Work is a detrimental subject in economics and there are a lot philosophical issues linked to it. The appearance of new technologies and the rise of Asia as a major part of the economical world today have to question the way to approach work in overall declining western countries. One of the reasons of this decline is a lack of repairs, while many Asian countries succeed to inspire from great times of their civilizations while adapting them to the modern world. The new technologies give as well the opportunity to think about the distinction between the “Homo Faber” and “Homo Laborans” made by Arendt in the condition of the modern man. They can give the opportunity to live more work as an accomplishment, and to revitalize the antique otium, which is leisure as a way to cultivate oneself or to have more knowledge overall.
In my opinion the Western countries citizens have to work more overall. If the penible or precarious jobs have to be protected, the general population have the ability to spend more time working. Many bankers, teachers or ingeneers can work three to five more years in their careers and contribute to fight the debt and get a better growth. The goal is also to have a more effective protection system and a better redistributive society. However work has more sense with a real ambition that can be collective. Even if the legal or protection system is greatly different the bad way in many Asian countries, the inspiration from great periods of the past may have contributed to make these countries achieve remarkable growth for a good deal of countries. In the Second World War very few people expected Japan, even if it was a cruel regime, to beat a great deal England, be one of the most powerful countries of this war and to be defeated only by the United States which was the greatest power at this time (it would have been probably uncertain with the USSR). Many Asian countries, despite many tensions, followed the example of Japan and based themselves on the great times of their past. Today, for instance, China has largely a confucean society and competitions inspired by Confucius to hire civil servants have been restaured even if adapted to the world of today. The Western countries should inspire from this mentality as they did in the Renaissance until the end of the XVIIth century : Luther or Colbert would have approved the way Asian countries’ mentality as they did the same at their times. The way to approach work can also evolve a good way. Mankind, despite many threats, has the opportunity to be less a “homo laborans”, which is working to survive and more a “homo faber” which is working to accomplish oneself. Aristotle thought about this distinction, even if he was aware the society of his time was greatly based on esclavagism ; he was one of the few free men who could afford to work this way. A great evolution of today is that, in a society where Human Rights have a lot of authority in the world, a lot of people can have access to the possibility to be an “homo faber”. A great positive side of the new technologies is a great deal of people can have access to informations given by the Internet. The fact information is a lot more spread than before can change lives of millions of people in the world and achieve what they want to accomplish. This evolution is not in the sense of the idea of Marx about capitalism to the extend he said this model has to spread to survive, which was successful as it was more “advanced” than the empires at his time. However the ability of capitalism to be inclusive, for instance spreading information to a great deal of people thanks to the new technologies. Actually capitalism is going to the sense of social democrats Marx considered as among his worst enemies as they make lose time to the Revolution making capitalism more human. Anyway, for those who are not anti-capitalists, new technologies can be also a way to be more inclusive and make evolve a good way the notion of work.
The observer 