PHIL 131 PZ -Philosophy of Work

Institution: Pitzer College

Description: Over the course of a lifetime, most people spend more time working than doing anything else apart from sleeping. Work and labor are therefore central features of human existence. Yet philosophical reflection on work has often risen and fallen with moments of rapid social and economic transformation-from Adam Smith and Karl Marx writing amid the Industrial Revolution to today’s debates in the face of automation, AI, and widening inequality. This course explores the philosophy of work by asking both historical and contemporary questions: What is work, and how should we understand its role in human life? What goods-economic, social, moral, or existential-has work been thought to provide? Can work contribute to a meaningful or flourishing life, or is it inherently a burden? We will also consider the politics of the workplace, examining arguments for and against more democratic or egalitarian forms of organization. Throughout, we will draw on historical texts as a foundation while simultaneously keeping our eye on present challenges and future possibilities. The course will conclude with a discussion of the current landscape of work in contemporary society, and ask us what role work should play in human life going forward.