The Marxist critique
The concept of commodity fetishism, which is central to Marxism, has an ancient pedigree. Whilst the term “fetish” appears in the fifteenth century (see separate entry on Fetishism) and the linking of “fetish” to “commodity” begins with Marx, we find something of the psychology he describes already present in Biblical accounts of idolatry. In Exodus 20:3 Yahweh issues commandments to the Hebrews against making graven images and bowing down to them, and Isaiah observes of his Babylonian captors that they “lavish gold out of the bag, and weigh silver in the balance, and hire a goldsmith; and he maketh it a god: they fall down, yea, they worship” (Isaiah 46:5). What is wrong with idolatry is that it fetishises the work of men's hands and brains, allowing
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Citation: Crehan, Stewart. "Commodity Fetishism". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 13 March 2006 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=1656, accessed 23 November 2024.]
