If the author wanted to write a purely historical essay she is more than welcome to. Instead she chose a framing device of a post-work society thanks to AI that I think undermines the whole article.
"Aristocrats are (typically) rich, which we certainly will be if we have robots capable of all normal nonrelational labor." ...okay
I think this framing device was unnecessary. This was interesting historical food for thought without tying it to AI. I think its relevant to a mass-unemployment, economic depression scenario too, and others.
"Aristocrats are (typically) rich, which we certainly will be if we have robots capable of all normal nonrelational labor." ...okay