Socialactivityandsocialconsumptionbynomeansexistsolelyintheformofadirectlycommunalactivityandadirectlycommunalconsumption，eventhoughcommunalactivityandcommunalconsumption——i.e.，activityandconsumptionthatexpressandconfirmthemselvesdirectlyinrealassociationwithothermen——occurwhereverthatdirectexpressionofsociality[Gesellschaftlichkeit]springsfromtheessentialnatureofthecontentoftheactivityandisappropriatetothenatureoftheconsumption.
ButevenifIamactiveinthefieldofscience，etc.——anactivitywhichIamseldomabletoperformindirectassociationwithothermen——IamstillsociallyactivebecauseIamactiveasaman.Itisnotonlythematerialofmyactivity——includingeventhelanguageinwhichthethinkerisactive——whichIreceiveasasocialproduct.Myownexistenceissocialactivity.ThereforewhatIcreatefrommyselfIcreateforsociety，consciousofmyselfasasocialbeing.
Myuniversalconsciousnessisonlythetheoreticalformofthatwhoselivingformistherealcommunity，society，whereasatpresentuniversalconsciousnessisanabstractionfromreallifeandassuchinhostileoppositiontoit.Hencetheactivityofmyuniversalconsciousness——asactivity——ismytheoreticalexistenceasasocialbeing.
Itis，aboveall，necessarytoavoidoncemoreestablishing\"society\"
asanabstractionoveragainsttheindividual.Theindividualisthesocialbeing.Hisvitalexpression——evenwhenitdoesnotappearinthedirectformofacommunalexpression，conceivedinassociationwithothermen——isthereforeanexpressionandconfirmationofsociallife.