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This paper investigates the problem of reification in Moses Hess’s philosophy of action. My hypothesis is that his theoretical elaboration of this problem should be considered an important moment in the formation and metamorphosis of the concept of reification between Hegel and Marx. To show this, I review the developmental stages of Hess’s philosophy, paying close attention to the contextual problematization of how vital activity becomes objectifed, and attempt to determine what role the problem of reiifcation plays within his theorized structure of action. In doing so, I show how the process of the reification of vital activity has a dual nature. Reifcation is, indeed, a necessary moment within action, but it is consistently subject to a tension between the possibility of producing concrete effects and the risk of losing the self in the object.

DOI: 10.19079/metodo.9.2.327

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