Coming to Verso Books February 2024: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/741197/the-double-shift-by-jason-read/ ABOUT THE DOUBLE SHIFT “Why do people fight for their exploitation as if it was liberation?” How Marx and Spinoza can explain our attachment to work, and what we can do about it In a world of declining wages, working conditions, and instability, the response for many has been to work harder, increasing hours and finding various ways to hustle in a gig economy. What drives our attachment to work? To paraphrase a question from Spinoza, “Why do people fight for their exploitation as if it was liberation?” The Double Shift turns towards the intersection of Marx and Spinoza in order to examine the nature of our affective, ideological, and strategic attachment to work. Through an examination of contemporary capitalism and popular culture it argues that the current moment can be defined as one of “negative solidarity.” The hardship and difficulty of work is seen not as the basis for alienation and calls for its transformation but rather an identification with the difficulties and hardships of work. This distortion of the work ethic leads to a celebration of capitalists as job creators and suspicion towards anyone who is not seen as a “real worker.” The book is grounded in philosophy, specifically Marx and Spinoza, and is in dialogue with Plato, Smith, Hegel, and Arendt, but, at the same time, in examining contemporary ideologies and ideas about work it discusses motivational meetings at Apple Stores, the culture of Silicon Valley, and films and television from Office Space to Better Call Saul. The Double Shift argues for a transformation of our collective imagination and attachment to work. Support Zer0 Books and Repeater Media on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/zerobooks Subscribe: http://bit.ly/SubZeroBooks Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ZeroBooks/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/zer0books ----- Other links: Check out the projects of some of the new contributors to Zer0 Books: Acid Horizon Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/acidhorizonpodcast YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/acidhorizon Merch: crit-drip.com The Philosopher’s Tarot from Repeater Books: https://repeaterbooks.com/product/the-philosophers-tarot/ The Horror Vanguard Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/horror-vanguard/id1445594437 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/horrorvanguard Buddies Without Organs Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/buddies-without-organs/id1543289939 Website: https://buddieswithout.org/ Xenogothic: https://xenogothic.com/ ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YdSmhLmAjJw

Owen Symes is the author of "He Was Our Man in Washington," a highly critical interpretation of president Obama and his brand of "hope and change," grounded in a reality that goes beyond the headlines. In this video we ask the questions "Was Obama a neoliberal?" and "Will neoliberalism ever die?" Relevant Book He Was Our Man in Washington by Owen Symes https://www.johnhuntpublishing.com/zer0-books/our-books/he-was-our-man-in-washington Support Zero Books on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/zerobooks​ Subscribe: http://bit.ly/SubZeroBooks​​​​ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ZeroBooks/​​​​ Twitter: https://twitter.com/zer0books​​​​ Zero Books Manifesto: The modern world is at an impasse. Disasters scroll across our smartphone screens and we’re invited to like, follow or upvote, but critical thinking is harder and harder to find. Rather than connecting us in common struggle and debate, the internet has sped up and deepened a long-standing process of alienation and atomization. Zero Books aims to work against this trend. ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ii05y5P7B0k