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60)
the history of work
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languages (via Skype): Rainer: + 36 20 549 52 97 or + 36 20 334 79 74
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The history of the work
Adam had eaten from the tree at
the urging of Eve and had acquired a certain knowledge as a result. Then the
angel of God came and drove both of them out of paradise, where they had so
far been without worries. He added that from then on they would have to earn
their living with hard work. Ever since, the Christian man has cursed the
woman.
The Romans believed that under
Saturn, there allegedly was a golden age in which no one had to work because
vegetables grew on the fields without cultivation, honey flowed from the
trees and milk in the river basins. They collected mulberries and
strawberries, or what had fallen ripe from the trees. No quarrel disturbed
their effortless calm, no sword was pulled out of its sheath, no helmet had
to protect the head and no trumpet, neither crooked nor straight, neither
from wood nor from metal, called for war.
Moses led the Jews through the
desert to show them the promised land of Canaan, where milk and honey flowed.
But for this shameful act of leading them around in the desert for 40 years, he couldn't
see the promised land, he had to die before.
In some cultures, the chosen ones,
nobles or other members of the upper classes wore long fingernails to show that
they did not earn their living by work or manual labour.
In almost all cultures,
dignitaries and the like were spared from work, as if there had to be someone
to show the others how beautiful life could really be.
The Protestants and before them
Luther wanted to make people understand that work was not a shame, but the
opportunity to prepare the Kingdom of God on earth.
In the beginning, work actually
consisted of hunting and gathering food, wood for fire, building material for
simple huts. The activities were divided between men and women. Women and
children were busy around the house and in the nearby fields, and the men
were responsible for heavier things such as hunting and building huts.
Hunting was considered particularly venerable because it was dangerous and
brought the high-calorie meat onto the table and required the greatest
visible agility.
When the first villages emerged,
there was a more specific division into occupations because even goods that
were difficult to transport and break could be manufactured. However, the
basic division between male and female occupations was preserved if we don't
include belly dancers who existed at all times.
Larger communities were formed and
warriors and civil servants were needed. Traders travelled across countries.
There was a time when the hard and
uncomfortable work was done by slaves.
Food production grew effectively,
which enabled the creation of a handicraft industry.
Growing companies and factories
raised capital that could entertain artists.
State rulers tried to monopolize
important and profitable industries for themselves, coal, gold, ore mines,
metal processing, grain mills, shipbuilding.
The first financial institutions
were founded to provide capital for costly companies.
Child and women labour was in
demand in the industry because it was cheaper and most working families could
not have survived on their father's wages alone.
For the increasingly complex
tasks, trained specialists or at least workers with minimal knowledge were
required.
European company owners spoke out
against slavery in the U.S., for example, because they could not find such
cheap workers in Europe and could not have remained competitive that way.
Before, humans had primarily
produced for themselves and their immediate surroundings, now they produce
for the whole world; we are in the 19th century.
Sometimes this resulted in
overproduction, so production breaks had to be taken - the first vacation.
Daily working hours became shorter
and shorter: from 16 hours a day to 8 today.
The term leisure began to fill up
with content for the small citizen too.
And where are we now? Maybe work
should also be fun!
And unconditional basic income!
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Samstag, 1. August 2020
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