In this text, Baudrillard argues that modern society has moved beyond "production" (the making of goods for use) and even "exchange" (the trading of goods for money) into a state of . In this new era, reality is governed by "codes"—abstract systems like fashion, media, and digital data—that no longer refer to anything real. Key Concepts Jean Baudrillard - Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Symbolic Exchange and Death (1976) is widely considered to be Jean Baudrillard’s most important work, marking his definitive "postmodern turn" from Marxist critiques of production toward a theory of simulation and the "structural law of value". Symbolic Exchange and Death