Eros, Play, Labor

Marcuse's aim in Eros and Civilization is to present a Marxist solution to the problems diagnosed in Civilization and its Discontents.  At the heart of the project is the premise that the elimination of alienation from society suffices to eliminate the repression that is the cause of those discontents.  But, in the Freudian model, the object of repression is not Labor, but gratification-seeking Eros.  Thus, in order for his project to cohere, Marcuse needs to connect Eros and Labor, which is problematic in the absence of a demonstration that the latter is inherently Pleasure-seeking, i. e. because otherwise the two are antagonistic.  However, though he does recognize the value of a "play impulse" in an un-discontented society, he does not adequately explore the possibility of it as mediating between Eros and Labor, thereby leaving his project with a significant lacuna.