Autonomous and Heteronomous Labor

The most consequential distinction in Gorz's thought, elaborated over four decades and defended against every challenge because it identified something real: the subjective experience of work depends less on what the work is than on who directs it and why. Autonomous labor is performed under one's own direction for purposes one has chosen. Heteronomous labor is performed under the direction of others for purposes determined by others. The distinction cuts across every conventional measure of job quality — compensation, prestige, comfort — because it concerns the fundamental orientation of the activity. A scientist choosing her research question performs autonomous labor even when exhausted. A well-paid executive following board directives performs heteronomous labor even in comfort.