Interpretation, Change, Writing

In the 11th Thesis on Feuerbach, Marx asserts, "Philosophers have hitherto only interpreted the world in various ways; the point is to change it." However, as epochal as some have taken it to be, the passage is flawed in three significant respects. First, the first clause is falsified by the example of Rousseau. Second, his attempt in the second clause to normatively universalize his concept of his historically specific task is not only groundless, it conflicts with his principle that humans are constantly re-making themselves. Finally, the contrast between Interpretation and Change is not as sharp as he takes it to be. For, each of the 'interpretations' to which he refers is actually an instance of a species of writing, i. e. is a product of Labor, made public in order to influence concrete behavior in some respect or another. In other words, even if the purposes of one of his predecessors is not as radical as is Rousseau's, it still involves change in one of various ways. So, as is the case with many of Marx's Historical judgments, this passage, regardless of the attention that it has drawn, is not as incisive as his Economic analyses.