--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Humboldt did not foresee the consequences…" description: "\"“Humboldt did not foresee the consequences of the commodity character of labor, the doctrine (in Polanyi’s words) that “it is not for the commodity to ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e7/noam-chomsky-42_free-market_humboldt-did-not-foresee-the-consequence_169989.jpg" --- # Humboldt did not foresee the consequences of the commodity… ![“Humboldt did not foresee the consequences of the commodity character of labor, the doctrine (in Polanyi’s words) that “it is not for the commodity to decide where it should be offered for sale, to what purpose it should be used, at what price it should be allowed to change hands, and in what…” quote by Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e7/noam-chomsky-42_free-market_humboldt-did-not-foresee-the-consequence_169989.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e7/noam-chomsky-42_free-market_humboldt-did-not-foresee-the-consequence_169989.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e7/noam-chomsky-42_free-market_humboldt-did-not-foresee-the-consequence_169989.jpg) > ““Humboldt did not foresee the consequences of the commodity character of labor, the doctrine (in Polanyi’s words) that “it is not for the commodity to decide where it should be offered for sale, to what purpose it should be used, at what price it should be allowed to change hands, and in what manner it should be consumed or destroyed.” But the commodity, in this case, is a human life, and social protection was therefore a minimal necessity to constrain the irrational and destructive workings of the classical free market.”” [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage critiques treating human life as a market commodity, arguing that without social protections, free markets can become irrational and destructive, emphasizing the need for regulation. **In simple terms:** Treating lives as market items leads to harm without safeguards. Key Takeaway Advocate for social protections to limit market excesses. Themes economics human rights market regulation ethics social policy Mood critical urgent Type analytical political When to use this quote - policy making - labor rights - public debate Key Concepts political economy commodity theory social justice Questions to Reflect On - How can societies protect workers while fostering economic growth? - What ethical limits should be placed on market decisions? A Different Perspective Over‑regulation may stifle innovation; balance is needed. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Commodity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/commodity/) [Commodity Decide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/commodity-decide-1842323/) [Consequences Commodity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consequences-commodity-1842321/) [Free market](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/free-market/) [Human life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-life/) [Humboldt Did](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humboldt-did-1842324/) [Labor Doctrine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/labor-doctrine-1842322/) ## Related quotes > [The crisis of modern democracy is a profound one. Free elections, a free press and an independent judiciary mean little when the free market…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/the-crisis-of-modern-democracy-is-a-profound-one-free-elections-a/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [Gold was not selected arbitrarily by governments to be the monetary standard. Gold had developed for many centuries on the free market as the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-rothbard/gold-was-not-selected-arbitrarily-by-governments-to-be-the-monetary/) [Murray Rothbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-rothbard/) > [Free markets are based on the free circulation of labor. If you don't have free circulation of labor, you don't have free markets.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/free-markets-are-based-on-the-free-circulation-of-labor-if-you-don-t/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [“Well, it depends which planned economies you mean. There are lots of planned economies―the United States is a planned economy, for example. I mean,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/well-it-depends-which-planned-economies-you-mean-there-are-lots-of/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [The free market is 'socialism' for the rich: the public pays the costs and the rich get the benefit - markets for the poor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-free-market-is-socialism-for-the-rich-the-public-pays-the-costs/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [ Government grew under \[Ronald\] Reagan. He was the strongest opponent of free markets in the post-war history among presidents. But it doesn't matter what… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/government-grew-under-ronald-reagan-he-was-the-strongest-opponent-of/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Haitian rice farmers are quite efficient, but they can't compete with U.S. agribusiness that relies on a huge government subsidy, thanks to Ronald Reagan's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/haitian-rice-farmers-are-quite-efficient-but-they-can-t-compete-with/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [The elections are run by the same guys who sell toothpaste. They show you an image of a sports hero, or a sexy model,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-elections-are-run-by-the-same-guys-who-sell-toothpaste-they-show/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [It is an anomaly that information, the one thing most necessary to our survival as choosers of our own way, should be a commodity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-j-liebling/it-is-an-anomaly-that-information-the-one-thing-most-necessary-to-our/) [A. J. Liebling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-j-liebling/) > [Exploitation and manipulation produce boredom and triviality; they cripple man, and all factors that make man into a psychic cripple turn him also into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/exploitation-and-manipulation-produce-boredom-and-triviality-they/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [I eventually found that the soul is more than an immortal commodity to win and save. It is the repository of the inner divine,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/i-eventually-found-that-the-soul-is-more-than-an-immortal-commodity/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [Fear is the most valuable commodity in the universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-brooks/fear-is-the-most-valuable-commodity-in-the-universe/) [Max Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-brooks/) > [Money degrades all the gods of man and converts them into commodities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-marx/money-degrades-all-the-gods-of-man-and-converts-them-into-commodities/) [Karl Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-marx/) > [“Truth is commodity in political consumption.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toba-beta/truth-is-commodity-in-political-consumption/) [Toba Beta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toba-beta/) > [We do not claim that punning is legitimate wit. Wit consists in combination of ideas, punning in combination of words only. We wonder at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-hosmer/we-do-not-claim-that-punning-is-legitimate-wit-wit-consists-in/) [Harriet Hosmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-hosmer/) ## More by Noam Chomsky > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [If you believe in democracy, why shouldn't you know what the government is doing?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/if-you-believe-in-democracy-why-shouldn-t-you-know-what-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [It’s a shameful moment for U.S. media when it insists on being subservient to the grotesque propaganda agencies of a violent, aggressive state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/it-s-a-shameful-moment-for-u-s-media-when-it-insists-on-being/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [There are questions as to whether it should even exist. Who should corporations be responsive to, the management of a corporation? Theoretically they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-are-questions-as-to-whether-it-should-even-exist-who-should/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Governments regard their own citizens as their main enemy, and they have to be - protect themselves. That's why you have state secret laws.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/governments-regard-their-own-citizens-as-their-main-enemy-and-they/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [I don't join the New Atheists. So, for example, I wouldn't have the arrogance to lecture some mother who hopes to see her dying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/i-don-t-join-the-new-atheists-so-for-example-i-wouldn-t-have-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [The first thing you ought to do is verify what I present. Just because I say it doesn't make it true. So check it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-first-thing-you-ought-to-do-is-verify-what-i-present-just-because/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [ I wrote an article about the marine landing \[in Haiti\] right away, but barely mentioned the oil, because my article would come out two… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/i-wrote-an-article-about-the-marine-landing-in-haiti-right-away-but/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [American society is now remarkably atomized. Political organizations have collapsed. In fact, it seems like even bowling leagues are collapsing. The left has a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/american-society-is-now-remarkably-atomized-political-organizations/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Discovery is the ability to be puzzled by simple things. Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/discovery-is-the-ability-to-be-puzzled-by-simple-things-noam-chomsky/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [There's an interesting book about that called The Third Reich and the Ivory Tower, written by Stephen H. Norwood. It has a long discussion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-s-an-interesting-book-about-that-called-the-third-reich-and-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [This is class war on an international scale, and power is in the hands of those who control the international economic system.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/this-is-class-war-on-an-international-scale-and-power-is-in-the-hands/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [There are big, extremely irrational parts of the society, and they have now been mobilized politically by the Republican establishment, hoping that these people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-are-big-extremely-irrational-parts-of-the-society-and-they-have/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [There's plenty to criticize about the mass media, but they are the source of regular information about a wide range of topics. You can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-s-plenty-to-criticize-about-the-mass-media-but-they-are-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [The 50,000 Korean mercenaries we had in Vietnam were professional killers and just massacred people outright. And the American army did plenty of that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-50-000-korean-mercenaries-we-had-in-vietnam-were-professional/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) [Explore all 2,129 Noam Chomsky quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) ## More Commodity quotes > [We do not claim that punning is legitimate wit. Wit consists in combination of ideas, punning in combination of words only. We wonder at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-hosmer/we-do-not-claim-that-punning-is-legitimate-wit-wit-consists-in/) [Harriet Hosmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-hosmer/) > [“Truth is commodity in political consumption.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toba-beta/truth-is-commodity-in-political-consumption/) [Toba Beta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toba-beta/) > [Money degrades all the gods of man and converts them into commodities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-marx/money-degrades-all-the-gods-of-man-and-converts-them-into-commodities/) [Karl Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-marx/) > [Fear is the most valuable commodity in the universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-brooks/fear-is-the-most-valuable-commodity-in-the-universe/) [Max Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-brooks/) > [I eventually found that the soul is more than an immortal commodity to win and save. It is the repository of the inner divine,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/i-eventually-found-that-the-soul-is-more-than-an-immortal-commodity/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [Exploitation and manipulation produce boredom and triviality; they cripple man, and all factors that make man into a psychic cripple turn him also into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/exploitation-and-manipulation-produce-boredom-and-triviality-they/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [It is an anomaly that information, the one thing most necessary to our survival as choosers of our own way, should be a commodity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-j-liebling/it-is-an-anomaly-that-information-the-one-thing-most-necessary-to-our/) [A. J. Liebling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-j-liebling/) > [Petrol price is a deregulated commodity, price of which is decided by our oil marketing companies based on input cost and other parameters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veerappa-moily/petrol-price-is-a-deregulated-commodity-price-of-which-is-decided-by/) [Veerappa Moily](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veerappa-moily/) > [Oil painting did to appearances what capital did to social relations. It reduced everything to the equality of objects. Everything became exchangeable because everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-berger/oil-painting-did-to-appearances-what-capital-did-to-social-relations/) [John Berger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-berger/) > [The great lesson in microeconomics is to discriminate between when technology is going to help you and when it's going to kill you. 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After all, you can never have enough of what you didn't want in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-holden/to-be-happy-you-have-to-know-what-you-really-want-after-all-you-can/) [Robert Holden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-holden/) [Browse all 673 Commodity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/commodity/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Humboldt did not foresee the consequences of the commodity character of labor, the doctrine (in Polanyi’s words) that “it is not for the commodity to decide where it should be offered for sale, to what purpose it should be used, at what price it should be allowed to change hands, and in what manner it should be consumed or destroyed.” But the commodity, in this case, is a human life, and social protection was therefore a minimal necessity to constrain the irrational and destructive workings of the classical free market.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Noam Chomsky" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/humboldt-did-not-foresee-the-consequences-of-the-commodity-character/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Commodity" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/humboldt-did-not-foresee-the-consequences-of-the-commodity-character/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e7/noam-chomsky-42_free-market_humboldt-did-not-foresee-the-consequence_169989.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e7/noam-chomsky-42_free-market_humboldt-did-not-foresee-the-consequence_169989.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e7/noam-chomsky-42_free-market_humboldt-did-not-foresee-the-consequence_169989.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Humboldt did not foresee the consequences of the commodity character of labor, the doctrine (in Polanyi’s…” — Noam Chomsky", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Noam Chomsky", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Humboldt did not foresee the consequences...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/humboldt-did-not-foresee-the-consequences-of-the-commodity-character/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/humboldt-did-not-foresee-the-consequences-of-the-commodity-character/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```