John Sayles' movie Matewan offers an alternative to the norm when thinking about the development of class and
economic systems in the modern world. Upon first glance, it seems as though the coal miners in the town of
Matewan were the subjects of a cruel feudal system, sentenced to spending their lives slaving away for a company
who cared very little for them. A classic example of the type of economy Karl Marx spent his life opposing. However,
it becomes apparent that this is not at all the case, for the people of Matewan eventually tired of having the fruits of
their labor become more and more a burden on their shoulders. I would like to argue that in the process of unionizing
their labor force, the coal miners actually managed to opt out of the feudalist system, skip the free labor market
economy, and form a primitive communist system.

In the beginning of the movie, the viewer is promptly made aware of the conditions the coal miners were forced the
work under. The Stone Mountain Coal Company exerted a great deal of energy to ensure control of all aspects of the
miner's lives. By paying them in company script, the company forces the miners to purchase all goods and services
from the company. The miners begin their work in debt, and because of the low wages and continuance of charges
placed on their account, they are unable to work their way out of the hole (no pun intended). Because the Stone
Mountain Coal Company was paying the workers by the ton and not by an hourly wage, whether or not the workers
were content with their jobs was basically irrelevant. The company also had obtained a monopoly on the
employment in the town, forcing the workers to work for them. Most of the men spent their entire adult lives working
as coal miners and were never self-sufficient enough to retire. As a result, the men in the town worked until they
either died in an explosion or of black lung due to the coal dust in the air.

Upon the arrival of Joe Callahan and his attempts to unionize the workers, a marked change occurs in the economic and social systems of the town.   The change in economy forces the workers to relate differently to one another in order to survive.  Because the Stone Mountain Coal Company never actually allowed the workers to unionize during the course of the film, Matewan's feudal state never reached the status of a capitalist system.  Instead, the workers chose to leave the system established by the Stone Mountain Coal Company and form their own economic system.  This new system was, in effect, a primitive communist system economically and socially similar to that of ancient peoples. Karl Marx defines a primitive communist system as being one in which the people all share the goods they need to survive. The people are also socially equal, with an equal division of labor.  Lastly, the quality of life is good for everyone.

After leaving the town, the people of Matewan basically fulfill all of these requirements for a primitive communist system.
Economically, the food and goods needed for survival were scarce, but the people all shared these resources.   They used a system of rationing, and if one family had more mouths to feed and another had less, the resources were basically divided accordingly.  For instance, one woman gave an immigrant Italian family the rabbit her son caught because the Italian family needed it more than she did.  The division of labor was also equal in that everyone was expected to contribute to the group, but no one had a set, unchanging group of tasks.  Each person had to do what was needed in order to survive, whether that meant hunting, fishing, or taking care of children while someone else did the hunting and fishing.

Socially, the changes that occured within the coal mining community were dramatic.  Because solidarity was necessary for them to be successful, everyone regardless of race, gender, and prior socioeconomic status became equal.  The interrelationships gained importance because of the lack of economy within the community.  The people had to move beyond their various predjudices in order to acheive their common goal.  The scene depicting everyone playing baseball together was an example of all people relating to one another on an even playing field, with the end result being a more successful community.  Even in the covert attempt to murder Joe Callahan, the men were involved equally in the operation.  In the end, the community was able to succeed because they realized that a communist society was the one that would work best for them.