Alienation and Liberation of “Play Labor” in the Era of Digital Capitalism—A Critical Reconstruction Based on the <i>Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of</i> 1844

在数字资本主义背景下，劳动与休闲的传统界限日益模糊，形成了新的劳动形态——玩劳动。这一劳动形式通过平台经济、社交媒体内容生产、游戏化设计等形式，表面上呈现为娱乐化与自主化，实则深刻嵌入了资本主义的剥削机制。本文通过马克思的异化劳动理论，分析了数字时代玩劳动的异化现象，探讨了如何通过数据私有化、情感劳动隐性化等方式，资本主义平台加深对劳动者的控制与剥削，重塑了生命时间的资本逻辑。文章进一步讨论了劳动解放的可能路径，提出通过数字公地建设、主体性重构及跨平台劳工联合等方式，推动劳动者走向解放，重构劳动关系与社会共同体。In the context of digital capitalism, the traditional boundaries between labor and leisure are increasingly blurred, giving rise to a new form of labor—play labor. This form of labor, manifested through platform economies, social media content creation, gamified design, and other forms, superficially appears to be entertaining and autonomous, yet it is deeply embedded in capitalist exploitation mechanisms. This paper uses Marx’s theory of alienated labor to analyze the alienation phenomenon in digital-age play labor, exploring how capitalist platforms deepen control and exploitation over workers through data privatization, the invisibility of emotional labor, and other means, reshaping the logic of time as capital. The paper further discusses possible paths to labor liberation, proposing the construction of digital commons, the reconstruction of subjectivity, and cross-platform labor alliances as ways to help workers achieve liberation and reconstruct labor relations and social communities.