“Factory Work” in politics (Volume 3, No. 11)
New York: Politics Publishing Co., 1946. Magazine. Stapled wraps, 8.5 x 11 inches. Lightly worn, staples rusted. Near-fine. Item #9
A bright copy of this uncommon publication of Simone Weil’s (1909–1943) essay “Factory Work.” During the years 1934–1935 (“hard and bitter years of economic crisis” in France), Weil set out to experience and document the “proletarian condition” of France’s laborers in the factories of suburban Paris. As a result of her experiences Weil concluded that “our factories have become festering grounds of evil, and the evils of the factories must be corrected.” Weil’s essay records her appeal for the good over the useful, the qualitative over the quantitative, goodness over well-being—in sum, for a fundamental purpose over mere utilitarian function. Dwight Macdonald (1906–1982) published Weil’s essay in the December 1946 issue of politics, a magazine he founded in 1944 and which began as a monthly publication until its fourth year, after which it ran as a quarterly. Macdonald launched the magazine to write and publish articles about the war, capitalism, and communism. Macdonald also desired to introduce his American readers to European thinkers, including Simon Weil and Albert Camus. This edition also features articles by Macdonald as well as a famous article by George Woodcock regarding the liberalism of George Orwell (“George Orwell, 19th Century Liberal”).
Price: $200.00