The Concept of «Social Factory» in the Philosophy of Antonio Negri

This article presents an attempt at a historical and philosophical analysis of the approach of the Italian philosopher Negri (August 1, 1933–December 16, 2023) to the creation of the image of the "social factory" during the period of global capitalism. Observing the reaction of capitalist countries to the October Revolution, Negri believed that capitalism first borrowed the attributes of socialism and then adapted communist ideas, thereby evolving while maintaining its essence, manifested in the exploitation and alienation of surplus value. Noticing the expansion of capitalism, he described social relations as similar to those of production, using the image of the "social factory," emphasizing capitalism's systemic transition to relations encompassing all spheres of society. The author of the article concludes that the key to Negri's philosophy was his ability to integrate his own ideas, which were rooted in practice and observation of global socio-political processes, into academic research on the ideas of Marx, Lenin, Spinoza, Machiavelli, Deleuze, Guattari, Foucault, and many others. He often spoke and wrote about the past, but preferred to look to the future, as he believed in the need to preserve philosophy's theoretical legacy to avoid the mistakes of previous historical periods.