Lefebvre-The Research On People Survival Predicament In The Consumption Society

Henry Lefebvre (1901-1991) is the famous Marxism theorist in the 20th century French. He is known as the "father of critique of everyday life" and the "father of modern French dialectic". Lefebvre’s research area is quite wide-ranging and quite rich in theoretical achievements. The plight of the people to be as the thesis mainly starting point, the attention of human survival and development in the consumer society as the main line. And to excavate the reason and discourse resources of Lefebvre critiques the people survival dilemma in the consumer society, in-depth analysis of Lefebvre reveals people’s alienated survival status in the alienation consumption, and to overcome the overall alienation proposing specific salvation path. On this basis, through analysis of the advantages and disadvantages of Lefebvre’s consumption society critique theory, in order to put forward some reasonable suggestions for building a healthy and harmonious consumption culture. The contents of this paper are mainly developed in the fowling aspects.Firstly, reviewing the history background and social environment of Lefebvre concerns about human survival problems. In short, the rise of modernity and the arrival of the era of consumption makes people in survival of distress, which constitute the reason of Lefebvre critiques of it. On the one hand, facing the dramatic changes of modernization, Lefebvre keenly perceives the progress of economy and technology has not only make people get rid of the poor state of life, but to make people fall into a dilemma of self repression and oppression. On the other hand, the transformation of capitalist production mode promotes the consumption era coming round after World War II, pushing people into the choppy consumption whirlpool, making people face unprecedented confusion and dilemma of existence and development.Secondly, sorting out the main theoretical basis and discourse resources which Lefebvre critiques of the people’s survival predicament in the consumption society. As the representative of existentialism Marxism, Lefebvre not only draws lessons from Marx’s alienation theory and commodity fetishism and makes use of them into the theoretical analysis of symbol fetishism and its ruling logic in the consumption society, but also draws on the experience from the existentialism philosophy which puts human existence as the core and using them into the attention of human survival and development. At the same time, Roland Barthes’s Semiotics Theory and culture critique theory make great influence on Lefebvre’s semiotics and aesthetics analysis of the symbol system and system coding rules in the consumer society.Thirdly, in-depth analysis of Lefebvre reveals the people’s survival plight in the consumer society. Lefebvre thinks new capitalist society is the " Bureaucratic Society of Controlled Consumption" which through the daily life platform making use of consumption to achieve the ideological manipulation. In the dual role of symbol consumption and sub-system, people replace the real personality and self into false desire and demand in the consumer society, and the deep control of the new ideology strategy more forcing people into the life predicament. Lefebvre points out that the consumption alienation eventually make people imprison themselves in the alienated language and out-style daily life, the "Bureaucratic Society of Controlled Consumption" is undoubtedly lead people into more intensified survival plight.Fourthly, explaining the redemption path which Lefebvre proposes in order to overcome the overall alienation. In the choice of the road to salvation, Lefebvre claims through the cultural revolution and realizing "the overall people" to dispel the erosion of consumption alienation, making people get out of the existence predicament. On the one hand, he advocates reshaping the daily life of the new style, the return of poetic language and happy holiday to realize the idea of the overall cultural revolution; on the other hand, he hopes through unifying man and nature, man and society, man and himself to achieve the "overall people". Lefebvre believes that only through the cultural revolution which regards the poetic language as the core can overcome all sorts of alienation phenomenon in the consumer society, enable people to return to daily life which is full of vigor and vitality, and make people regain their critical ability and creativity.Fifthly, commenting on the research characteristics and advantages and disadvantages of Lefebvre’s consumer society critique theory. On the one hand, Lefebvre criticizes the survival problem in the consumer society and opens to the micro research platform which puts daily life as the core, broadening the microcosmic perspective of Marxist theory study. Meanwhile, Lefebvre reveals the people’s survival plight in the alienation consumption through the analysis method of semiotics and aesthetics, leading to new methodology of Western Marxism society critique theory study. On the other hand, Lefebvre’s criticism of consumer society also has some defects, such as obviously Utopian, deviating from practice base, construction force surplus but critical force is insufficient, too subjective and non rational doctrine and so on.Finally, critiquing of the contemporary Chinese consumption phenomenon with the realistic context. The arrival of civilian consumption era and mass media development, more and more people began to seek identity and meaning construction in consumption, even in the presence of malignant consumption behaviors and consumption concept, such as the excessive consumption, extravagance and waste Therefore, from the current China’s consumption status, building positive consumption culture in the cultivation of rational consumption and strengthen the supervision of the media, to create a good atmosphere for the consumer, so as to promote the harmonious development of China consumption.