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- Category: Politics: Philosophy
- Date Submitted: 08/16/2013 10:28 AM
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Lorraine Alvarez
Prof. Sanderovsky
HUM1023 – Philosophy of Human Nature
August 8, 2013
What is work? Merriam-Webster.com defines it as “a : sustained physical or mental effort to overcome obstacles and achieve an objective or result or b : the labor, task, or duty that is one's accustomed means of livelihood”. ("Work") Unless someone is born into a fortune of money or is married into such a fortune, most likely we will have to work at a job so that we may put food on the table for our families, provide a roof over our heads for shelter and provide for other necessary (or sometimes unnecessary) items in life. Our oldest ancestors did not work like we do today, they spent most of their day searching and gathering food for the day; something that had to be repeated daily. (Tony Allen) Most people prior to the Industrial Revolution worked as farmers, though some worked as craftsmen. People lived in communities or villages together and each person had a job to do to help keep the village alive. (A Brief History of Work) During the Industrial Revolution, workers in Britain would work 6 days a week and up to 18 hours a day. Religious organizations got together and suggested early closing on Saturday’s for workers so that they could attend church. The organizer’s argument was that the workers were too tired to come to church on Sunday. By the 1930’s, the weekend in the United Kingdom was finally a reality. The United States didn’t have a full weekend off until just before the Second World War. Henry Ford was a huge proponent of the two-day weekend. (Tony Allen) So, with time we have decreased our work days from 6 to 5 with some now working four ten hour days. John Dupre states that even in the Beginning, work was required in his article:
Even a brief history should begin at the beginning. God said to Adam, "In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return to the ground" [Genesis 2:3]. As a later Adam, Adam Smith, would put it, work...
Prof. Sanderovsky
HUM1023 – Philosophy of Human Nature
August 8, 2013
What is work? Merriam-Webster.com defines it as “a : sustained physical or mental effort to overcome obstacles and achieve an objective or result or b : the labor, task, or duty that is one's accustomed means of livelihood”. ("Work") Unless someone is born into a fortune of money or is married into such a fortune, most likely we will have to work at a job so that we may put food on the table for our families, provide a roof over our heads for shelter and provide for other necessary (or sometimes unnecessary) items in life. Our oldest ancestors did not work like we do today, they spent most of their day searching and gathering food for the day; something that had to be repeated daily. (Tony Allen) Most people prior to the Industrial Revolution worked as farmers, though some worked as craftsmen. People lived in communities or villages together and each person had a job to do to help keep the village alive. (A Brief History of Work) During the Industrial Revolution, workers in Britain would work 6 days a week and up to 18 hours a day. Religious organizations got together and suggested early closing on Saturday’s for workers so that they could attend church. The organizer’s argument was that the workers were too tired to come to church on Sunday. By the 1930’s, the weekend in the United Kingdom was finally a reality. The United States didn’t have a full weekend off until just before the Second World War. Henry Ford was a huge proponent of the two-day weekend. (Tony Allen) So, with time we have decreased our work days from 6 to 5 with some now working four ten hour days. John Dupre states that even in the Beginning, work was required in his article:
Even a brief history should begin at the beginning. God said to Adam, "In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return to the ground" [Genesis 2:3]. As a later Adam, Adam Smith, would put it, work...