“Next week we study dogs”: How does Christopher Logue use satire to expose

the alienation and false consciousness of humanity under capitalism?

In the boom years, post-war, when the economy was growing and there was relative
prosperity, the working class seemed to benefit from government policies like the welfare
state, the NHS, council housing, and full-employment. This era was influenced by Keynesian
economics and the idea of social democracy. Conservative MP, Quintin Hogg, admitted that
these concessions were given in order to stave off a greater danger to capital: “if you do not
give the people social reform, they are going to give you social revolution.” (Daniels, 2018)

In "Professor Tuholsky's Facts", Christopher Logue critiques the state of humanity under the
capitalist system. The poem takes the form of a list of facts that the speaker claims to know
as if giving a lecture about an alien species. He presents humanity under capitalism, as a
slave to the need for profit, just as Marx saw that the average worker’s “labour is not
voluntary but coerced; it is forced labour.” Thus, they become a creature of false
consciousness, Logue highlighting, for example, the “two convictions” man had such as
“Luck / which he described as Good when things went Right” and “religion” which “he used
when things went Wrong”. With comedy and satire, Logue exposes that the ideological
superstructures of religion and fate that survive even in the ‘scientific’ era mean that people
are not making choices that are as conscious as they think they are. As Marx wrote, “It is not
the consciousness of men that determines their being, but, on the contrary, their social being
that determines their consciousness.” Humans as Logue describes them manage to live with
two opposing, inconsistent world-views, each of which allows them to make sense of the
illogical world they live in.

Marxist theory emphasises the economic structure of society as shaping social relations and
the individual's consciousness within the society. In a capitalistic society the means of
production are owned by the bourgeoisie, leading to what Marx feared the most was forced
labour and alienation from one's nature.

The irrational beliefs of humanity with these systems are portrayed satirically by Louge for
instance basing their circumstances on the idea of “luck” or “religion” which leads them to be
in a state of false consciousness. Which shows how a person could lose one's sense of identity
due to conflict between the peasants and the bourgeois turning people into "the most
wretched of commodities" (Marx, 1844).

In its entirety Logue’s critique of humanity in “Professor Tuholsky’s Facts” agrees with
Marx’s philosophy on false consciousness where capitalism moulds people's being. Louge
highlights how individuals cling to the false ideology they are fed to satisfy their plight of
trying to make sense of what surrounds them. The poem reveals the human condition under
the oppression of capitalism to the point where they are oblivious to it.

The speaker then goes on to describe the ways in which workers are exploited by capitalist
elites, stating that “each man had a liver, a heart, a brain, and a flag” showing how the
working class is conned into putting patriotic feelings above their own economic interests by
the bourgeois politicians. This deception aims to draw attention away from class conflict,
instilling loyalty in the working-class to a State that does not represent their interest. Logue
ruthlessly mocks this by making it seem like a flag is one of humanity’s “vital organs”. The
punchline of the joke is that, playing on the metaphorical and literal, Logue makes the actual
“Next week we study dogs”: How does Christopher Logue use satire to expose
the alienation and false consciousness of humanity under capitalism?

vital organs disposable and the non-vital “flag” seem indispensable: “some had no heart; /
and many had no brain. / But a man without a flag? / Impossible!”

Lenin observed that the bourgeoisie uses patriotic feelings as a ruse to obscure
socioeconomic disparities and strengthen their own position, breaking up “the unity of the
workers of the different nations in the struggle against the nationalism of every national
bourgeoisie” (Lenin, 1914)

The poem also emphasises the dehumanising effects of capitalism, under which a worker’s
most “Useful” achievement is to say that he “cheerfully” raised “the value of steel shares /
cheerfully he died a soldier's death” and asserting that the system reduces human beings to
mere inputs in the production process to profit the system. The speaker’s satire exposes the
alienation under capitalism, where the worker’s “labour … is not his own, but someone else’s,
it does not belong to him, in it he belongs, not to himself, but to another” (Marx, 1844).

The poem mocks the pretensions of capitalism, which claims to have created an enlightened,
advanced species, pointing out that in reality people are “full of fear” and that “most of all
they feared their Fellow Man” . The biblical injunction to ‘love your neighbour as yourself’, or
the European Enlightenment idea of the universal equality of ‘man’, are here exposed as
meaningless, when people live more by fear than by love. The satire continues as the speaker
states that “some men were different: thinkers, revolutionaries, or saints” emphasising the
need for collective action and the importance of the working class as a revolutionary force to
overthrow the capitalist system, yet once again mocking the lack of class consciousness with
bathos and comedy: “However these were few; and they / were quickly crucified, or shot, or
poisoned.”

Despite the appearance of material improvement and the optimistic rhetoric of political
figures like Harold Macmillan (“You never had it so good”), Logue, employing satire and
irony to challenge the notion that these developments truly represented a victory for the
working class, Logue suggests that the working class still remained alienated. It is not
enough simply to be paid slightly better or work slightly less. What Marx had aimed for was a
life for the worker with time for “the fulfilling of social functions and for social intercourse,
for the free play of his bodily and mental activity” (Marx, Capital Vol I, Chap 10, quoted in
James, 145). By using satire and irony, Logue undermines the claims made by those in power
who presented the working class's situation as an unambiguous triumph.

While it may have seemed on the surface that the working class had made gains in terms of
material well-being, Logue argues that the fundamental structures of capitalism and the
power held by the bourgeoisie remained intact. He suggests that true victory for the working
class goes beyond mere material prosperity and necessitates a more comprehensive
transformation of society to address issues of alienation and the persistent presence of global
conflict.
“Next week we study dogs”: How does Christopher Logue use satire to expose
the alienation and false consciousness of humanity under capitalism?

In ‘The Story of the Road’, the character of Daniel plays the part of a thinker, revolutionary,
and perhaps saint in the narrative poem. Daniel represents a person who confronts the
current social order and questions it in an effort to bring about transformational change. He
speaks for individuals who support social and economic fairness and advocate for an
alternative system or set of principles. The narrative takes the shape of an allegory or fable
and uses symbolic elements to express its main point. Daniel becomes an unusual strike
leader, leading “workless people” in a strike against their worklessness, deciding to “work,
for nothing, / all day long repairing the inland road”. They do so “Not as a symbolical, but a
normal action. / Not for money, but to show we can work. / And that not to work is a crime
against oneself.”
In continuation with the previous poem "The Story of the Road" addresses the disputes and
complexities of capitalism, stressing the struggle for modifications, the limitations imposed
by the framework, and the significant role that the state has in society. Through the allegory
and fable-like structure, the poem challenges readers to contemplate a world that is fair and
just while encouraging them to think about political and social concerns. "Not to work is a
crime against oneself" expresses Marx’s idea that "labour, life activity, productive life itself …
is the life of the species." (Marx, 1844) This implies that in order to be considered a fulfilled
human being one must work but not in the way capitalism dictates but in a way that the work
one does improves one's self and contributes to the society one is in. "The Story of the Road
dramatises how “Collective action” such as protests or strikes help workers gain a sense of
control and right or choice and voice in their lives, reducing the effect of alienation. They are
becoming unalienated by collective action."

The system sees this “collective action” as a threat to their authority recognizing the
revolutionary potential and so provokes the response of the State. As they work, “a fine-
boned, short, well-perfumed man, / twirling a little pistol on his forefinger, / stepped down
to us and said: / Stop work. I order it … Or else we shoot.”
Another way in which natural actions are restricted is the idea of owing nature as it was
given for usage to all people without any expectation of payment. The strikers are "Charged
with 'trespassing on public property.' The charge of trespassing on public property is ironic
as it makes one question the notion of what the public truly owns when it seems all
possessions belong to the state. This is further explored in the quote "The state's logic is to
maintain the working-class in a state of unfreedom." This quote conveys that the state's
actions are aimed to keep the working class under its heel and limit its freedom and so
ensure the continuation of the current socio economic order."Eight of them 'shared a cell ... /
watching a pair of cats make love on the roof / while the wireless gave a boxing match.'"
This image could represent the contrast between the confined reality of imprisonment and
the existence of other life and entertainment. The poem ends not triumphantly, but as was
more true to Logue’s times, with a compromise. The jailed strikers are released (although not
the “bandits” with whom they are imprisoned), a Communist MP is elected, and there is “a
great to-do up the leg of the land” about their case. However, “the inland road is still a rut, /
and half of those who struck went north”. Their moment of collective consciousness and
unalienated labour has only become a ‘Song’ to be passed on as memory.
“Next week we study dogs”: How does Christopher Logue use satire to expose
the alienation and false consciousness of humanity under capitalism?

In continuation "Urbanal '' focuses on the interplay between hope and hopelessness for a
revolutionary. Through his evocative language and imagery, Logue captures the reality of
living in a world in which capitalist rules value the rights of property ownership over
humanity, beauty or nature, in this case Logue's beloved tree.

The poem’s title, "Urbanal", is a word Logue may have invented, which may be linked to the
word 'urbane' meaning 'polite or polished in manner', as well as meaning 'from the city'. It is
ironic as the tree is cut down on the orders of an upper-class neighbour who is far from
'polite' in his removal of the tree. Depicting the juxtaposition of hope and despair, Logue uses
a first person poem to help force us to recognize that change begins with our own actions and
choices.

Logue also highlights moments of beauty resilience and human spirit “ cut that scumbag
down goodbye” he offers glimpses of hope that emerge from the midst of adversity but later
on concludes to himself that such revolt wouldn’t result in anything and his sacrifice
pointless and so he prays “ let the stump get him” here logue s intention may be to draw
attention to the marginalised communities and systemic issues that often go unnoticed or
overlooked.

To convey this the poem begins with Lounge's feelings of powerlessness for instance “What
can I do? / twice 20 000 square in legal blue / behind the leaves that bear his signature /
and all my leaves away." the phrase “ twice 20000 square in legal blue” representing the
overwhelming power of the tress owner who is backed by the law “ behind the leaves that
bear his signature” leading to the destruction of his tree. As a response, Lounge turns to
laughable acts of revenge "tingled" when he watches his neighbour's house get burgled, or
when he ends up having sex with the neighbour's nanny. However, these actions are
portrayed as childish "treats," revealing a sense of frustration rather than achieving true
justice and keeping him from losing his sanity.

He desires a fair legal system but realises the favour of the bourgeoisie “ "its roots were
getting at his garage. / His garage was endangered." the owner can dismiss lounges feeling
without repercussion "obelise / all my sad riff-raff with impunity," showing the bourgeoisie
vs proletariat conflict. He wishes he could just kill him. But then he realises all this would
achieve is a jail sentence, leaving him 'one of a long-forgotten laughing stock / locked in a
laughing house for aye.” which you defeat the point of resorting to violence, as it only leads to
personal ruin and no justice.
“Next week we study dogs”: How does Christopher Logue use satire to expose
the alienation and false consciousness of humanity under capitalism?

Bibliography
Daniels, M, The NHS Revolution, Counterfire, 2018, available at
https://www.counterfire.org/article/the-nhs-revolution/

Marx, K, Economic and Philosophical Manuscripts of 1844. Available at

https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1844/manuscripts/labour.htm