Preview

One of the main assumptions of Marxism : Contradiction and Conflict.

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
455 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
One of the main assumptions of Marxism : Contradiction and Conflict.
The theory of Marxism is a fundamental alternative to functionalism. It was largely used and appreciated during the 1970s, due to the decline of functionalism and the assurance that it could offer answers which functionalism could not provide. Also, Marxism was more in sync with that era. It takes its name from the German philosopher who created its assumptions, Karl Marx (1818-1883). Marx derived his main assumptions with the help of his close ally and compatriot, Friedrich Engels. The following report is a simplified story of one of the assumptions of the Marxist perspective : Contradiction and Conflict.

CONTRADICTION AND CONFLICT

The main premise of Marxism is Economics. This theory begins with the observation that, in order to continue to exist, humans must produce food and material possessions. In order to carry out production, social beings enter into relationships with each other. The size, modernization or state of a society does not matter. Whether it is a large industrialized society or a small hunting village, every civilization needs successful production in order to survive; it is a social enterprise. In order for production to be successful, it must involve a methodological factor known as forces of production, which consists of the technology, scientific knowledge and raw materials employed in the course of production.

Each major phase in the progress of the forces of production will keep up a correspondence with a particular type of the social relationships of production. For instance, the forces of production in a hunting / gathering society will correspond with a certain set of social relationships. When placed together, the forces of production and the social relationships of production form the economic foundation or infrastructure of society. The other portion of society, which is the superstructure, is produced by the infrastructure. In a nutshell, the political, didactic and legal institutions and the ethical and belief systems are chiefly

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    Conflict theory focuses on the sharing of resources such as power and views social life as a competition.…

    • 113 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Marxism is the political and economical theories of Karl Marx, which later developed into the basis for communism…

    • 387 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Marxism shares in common with functionalism the macro structural approach to society, looking at it as a whole, however a key difference between the two theories is that marxism is a conflict perspective, that is the conflict of class between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat also known as the ruling and working classes. The work of Karl Marx in the mid 1800s constitutes the main body of this conflict theory, he wrote that the central institution of capitalist society is private property, the system by which capital (money, machines, factories and other material objects) is controlled by a small minority of the population, leading to opposed classes i.e. the bourgeoisie and the proletariat (Cohen 1978). Marxists believe that society is based on ascribed status which is given by birth or family background, therefore the bourgeoisie pass down their land and properties to their children, keeping the wealth in the…

    • 2075 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Marxism is a worldview and method of societal analysis that focuses on class relations and societal conflict. Marxist sociologists believe that economics are what determines society. These include things like: politics, religion, law and culture. Basically they think that the way goods are made and distributed determines the ways…

    • 601 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Marxism focuses on the inequality that exists in capitalist society and suggests ways that this inequality can be overcome (i.e. through evolution). It also suggests alternatives to the capitalist system.…

    • 1064 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Marxism is a useful conflict theory in helping us to understand why there was obedience, particularly in the past in society. Marx was seen as an economic determinist, as he believed that the functioning and running of society was based upon the economy. Because of this, Marx says that is why there was a divide between the proletariat (working class who have only their skills to sell) and the bourgeoisie (the ruling class who own the means of production). The bourgeoisie cannot operate without the proletariat, as they cannot produce products, and similarly the proletariat cannot operate without the bourgeoisie, as they need them so they can be paid a wage and feed their families. Therefore, even though the Bourgeoisie were exploiting the proletariat and the proletariat could have walked away to stop being exploited, they never walked away as they needed the money. On the other hand, this can be viewed from a different perspective. The reason why these people may have not left their jobs is because they could have been in a state of false consciousness, whereby they were unaware of their exploitation by the bourgeoisie. This helps us to understand society as the Marxism theory provides reasoning on how the bourgeoisie were able to exploit the proletariat, which in turn fuelled capitalism and allowed the ruling elite to maintain their profits. It is also relevant to today’s society, as it helps to explain why many people who are in a hard laboured, low paid job (e.g. Factory workers) do not leave, despite hating their job, and this is because they need the money to survive.…

    • 2098 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Marxist theory is a theory based on economic oppression by capitalist structures and institutions. Marxism states that conflict between those in society who own production vs those in…

    • 1743 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Marxism states that the power in society lies with the people who have more money or…

    • 2664 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    unit 7 p1

    • 1140 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Marxism was introduced and studied by Karl Marx during 1818 and 1883. The Marxist view is based on the conflicts and interests of the society, it also strongly highlights on the importance of conflict in societies and communities. They also believe that economics are the bases of progressing and social life this can be achieved by struggling through social classes. The two classes that Marx discussed about were the Bourgeoisie and Proletariat. The Bourgeoisie class is a small powerful group who may have owned factories or own companies whereas the Proletariat is a poorer group of workers. The way a Marxists thinks is based on the financial structures and systems as well as social class meaning that these factors are vital in the Marxist view.…

    • 1140 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Marxism, created by philosopher Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, is an economic system that criticizes capitalism. Many often think of Marxism as a type of socialism. Marxism is the foundation that communism is built on which says that one should live in a “socialist, classless society” (Marxism). Marx and Engels wrote a book entitle “The Communist Manifesto,” which encourages the working class to overthrow the upper class. He makes a point of saying that Marxism is against capitalism because it is an exploitation of the working class. He believed that a socialist economy would work far better with a big population than would a capitalist economy. Another important idea of Marxism is historical materialism. Marx believed that history was shaped by people’s materialistic ways of living. A person’s will to survive is shown by their want to acquire things to keep on living. Marx and Engels were the first to predict that industrial…

    • 1513 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Marxism is a conflict view that sees society as being based on class divisions and exploitation. Marxists argue that in society there are two classes – the bourgeoisie which is the ruling class and the proletariat which is the working class. The capitalist class owns the means of production and make their profit by exploiting the labour of the working class. This creates class conflict that could threaten the stability of capitalism or even result in a revolution to overthrow it. Social institutions such as the education system reproduce class inequalities and play an ideological role by persuading exploited workers that inequality is justified and acceptable.…

    • 626 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    In this essay I am going to be looking at two of the main sociological theories; Marxism and Functionalism. In the main body of the essay I will be looking into the history of these theories, when did they become popular and why were they so? I will then make a comparison of the two to see if they contrast, if they do, how so. I will begin by looking at Marxism and secondly Functionalism. I will then be comparing and contrasting the two.…

    • 1470 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Marxism is a useful conflict theory in helping us to understand why there was obedience, particularly in the past in society. Marx saw negativity within the economy; he believed that the functioning and running of society was based upon the economy. Because of this, Marx states why there is a divide between the proletariat (working class who have only their skills to sell) and the bourgeoisie (the ruling class who own the means of production). The bourgeoisie cannot operate without the proletariat, as they cannot produce products, and similarly the proletariat cannot operate without the bourgeoisie, as they need them so they can be paid a wage and feed their families. On the other hand, this can be viewed from a different perspective. However it can be argued that these people may have not left their jobs is because they could have been in a state of false consciousness, whereby they were unaware of their exploitation by the bourgeoisie. This helps us to understand society as the Marxism theory provides reasoning on how the bourgeoisie were able to exploit the proletariat, which in turn powered capitalism and allowed the ruling elite to maintain their profits. It is also relevant to today’s society, as it helps to explain why many people who are in a low paid job (e.g. Factory workers) do not leave, despite hating their job, and this is because they need the money to survive. On the other hand radical social change would be inevitable according to Marx, society would enter a final period- communism. However this can be criticized as capitalism has only…

    • 881 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Social Conflict Theory

    • 3263 Words
    • 14 Pages

    Thus, the social conflict theory states that groups within a capitalist society tend to interact in a destructive way, that allows no mutual benefit and little cooperation. The solution Marxism proposes to this problem is that of an workers' revolution to break the political and…

    • 3263 Words
    • 14 Pages
    Good Essays

Related Topics