Mercantilization replaces truth-testing with saleability and efficiency as the criteria for knowledge

Evidence

The question (overt or implied) now asked by the professionalist student, the State, or institutions of higher education is no longer “Is it true?” but “What use is it?” In the context of the mercantilization of knowledge, more often than not this question is equivalent to: “Is it saleable?” And in the context of power-growth: “Is it efficient?” Having competence in a performance-oriented skill does indeed seem saleable in the conditions described above, and it is efficient by definition. What no longer makes the grade is competence as defined by other criteria true/false, just/unjust, etc.—and, of course, low performativity in general. — Jean-François Lyotard, The Postmodern Condition, 373

Categorization

• DEFINE: Introduces performativity as the replacement criterion for knowledge in a mercantilized learning context.
• XREF: This is the precise claim Jameson critiques obliquely as the logic of late-capitalist knowledge; the reader’s stated goal is connecting Lyotard to Jameson. — connects to: Scientific knowledge operates as a pragmatic game governed by contract — Jean-François Lyotard, The Postmodern Condition: A Report on…, 325; Totalizing truth-seeking theory gets co-opted by the system’s optimization — Jean-François Lyotard, The Postmodern Condition: A Report on…, 154; Efficiency is treated as uncontestable truth rather than a contestable value — David Theo Goldberg, The Racial State, 121
• SEED: Angle: the ‘Is it saleable?’ test as a lens on today’s university metrics, rankings, and skills-based credentialing.

Broader Connections

• Efficiency is treated as uncontestable truth rather than a contestable value #exemplifies (0.85) — David Theo Goldberg, The Racial State, 121
• Totalizing truth-seeking theory gets co-opted by the system’s optimization #expands (0.75) — Jean-François Lyotard, The Postmodern Condition, 154