The Materialistic Concept of Nature and the “Political-Ecological Glimpses” of Marx in Capital
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: Objective: The objective of this research is to deepen the materialist vision of nature proposed by Marxist theoretical analysis, with the aim of incorporating a conceptual contribution to study the relationship between ecology and economy. Theoretical Framework: The starting point of this text is the perception of life in a global, environmental and human system that constantly interacts under the concept of coevolution. In this way, the human subsystem is subject to the conditions of the biosphere, in such a way that if the human subsystem breaks these conditions, it will lead us to a situation characterized by an irreversible and global environmental crisis, which provides a solid basis for understanding the context of the research. Method: The methodology adopted for this research includes conceptual keys to approach the study of ecology from a materialist conception of nature through the analysis of Marx's work. Data collection was carried out through the systematic review of Capital. Results and Discussion: The results obtained reveal that the alleged productivist meaning of his work cannot be affirmed in Marx's political writings either. Marx's political work is contradictory in this regard; Sometimes communism appears as the human scenario of continuous abundance (more typical of the part of his work closest to political agitation), a rhetoric in which we must consider the subject who receives it, the working class of the 19th century, who suffers living and working conditions that can be described as inhuman. However, in other parts of Marx's political work, the author entrusts the future society with the mission of filling the metabolic gap caused by the capitalist mode of production, restoring humanity's interaction with nature in ways that we would today describe as ecological. Research Implications: The results can be applied or influenced in the field of study of Political Economy. These implications could also cover such prominent areas as sustainable development and the circular economy. Originality/Value: This study contributes to the literature by highlighting that the crisis of sustainability and the debate on the physical limits of growth find a material explanation in Marx through the analysis of the functioning of the capitalist mode of production. The relevance of this research is evident in that it is the objective logic of the economic system itself that is at the base of the metabolic gap that currently exists between humanity and nature, being especially valuable for the reinforcement of theoretical and practical approaches referred to raising the need for a new productive and accumulation model.
Author: Vicente Sánchez Jiménez
Institution: Universidad Complutense de Madrid
Language: English
Subfield: Sociology and Political Science
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
OpenAlex ID: W4407781617