Episode 26 of the House of Dissent podcast continues the examination of Marx’s theory of historical materialism, focusing on the division of labour, alienation, and changing consciousness under capitalism. The episode traces Marx’s writings from the 1844 Manuscripts to Capital, explores commodity fetishism and reification (Lukács), and looks at how mass media and consumer culture (Frankfurt School) altered class consciousness.

The host also contrasts Marx’s predictions with later thinkers like Xi Jinping and Francis Fukuyama, and previews the next episode, which will focus on Fukuyama’s critique of Marx and the idea of history’s end.