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Materialism, Social Formation and Socio-Spatial Relations : an Essay in Marxist Geography Richard Peet

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Materialism, Social Formation and Socio-Spatial Relations : an Essay in Marxist Geography Richard Peet Document généré le 1 oct. 2021 06:28 Cahiers de géographie du Québec Materialism, Social Formation and Socio-Spatial Relations : an Essay in Marxist Geography Richard Peet Volume 22, numéro 56, 1978 Résumé de l'article La géographie marxiste fait partie de la science marxiste et à ce titre elle a URI : https://id.erudit.org/iderudit/021390ar l'autonomie relative des instances qui composent le tout social étudié. Ces DOI : https://doi.org/10.7202/021390ar instances, ou les relations qui s'établissent entre elles et qui sont l'objet de la géographie marxiste, sont en premier lieu la relation dialectique entre Aller au sommaire du numéro formations sociales et environnement naturel et en second lieu la dialectique spatiale entre les composantes d'une formation sociale enracinée dans l'espace ou entre des formations sociales dans différentes régions. D'où la nécessité de Éditeur(s) renvoyer aux concepts de mode de production et de formation sociale, de définir et d'illustrer le concept de dialectique spatiale et le développement des Département de géographie de l'Université Laval contradictions dans l'espace. ISSN 0007-9766 (imprimé) 1708-8968 (numérique) Découvrir la revue Citer cet article Peet, R. (1978). Materialism, Social Formation and Socio-Spatial Relations : an Essay in Marxist Geography. Cahiers de géographie du Québec, 22(56), 147–157. https://doi.org/10.7202/021390ar Tous droits réservés © Cahiers de géographie du Québec, 1978 Ce document est protégé par la loi sur le droit d’auteur. L’utilisation des services d’Érudit (y compris la reproduction) est assujettie à sa politique d’utilisation que vous pouvez consulter en ligne. https://apropos.erudit.org/fr/usagers/politique-dutilisation/ Cet article est diffusé et préservé par Érudit. Érudit est un consortium interuniversitaire sans but lucratif composé de l’Université de Montréal, l’Université Laval et l’Université du Québec à Montréal. Il a pour mission la promotion et la valorisation de la recherche. https://www.erudit.org/fr/ CAHIERS DE GÉOGRAPHIE DU QUÉBEC, Vol. 22, no 56, septembre 1978, 147-157 MATERIALISM, SOCIAL FORMATION, AND SOCIO-SPATIAL RELATIONS: AN ESSAY IN MARXIST GEOGRAPHY by Richard PEET Graduate School of Geography, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia RÉSUMÉ Matérialisme, formation sociale et relations socio-spatiales: un essai de géographie marxiste. La géographie marxiste fait partie de la science marxiste et à ce titre elle a l'autonomie relative des instances qui composent le tout social étudié. Ces instances, ou les relations qui s'établissent entre el­ les et qui sont l'objet de la géographie marxiste, sont en premier lieu la relation dialectique entre forma­ tions sociales et environnement naturel et en second lieu la dialectique spatiale entre les composantes d'une formation sociale enracinée dans l'espace ou entre des formations sociales dans différentes ré­ gions. D'où la nécessité de renvoyer aux concepts de mode de production et de formation sociale, de dé­ finir et d'illustrer le concept de dialectique spatiale et le développement des contradictions dans l'es­ pace. MOTS-CLÉS: Géographie marxiste, mode de production, formation sociale, dialectique spatiale, dévelop­ pement des contradictions. ABSTRACT Marxist geography is a part of marxist science and as such it has the relative autonomy of the ins­ tances of the societal whole studied. Thèse instances or the relations between instances which are the object of marxist geography are first the dialectical relation between social formations and the natural world and second the spatial dialectic between components of a social formation embedded into space or between social formations in différent régions. Hence the need to refer to the concepts of mode of production and of social formation and to define and illustrate the concept of spatial dialectic and the development of contradictions in space. KEY WORDS: Marxist geography, mode of production, social formation, spatial dialectic, development of contradictions. 148 CAHIERS DE GÉOGRAPHIE DU QUÉBEC, vol. 22, no. 56, septembre 1978 First, let us décide whether there can be a «marxist geography». The concept «marxist geography» has utility on two grounds, one pragmatic, the other theore- tical. In terms of practice, most marxist geographers work in the académie dis­ cipline of geography, which already exists, has a number of functional rela- tionships with capitalism, and is therefore a source of livelihood for its prac- titioners. Thèse practitioners may include some who call themselves marxists for the following reasons. Capitalism is a System propelled through time by the development of its internai contradictions. Thèse contradictions erupt into con­ tinuai crises, for which the System needs «solutions». The universities hâve, as one of their functions, the provision of «solutions». Because the crises of capitalism are ever-changing, the universities must remain somewhat flexible and free. This necessary modicum of freedom can be extended to marxism by careful, diligent work on the part of the marxists. We must be geographers in order to survive at one of the centers of power, and we are enabled to be marxist geographers by taking advantage of capitalism's need for «free» thinkingi. But the concept «marxist geography» also has a certain philosophical validity. The structure of marxist science replicates the structure of its object — human society. Just as the social formation is a totality of dialectically interrelated instances, so Marxism is a holistic science of dialectically interrelated parts. This is, the parts of marxist science study the various instances, or the relations between instances, of the societal whole. As each instance has a relative autonomy from the whole, so each part of science has a certain autonomy, while remaining within (and only making sensé in) a whole science. Hence, marxist science may include within itself specializations on the various instances and relations of the social formation. Marxist geography specializes on two of the relations which affect, and are affected by, the whole social formation, which affect and are affected by ail the instances of the formation: the dialectical relation between social formations and the natural world; and the spatial dialectic between components of a formation embedded into space, or between social formations in différent régions. Together, thèse two sets of relations may be called the environmental relations of the social formations which make up world society. As a study of one aspect (environmental relations) of the relations of the social whole, and the interrelations of its instances, marxist geography is necessarily intricately integrated both into the whole marxist science and with each of its specializing parts. Relations do not make sensé without the things being related. Things do not make sensé except in their total web of relations. There can be, and is, such a thing as marxist geography. The Materialist Basis of Marxist Geography Marx begins with the premise of the existence of human individuals who must be in a position to live in order to be able to «make history». The first historical act is thus the production of the means to satisfy needs for food, drink, housing, clothing, etc. — the production of material life itself. This «mode of production» should not be considered merely as the reproduction of physical existence, but rather as a «definite mode of life» (Marx and Engels, 1976, 31). Individuals who are productively active in a definite way enter into definite social and political relations with one another; and during their productive activity, humans also produce conceptions, ideas, etc.. «Consciousness can never be anything else than conscious being, and the being of men is their actual life process... It is not consciousness that détermines life, but life that détermines consciousness» (Marx and Engels, 1976, 36-37). Consciousness develops with productivity, the increase of needs, and of the numbers of people. It develops especially with the division of labor particularly the division between material and mental labor — from this point, consciousness may proceed to the formation of «pure» theory, theology, philosophy, morality, etc.. Hence, the key to the understanding of the structure AN ESSAY IN MARXIST GEOGRAPHY 149 of social life and consciousness is the mode of production of the material basis of that life and consciousness. This structure of understanding, which appears in a full cohérent form for the first time in Marx's The German Ideology (written between 1845 and 1847) was developed during the 1850s and appears in a mature form in Marx's Introduction to his Critique of Political Economy written in 1859. I shall quote extensively from this Introduction, for it forms the basis of much of my subséquent discussion: In the social production of their existence, men inevitably enter into definite relations, which are independent of their will, namely relations of production appropriate to a given stage in the development of their material forces of production. The totality of thèse relations of production constitutes the économie structure of society, the real foundation, on which arises a légal and political superstructure and to which correspond definite forms of social, political and intellectual life. It is not the consciousness of men that détermines their existence, but their social existence that détermines their consciousness. At a certain stage of development, the material productive forces of society corne into conflict with the existing relations of production or — this merely expresses the same thing in légal terms — with the property relations within the framework of which they hâve operated hitherto. From forms of development of the productive forces thèse relations turn into their fetters. Then begins an era of social révolution. The changes in the économie foundation lead sooner or later to the transformation of the whole immense superstructure.... In broad outline, the Asiatic, ancient, feudal and modem bourgeois modes of production may be designed as epochs marking progress in the économie develpment of society.
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