More Questions...

Greetings fellow 810 laborers!

Or are we? This is my first question, one that applies not only to this text but to the course as a whole. How do we define labor and who do we name laborers? What is explicit and implicit in the use of these terms? How do those who call themselves laborers or see themselves part of a 'labor group' claim ownership of these terms and use them to exert agency?

ok, second question. pp. 243-244 and the gendered labor forces, education, etc. Historically, my area within English departments, that of composition studies, is seen as the feminized field. Teaching composition is more labor intensive than teaching literature and, earlier in the last century, these labor-intensive (and thus undesirable) jobs went to women and part time faculty(who were often women). I'm not sure where my little questionless ramble is going - perhaps that is because I wanted to read more about this point in the essay. Perhaps because of the essay's function as an end-of-the-book commentary it must be a briefly made point. I guess my question, if it is one, is that aside from instinctual knowledge and bits of knowledge about this topic accumulated from other areas, I am not entirely clear how it is functioning within info tech labor. Anyone care to clarify this for me?

And now I need a third question - Whatever shall it be....

Just what information technology labor 'is' appears to be somewhat nebulous (see pages 240-242). At what point does information technology labor merge with other forms of labor? and why or why doesn't this matter? Are we all laborers in an information economy?

ok, a fourth question - how are we defining revolution? What constitutes a revolution? And why does it matter if it is a 'revolution' or not?

I seem to be leaning towards the semantics of all of this tonight. Fear not, it won't always be this way.

Sorry this came out so late in the evening - I really would keep vampire hours if I thought I could get away with it.

Katy