Mar'x ideas

what did Marx believe in regards to understanding society

it is possible to understand society scientifically and that this knowledge would point us the way to a better society

what did Marx call his theory about understanding society scientifically

‘scientific socialism’

how does Marx’s views differ from functionalist views

Marx did not see progress as a smooth and gradual evolution

how did Marx see progress as opposed to Functionalists

he saw historical change as a contradictory process in which capitalism would increase human misery before giving way to a classless communist society in which human beings would be free to fulfil their potential

what is materialism

the view that humans are beings with material needs, such as food, clothing and shelter and must therefore work to meet them.

how do people meet their material needs

they use the force of production. wha

what were the forces of production in early history

unaided human labour

how have these forces developed overtime

over time people develop tools, machines and so on to assist in production

what do humans also do in working to achieve their needs

cooperate with one another: they enter into social relations of production- ways of organising production

what has happened over time as the forces of production grow

the social relations of production. in particular, a division of labour develops,

what happens as the division of labour develops

it eventually gives a rise to a division between two classes:

• a class that owns the means of production (bourgeoisie)

• a class of labourers (proletariat)

how does the division of the two classes effect production

production is directed by the class of owners to meet their own needs.

what does Marx refer to the forces and relations of production together

the mode of production .

whats an example of the mode of production

currently we live in a society with a capitalist mode of production. the mode of production form the economic base of society. this economic base shapes or determines all other features of society.

what did we not have in the earliest stage of human history

no classes, no private ownership and no exploitation- everyone works and everything is shared

hoe does Marx describe the early classless society

‘primitive communism’

what happens as the forces of production grow

different types of class society’s come and go

what happens in class societies

one class owns the means of production enabling them to exploit the labour of others for their own benefit.

what can the class that owns the means of production do in particular

they can control societies surplus product. this is the difference between what the labourers actually produce and what is needed simply to keep them alive and working

what are the three forms of successive class societies Marxists identify

• ancient society

• feudal society

• capitalist society

ancient society

based on the exploitation of slaves legally tied to their owners

feudal society

based on the exploitation of serfs legally tied to the land

capitalist society

based on the exploitation of free wage labourers

what is capitalism based on

a division between a class of owners and a class of labourers. however it has 3 distinct features

1. how is capitalism distinguished from slaves or surfs

unlike slaves or surfs the proletariat’s are legally free and separated from the means of production

how are the proletariat legally free and separated from the means of production

they do not own any means of production, they have to sell their labour power to the bourgeoisie in return for wages in order to survive

whats a problems with saying the proletariat legally free and separated from the means of production

its not an equal exchange. the proletariat do not receive the value of the goods that their labour produces, but only the cost of subsistence- of keeping them alive. the difference between the two is the surplus value- the profit that the capitalists makes by selling the commodities that the proletariat have produced.

2. whats the distinctive feature about capitalism in regards to competition

through competition between capitalists, ownership of the means of production becomes concentrated in fewer and fewer hands (culminating in today’s giant transnational corporations)

what does this competition do to smaller producers

drives small independent produces into the ranks of the proletariat.

what does competition force capitalism to do

pay the lowest wages possible, causing the immiseration (impoverishment) of the proletariat

3. how is capitalism distinguished in regards to continuous expansion

capitalism continually expands the forces of production in its pursuit of profit. production becomes concentrated in ever-larger units. meanwhile, technological advances de-skill the workforces

what does concentration of ownership and the deskilling of the proletariat together produce

class polarisation

whats class polarisation

society divides into a minority capitalist class and a majority working class that in marxs words ‘face each other as two warning camps’

how does capitalism ‘sow the seeds of its own destruction’ according to Marx

by polarising the classes, bringing the proletariat together in an even larger number, and driving down their wages,

what does capitalism create which is opposite to the interests of its exploiters

capitalism creates the conditions under which the working class can develop a consciousness of its own economic and political interests in opposition to those of it exploiters

whats the result of capitalism creating conditions where the w/c develop a consciousness

the proletariat moves from being merely a class in itself to becoming a class for itself, whose members are class conscious- aware of the need to overthrow capitalism

who does Marx believe owns the production of ideas

the class that owns the means of production also owns and controls the means of mental production- the production of ideas.

what are the dominant ideas in society

the ideas of the economically dominant class

who are the main culprits for producing ideoliges

institutions that produce and spread ideas like religion, education and the media , all serve the dominant class by producing ideologies

what are ideologies

sets of ideas and beliefs that legitimise the existing social order as desirable or inevitable

what do ideologies adopt

a false consciousness in the subordinate classes and helps to sustain class inequality.

howveer what happens as capitalism impoverishes the workers

they develop class consciousness as see through capitalist ideology and become conscious of their true position as ‘wage salves’

what does Marx believe our true nature is based on

our capacity to create things to meet our needs. Alienation is the result of our loss of control over our labour and its products and therefore our separation from our true nature

where does alienation exist

in all class societies, because the owners control the production process for their own needs

how does alienation reach its peak with capitalism

• workers are completely separated from and have no control over the force of production

• the division of labour is at its most intense and detailed: the worker is reduced to an unskilled labourer mindlessly repeating a meaningless task

how does Marx define the state

as ‘armed bodies of men’- the army, the police, prisons, courts and so on.

why does the state exist according to Marx

the state exists to protect the interests of owners who control it and they form the ruling class

what do the ruling class use the state as

a weapon in the class struggle, to protect their property, suppress opposition and prevent revolution.

whats Marx’s view on the proletariat overthrowing capitalism

in Marx’s view the proletarian revolution that overthrows capitalism will be the first revolution by the majority against the minority.

what does Marx believe the revolution will do

• abolish the state and create a classless communist society

• abolish exploitation, replace private ownership, and replace production for profit with production to satisfy human needs.

• end allianantion as humans regain control of their labour and its products

who does marx predict to win

the ultimate victory of the proletariat revolution and the establishment of the communist society on a world scale.

how has marxs two-class model be criticised

it has been criticised for being too simplistic e.g. Weber sub-divided the prolatariat into skilled and unskillled classes, and includes a white collar m/c of officie workers

how has Marx’s view of inequality been criticised

for being simplistic, one dimensional view of inequality- he sees class as the only important division.

How has Marx been criticised on an economic basis

Marx’s base-superstructure model is criticised for economic determinism- the view that economic factors are the sole cause of everything in society, including social change.