Marx’s thesis on the fetishism of commodities focuses on society’s tendency to place value on commodities based on contributed labor, which inevitably causes domination of the products over people. Furthermore, the fetishism affects the social interactions between the customer and producer: the valued objects are independently exchanged for the respective purposes. Such exchanges of objects occur independently of human needs or decisions (Ritzer, 2011). In this case, it is essential to note that the term fetishism does not suggest any sexual connotations; it only explains people’s inclination to devote themselves to the mentioned principles.
In modern society, we have fetishized technological trends in the same way that Marx’s thesis suggests. For example, Apple products are known to be highly appreciated for their “high-quality” and “accessibility”. The labor that goes into creating the products, despite sometimes being considered unethical, benefits the brand’s overall image. Since hours and hundreds of workers are dedicated to producing the items, their values increase independently of their quality. The product’s value is then highly dependent on the importance placed by the general public and marketing strategies rather than its original worth. Moreover, the workers that are required for the brand’s success also become commodities, as mentioned in the Manifesto of the Communist Party (Marx & Engels, 1818-1883). In this way, although existing independently of one another, all major parts of the modern socio-economic system become disconnected from their actual worth.
Marx’s thesis fails to explore how a commodity gains its value purely from the amount of labor included in the process. This could be outlined as a critical disadvantage to the thesis, as it ignores a central perspective that aid in changing the materialistic values of society. Another detail that was not mentioned in Marx’s work is related to the nature of commodities, why some are more valued than others. Still, the Manifesto of the Communist Party and Marx’s thesis provide a solid foundation for analyzing modern socio-economic relations.