From Need to Ability

Utilitarianism is a variation of Hedonism, i. e. Pleasure is its ultimate criterion of 'Goodness'. Now, Capitalism is applied Utilitarianism. Hence, the implied value of its ultimate goal, Wealth, is that it brings Pleasure, which is an End-in-Itself. In contrast, as has been previously proposed, in "each according to his needs", the goal can be characterized as 'Health', of which, following Spinoza, Pleasure is an inadequate idea. Still, that contrast preserves the status of Health as, like Hedonist Pleasure, an end-state with no further consequences, i. e. as Inertia. However, on the Vitalist interpretation, Health is a dynamic condition, consisting in the harmonious maximum exercise of all the functions of an organism. But, that condition is precisely the actualization of one's abilities, with respect to which 'ability' qua potential is a mere abstraction. Hence, on the Vitalist interpretation, "From each according to his abilities, to each according to his needs" presupposes that Need is a means to Ability, an interpretation to which it is unclear if Marx subscribes.