According to Karl Marx, the process of alienation involves a situation where the forces of capitalism cause the worker to feel foreign or alien to the products that have come as a result of their labor. It is important to note that Marx explained a capitalist system where the proletariat sold their labor to a capitalist as a means of survival. In exchange, the laborer is alienated from the product because since their labor-power has already been bought. "The alienation of the worker in his product means not only his labor becomes an object, an external existence, but that it exists outside him…"
In discussing the concept of the metabolic rift, Marx's view largely mirrors that of John Bellamy Forster. He provides a Marxist and scientific assessment of the capitalist system where the increased human demand and use of energy have not only destroyed but also led to a new form of ecological imbalance. Marx asserts that the emergence of the agricultural sciences in the 17 th century meant that the natural well-being of the soils was significantly neglected. In a bid to increase productivity, more focus was placed on the use of fertilizers. Therefore, capitalist agriculture was a danger to the ecological welfare of the soil.
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The two concepts of alienation and metabolic rift play a critical role in showing that socioeconomic and environmental issues are two sides of the same coin. First, the system of capitalism has a simultaneous impact on the economy and the environment. The capitalist system largely succeeded as a result of the exploitation of human labor and the environment. Capitalism came with a certain degree of objectification which affected both human labor and environmental viability to gain undue success. Therefore, the socioeconomic and ecological tenets are two interrelated concepts subject to manipulation to enhance success in a capitalist system.
