Glengarry Glen Ross

In the corporate world, workers are expendable. Workers are average people, working the minimum in order to make the minimum. Their bosses, or the bourgeoisie, rely on the workers in order to make them the money that they define themselves by. Alec Baldwin's character says "I made $970 thousand dollars last year. That's who I am, and you are nothing." He defines himself by his money, and looks down on the working class because of their sheer lack of money. Ironically, their lack of money is defined by the job which is controlled by the bourgeoisie. The people with money control who has the money.

Marx states that labor is a commodity, which is much like any other commodity. Labor is worth no more or less than sugar, or any other traded item. Labor, while expendable, is a necessity for the bourgeoisie. The bourgeoisie's only job is to give the laborers hope that one day they can better themselves because of their job. Baldwin's character says "the money's out there, go pick it up and it's yours," which puts a false hope into the laborer's mind. They think that they, one day, can also strike it rich. However, as long as a worker remains in the corporate world, he will never make it to the top of the chain. Ironically, Baldwin's character also says "the rich get richer, that's the law of the land," which is the only full truth the he says in his entire monologue. By inspiring the workers to work harder, the workers benefit by keeping their dead-end job. Baldwin will benefit by making even more money.

All in all, the working world is a tough and depressing place. The workers are in a never-ending cycle of trying to better themselves and their families, yet getting trapped by greedy corporate capitalists who are only interested in making themselves more money.