in"many"of"it"contexts"to"a"
pre-emptive"bid"for"serious"thinking"as"such,"on"the"part"of"a"narrow"
and"unrepresentative"section"of"the"populace."People"who"are"paid"to"
think"abstractly,"and"to"initiate"others"into"abstract"thinking"in"
detachment"from"the"'world"of"work',"use"the"academic"label"to"
legitimate"self-indulgent"and"wasteful"(because"inbred)"game"playing."
The"'60s"had"a"word"for"it:"wanking."Academicism"in"this"detached"
sense"gets"intellectual"work"a"bad"name,"and"reproduces"a"division"
within"the"ranks"of"workers"which"socialists"cannot"allow"to"persist."
This"book"hinges"around"that"point."It"came"to"be"written"out"of"
peculiar"personal"circumstances."I've"passed"through"almost"the"
whole"gamut"of"academic"initiation"rites:"school"(where"I"was"always"
top"of"the"class),"university"(where"I"got"a"first"class"Honours"degree"
in"chemical"engineering"and"won"the"year"prize"twice),"and"more"
university"(a"Master's"degree"in"History"and"Philosophy"of"Science"and"
a"Doctorate"in"History"and"Social"Studies"of"Science)."BSc,"MSc"PhD:"
Bull"Schitt,"More"Schitt,"Piled"higher"and"Deeper,"some"would"say"(at"
times"I"say"it"myself}."But"that"history"already"seems"an"odd"one"if"you"
note"the"shift"from"technical"studies"as"an"undergraduate"to"'arts'"
studies"of"technical"practices"as"a"postgraduate."Things"look"decidedly"
unusual"if"I"add"that"between"the"two"I"worked"as"a"chemical"engineer"
in"industry,"and"that"after"my"time"as"a"postgrad"(but"before"
completing"the"thesis}"I"went"back"to"industrial"work"as"an"Operations"
Research"Analyst."The"oddness"of"this"personal"background"is"part"of"
the"reason"why"I've"been"able"to"bypass"some"of"the"worst"faults"of"
both"academic"and"'workerist'"thinking,"being"careful"about"
""4
Prologue#&#introduction
abstraction"and"yet"remaining"committed"to"theoretically"
transcending"the"obvious"in"everyday"experience."
It"is"a"very"personal"book,"in"part,"a"story."As"a"story"it's"an"unfinished"
one,"of"a"technician's"move"towards"working"as"a"socialist,"away"from"
the"straight"and"narrow"of"corporate"responsibility"and"'school'."
There"is"a"limit"to"what"can"usefully"be"said,"at"a"general"level,"on"the"
basis"of"personal"experience."However,"my"own"particular"journey"
through"the"terrain"of"academia"and"industrial"work"enables"me"to"
map"the"ground"in"a"way"which"is"not"merely"personal."Individual"lives"
are"determined"by"general"conditions,"and"the"particular"sphere"of"my"
employment"in"industry"-"the"design"and"innovation"function"-"is"
central"in"determining"many"of"these"conditions"for"workers"of"all"
kinds."'Subjectivity'"in"an"account"is"OK,"provided"that"two"provisions"
are"made."First,"that"the"Subject"should"be"also"an"Object,"studying"
itself"so"as"to"be"aware"of"its"limits"and"how"it"came"to"have"them."
And"second,"the"reader"should"know"enough"of"where"the"account"is"
written"from,"so"as"to"be"able"to"make"allowances"for"material"
differences"of"position"within"the"cultural"apparatus."I've"done"what"I"
can"to"provide"these"conditions."
Because"I'm"drawing"on"what,"in"our"society,"tend"to"be"two"distinct"
kinds"of"experience,"there"will"be"parts"of"the"book"where"you"as"an"
individual"reader"may"not"be"able"to"connect."I"apologise"for"that"
where"it"is"something"that"I"or"my"editors"could"have"changed"-"by"
making"a"longer,"better-illustrated"book,"for"example."Essentially"
there"are"two"things"that"I"want"to"show."There"is"a"division"of"labour"
whose"'mental'"aspects"are"especially"significant,"and"whose"
understanding"is"of"the"utmost"importance"for"socialist"activists."That"
is"the"first"point."And"secondly,"from"the"point"of"view"of"practical"
politics"-"of"organising"-"the"division"between"serious"theoretical"work"
and"other"kinds"of"practice"is"one"that"has"to"be"overcome"and"can"be"
overcome."
To"argue"these"points"I"have"had"to"'get"theoretical'"at"times,"and"I"
haven't"the"space"to"fill"in"many"of"the"debates"implicit"in"the"
literature,"which"is"largely"isolated"from"workers."I'll"do"what"I"can"by"
way"of"references"to"books"and"articles"(there"is"an"annotated"
""5
LIVING#THINKWORK
bibliography"at"the"back"of"the"book)"but,"as"I"shall"argue,"it's"in"the"
nature"of"contemporary"academic"work"that"I"can't"guarantee"their"
intelligibility"to"a"lay"reader."
A"far"less"obvious"difficulty"(which"in"fact"underlies"this"one)"is"that"I"
will"also"have"to"'get"practical'."We"tend"to"assume"that"we"can"always"
understand"what"somebody"else"does,"if"we"take"the"trouble"(which"
we"rarely"do,"especially"when"it"comes"to"what"we"do"at"work)."I"
think,"on"the"contrary,"that"it"is"very"hard"to"find"out"what"people's"
lives"are"filled"with,"and"to"figure"out"what"they"think"they"are"doing."
To"show"that"this"level"of"understanding"is"important"in"politics"I"have"
tried"to"work"a"lot"of"personal"material"into"this"book."Even"so,"there"
are"places"where"you"may"wonder"what"I'm"on"about"and"why"I'm"on"
about"it."This"might"happen,"for"example,"if"you're"not"an"activist,"and"
I'm"agonising"about"organising;"or"if"you"haven't"worked"in"industry,"
and"I'm"immersed"in"a"discussion"of"workplace"organisation"in"a"
particular"industrial"context."In"situations"like"these"I"can't"refer"you"
to"texts."Most"serious"books"are"abstract"in"their"relation"to"most"
people's"lives."That"is,"they"make"connections"only"within"a"narrow"
and"detached"sphere"of"the"totality"of"social"practices."To"understand"
a"discussion"you"have"to"be"a"member"of"that"particular"sphere"of"
practice;"and"I'm"well"aware"that"I"can't"draw"you"into"my"sphere"of"
practice"just"by"the"magic"of"words"-"nor"can"I"assume"that"you're"in"it"
already."To"understand"practice"you"must"'refer'"to"-"that"is"connect"
with"-"practice."It"is"this"understanding"which"separates"the"intention"
of"this"book"from"that"of"many"radical"studies"of"work."If"you"feel"thai"
it's"worth"understanding"the"kind"of"things"I'm"pointing"to"(as"I"hope"
you"will)"the"way"to"do"it"is"primarily"through"the"connections"of"
people,"rather"than"texts."In"the"course"of"this"book"I"shall"be"hanging"
together"an"idea"of"a"general"kind"of"practice"within"which"concrete"
knowledge"has"an"understood"and"politically"significant"place."The"
way"to"reach"the"kind"of"understanding"and"significance"I'm"arguing"
for"is"not"to"consume"my"book"(or"anyone"else's)"but"to"work"at"
making"that"place"exist."Work"is"central"to"this"book"in"more"ways"
than"one."
""6
Prologue#&#introduction
This"point"about"books"and"people"(part"of"a"more"general"argument"I"
make"about"dead"labour"and"labour"power)"is"a"cue"for"acknow-
ledgements."There"are"some"quite"specific"ones."John"Krige"prompted"
me"into"clarifying"the"place"of"knowledge"'under"the"arrow'"in"chapter"
four's"general"schema"of"the"labour"process."Jonathan"Rosenhead,"
years"back,"asked"if"I"really"was"serious"when"I"spoke"of"organisations"
as"dead"conceptual"labour,"thus"triggering"off"a"whole"line"of"thinking."
Les"Levidow"made"trenchant"comments"on"everything;"and"I"survived."
Ken"Green"worked"with"me"on"a"conference"presentation"in"which"
this"book's"notion"of"'material'"first"came"shakily"together;"and"Rod"
Coombes"had"conversations"with"me"about"the"'forces"of"production'"
which"helped."Over"a"number"of"years"Bob"Young"has"expressed"
solidarity"and"interest,"and"the"mutual"flow"of"ideas"makes"it"
impossible"to"pin"down"specific"contributions;"but"certainly"his"
chronic"bibliophilia"enables"me"to"pick"up"on"my"many"ideas"without"
having"to"hunt"for"the"texts"which"carry"them"(and"sometimes,"not"
having"to"read"them)"and"thus"I"get"more"production"time."
Some"debts"to"books"have"to"be"acknowledged,"though."Alfred"Sohn-
Rethel's"work"gave"me"the"idea"of"'real"abstraction'"and"stressed"the"
(objective)"socialisation"of"labour"under"capital."Jürgen"Habermas"
sowed"the"seeds"of"one"of"this"book's"central"ideas"-"you’ll"see"it"at"
work"in"‘apparatus’"and"‘culture’"-"with"his"distinction"between"
'technik'"and"'praxis';"and"Louis"Althusser's"notions"of"structure"gave"
me"a"good"run"for"my"money"into"thinking"about"the"form"of"labour"
processes."These"are"authors"I"might"not"want"to"read"again,"now"that"
I"have"the"approach"I"have,"because"of"the"pull"towards"abstraction"
which"shows"itself"so"strongly"in"their"work;"but"Raymond"Williams"is"
someone"I"go"back"to"again"and"again."For"years"I've"played"a"hunch"
that"his"work"on"culture"was"important"for"the"theory"of"capitalist"
scientific"and"technological"practice,"and"his"most"recent"work"is"
showing"more"clearly"where"those"connections"are."I"hope"that"this"
book"becomes"part"of"that"bridging"activity,"part"of"an"utterly"
necessary"‘cultural"materialism’."
These"are"all"people"who"write,"and"many"of"my"relations"with"them"
are"through"the"written"word."There"are"others"whose"part"in"making"
""7
LIVING#THINKWORK
this"book"is"less"conventionally"obvious,"and"although"one"strand"of"
my"argument"is"for"writing"as"such,"as"part"of"the"socialist"activism"in"
work,"these"non-authors's"roles"were"just"as"central."Pauline"and"Ben"
Hales"figure"in"the"text,"so"you"will"see"something"of"how"their"non-
literary"relations"with"me"determined"the"literary"product."Reg"Cross"
and"Jack"Grime,"chairman"and"secretary"of"the"ICI"shop"stewards's"
Combine"Committee,"extended"their"creative"interests"to"help"
establish"the"practice"which"generated"Chemco#News,"and"among"
activists"in"my"own"union"Branch"I"want"to"give"special"mention"to"
Rick"Peak,"a"maker"of"connections"and"culture"at"lunchtime"in"the"
Cheese'n’#Malt."The"names"of"these"three"ICI"workers"will"have"to"
represent"all"those"activists"who"know"that"what"they've"got"isn't"
good"enough,"and"therefore"give"parts"of"their"lives"to"an"activist"
practice"of"which"this"book,"in"a"complicated"and"contradictory"way,"is"
part."
Words"and"people"relate"to"each"other"in"peculiar"ways."Comments"
that"were"made"on"sections"of"Part"Four"of"this"book"in"draft,"read"in"
isolation"from"the"rest"by"several"comrades,"suggested"that"there"
were"two"things"I"should"try"to"clear"up"at"an"early"stage."Both"have"
to"do"with"the"connection"between"the"theoretical"and"the"personal."
Firstly,"the"theory"which"appears"in"the"final"part"of"this"book"is"not"
there"as"a"conclusion"and,"conversely,"the"personal"accounts"are"not"
evidence"for"the"theory."I'm"not"trying"to"make"a"case"about"the"
importance"of"Combine"committees"or"the"general"fruitfulness"of"a"
kind"of"relationship"between"academics"and"shop"stewards,"
exemplified"in"a"partial"way"by"the"work"around"Chemco#News"
discussed"in"this"book."That"particular"practical"basis"is"clearly"too"
limited"for"generalisations"of"those"kinds."
The"way"that"I"see"the"theory,"and"the"case"that"I"am"trying"to"make,"is"
different."Rather"than"seeking"some"kind"of"abstract"security"in"the"
face"of"always"less-than-complete"experience"(an"intellectual"
approach"which"marries"with"conservatism"in"practice),"what"I"require"
from"it"is"an"ability"to"inform"action,"now."It"seems"to"me"that"theory"
is"of"use"to"socialist"activists"only"when"it"gives"us"rigorous"ways"-"‘the"
freedom"of"necessity’"-"of"deciding"whether"the"present"can"possibly"
""8
Prologue#&#introduction
be"acted"on"to"make"a"kind"of"future"we"would"want"to"live"in,"via"the"
practices"which"are"practically"within"our"reach."The"theorising"of"
Chemco"experience"in"the"final"part"of"this"book"is"not,"as"it"might"
seem"from"some"points"of"view,"a"self-deluding"and"grandiose"
conclusion"built"on"a"tenuous"and"fragmentary"practice."It"is"an"
attempt"to"think"beyond"the"obvious"without"losing"touch"with"the"
possible."Chemco"is"not"just"a"rude"name"for"a"ponderously"
respectable"multinational"capitalist"firm."It"is"an"idea"of"what"work"
might"be"like"if"workers"could"organise"it"themselves,"for"themselves,"
starting"in"the"here"and"now,"where"they"work."Chemco"is"an"
aspiration"and"(if"only"to"a"very"slight"degree)"an"organisation."The"
purpose"of"the"theory"in"this"book"was"to"advance"both"the"
organisation"and"the"aspiration."
Some"of"the"limits"of"the"possible"are"personal"ones,"and"in"its"role"as"
a"close"adjunct"of"political"activism,"theoretical"thinking"inevitably"and"
rightly"has"a"definite"and"explicit"personal"edge"to"it."This"is"where"the"
second"difficulty"arose"in"response"to"the"Chemco"sections."The"
difficulty"is"not,"ultimately,"one"of"idiosyncratic"or"technical"language"
getting"in"the"way"of"your"reading"of"my"account"(though"of"course"I"
am"responsible"for"any"obstacles"of"this"kind"which"remain"after"my"
editor's"comments."Sorry)."It"is,"rather,"to"do"with"how"you,"reader,"
expect"theory"to"connect"with"practice."Many"people"(and"not"only"
'workers')"feel"that"to"give"theoretical-political"analysis"of"personal"
frustrations"and"hopes"is""."."."well,"odd."They"expect"theory"to"
transport"them"to"a"world"of"impersonal"truth,"and"to"leave"them"
decently"alone"with"their"subjectivity."I"don't"hold"with"that."There"is"-"
do"I"have"to"say"this?"-"an"objective"reality"in"which"people's"actions"
figure,"and"which"needs"to"be"known"as"fully"as"we"can"manage"if"
there"is"ever"to"be"real"freedom"among"all"the"necessities"of"nurture,"
nature"and"history."But"there"are"no"impersonal"truths,"everything"sits"
in"a"place"in"the"world,"runs"on"rails."Nor"are"there"any"aspects"of"
subjectivity"which"are"immune"in"principle"to"a"legitimate"democratic"
and"analytical"interest."Eventually"a"collective,"active"and"popular"
understanding"of"how"the"internal"and"the"external"aspects"of"reality"
act"upon"one"another"is"the"trump"card"which"socialism"will"have"to"
""9
LIVING#THINKWORK
play"to"win."That's"something"we"should"be"working"on"now."I'm"sorry"
if"my"approach"to"theory"ruffles"your"stereotypes;"but"see"how"it"
takes"you."The"analytical"and"the"'anecdotal'"in"this"book"have"not"
been"juxtaposed"in"this"way"by"accident,"and"I'd"be"glad"if"you"
thought"hard"about"the"place"of"theory"in"socialist"practice"before"you"
set"to"unpicking"these"threads."
There's"a"final"point"that"I"need"to"make"by"way"of"introduction."It"
relates"to"the"'worker'"side"of"my"chequered"history,"but"has"nothing"
directly"do"with"the"fact"that"I've"been"employed"outside"academia."
For"as"long"as"I"can"remember"having"thought"about"myself,"I"have"
had"a"sense"of"class."My"parents"are"working"class,"and"at"school"and"
university"I"became"aware"of"others"whose"parents"were"something"
else:"'business'"people,"or"'owners',"whose"world"felt"strange"
whenever"I"stumbled"into"it."My"aims"in"this"shadowy"world"of"not-
upper"class"existence"have"changed"as"I've"moved"through"it,"and"I"
shall"try"to"show"how,"though"this"is"difficult"to"pin"down."To"come"to"
the"end"of"the"story"first,"I"couldn’t"now"speak"of"myself"as"working"
class."Yet"the"last"ten"years"or"so"have"turned"out"in"personal"history"
to"be"a"struggle"to"live"as"both"academic"and"worker,"simultaneously,"
and"to"be"faithful"to"what"I"value"in"both"identities."It"seems"that"my"
life"has"committed"me"to"knowledge"(producing"as"well"as"using)"and"
to"seeing"and"living"life"as"a"worker"among"other"workers."I"won't"say"
that"living"this"contradiction"is"easy"but"(when"I'm"not"depressed"by"
the"difficulties)"I"enjoy"it."Personally,"it's"a"tremendous"challenge,"
against"all"the"odds;"and"many"traditions"of"the"Left,"too,"I'm"sad"to"
discover."I'm"setting"out"to"convince"you"that"this"struggle"is"worth"
entering,"from"wherever"on"the"terrain"of"mental"and"manual"work"
you"happen"to"be"living,"and"I"hope"this"part-map,"part-travelogue"
helps.!
""10
ResearchGate has not been able to resolve any citations for this publication.
ResearchGate has not been able to resolve any references for this publication.