Karl Marx and Conflict Theory

Society and Social Interaction SOCI 1306 Karl Marx and Conflict Theory Karl Marx (1818–1883) is undoubtedly one of the most important social philosophers of the modern era. Even if his work has a lot of detractors, it is nonetheless highly regarded and significant. Marx believed that the concept of "base and superstructure" served as the foundation for society's constructs. This phrase describes the theory that a society's economic makeup serves as the foundation, upon which its social structures and culture lie as the superstructure. Marx believed that a society's character is determined by its basis, or economics. Marx also believed that social strife was the main driver of change. In terms of economics, he perceived a struggle between the proletariat, or labourers, and the bourgeoisie, who owned the means of production. Marx argued that these conflicts have always arisen throughout social revolutions throughout history. One class controlling another was the cause of these upheavals, or as he put it, "class antagonisms." Most recently, when feudalism ended, the proletariat labourers were under the control of a new revolutionary class he named the bourgeoisie. The bourgeoisie were revolutionary because they stood for a drastic alteration to the way society was organised. Marx said in Marx and Engels 1848 that "society as a whole is more and more splitting up into two great hostile camps, into two great classes directly facing each other—Bourgeoisie and Proletariat." As industrialization grew in the middle of the nineteenth century, industrial employers—or, in Marx's words, the "owners of the means of production"—became increasingly oppressive of the working class. Large steel producers were especially brutal, and because of this, people started calling their factories "satanic mills," a reference to a William Blake poem. The appalling circumstances were extensively detailed in Frederick Engels' 1844 book The Condition of the Working-Class in England, written by Marx's friend and coworker. "This is the Old Town of Manchester, and after reading it again, I have to acknowledge that, far from being overdone, my description does not accurately portray the squalor, ruin, and uninhabitability—the defiance of all health, ventilation, and cleanliness considerations that are inherent in the development of this one district, home to at least 20,000–30,000 people. And the first manufacturing city in the world, and the second largest city in England, has an area like this. Marx and Engels referred to capitalism as the “dictatorship of the bourgeoisie” because it is an economic system in which the resources needed to produce and transport goods—such as land, oil, factories, ships, and other assets—are owned by private individuals and businesses rather than the government. Add to this the long hours, the use of child labour, and exposure to extreme heat, cold, and toxic chemicals. Marx believed that our actions shape who we are. In historical terms, there was a portion of humanity present despite the fact that one class continued to dominate another. At least a minimal relationship existed between the labourer and the final product, enhanced by the cycles of the seasons and the sun's rise and set, as observed in an agrarian community. However, the worker now only laboured for pay as a result of the bourgeoisie revolution, the growth of industry, and capitalism. His relationship to his efforts was now predicated on artificial circumstances rather than his inherent human character. Marx used the word alienation to characterise modern society. When a person feels cut off from society, their job, or their sense of self, it is referred to as alienation. Marx distinguished four distinct categories of alienation. alienation from one's labor's output. An industrial worker is deprived of the chance to connect with the product that he works on. An inexperienced individual can work at a watch factory, pressing buttons to join components together, rather than undergoing years of training to become a watchmaker. The worker just cares that the job exists; it doesn't matter if he is manufacturing automobiles or watches. Similarly, an employee could not even be aware of the product he is contributing to. It's possible for an assembly line worker for Ford to put windows on automobile doors all day long without ever seeing the exterior of the vehicle. An employee at a cannery may dedicate their entire life to cleaning fish without ever understanding the end purpose for them. alienation from the labour process itself. Because she does not own the means of production, an employee has no influence over the working environment. A worker is required to prepare meals at a fast food restaurant according to her training if she gets recruited. There isn't any leeway or flexibility in the sequence or quantity in which the components must be blended. Just as a worker on a Ford assembly line cannot choose to rearrange the location of a car's headlights, so can a Burger King employee select to alter the spices used on the fries. The bourgeoisie makes all the decisions and gives the labourers commands. alienation from coworkers. Instead of cooperating, workers compete. Workers compete for schedules, pay raises, and stable employment. The battle continues even when an employee leaves the office at night and heads home. "No sooner is the exploitation of the labourer by the manufacturer, so far at an end, that he receives his wages in cash, than he is set upon by the other portion of the bourgeoisie, the landlord, the shopkeeper, the pawnbroker," said Marx in The Communist Manifesto (1848). disconnection from oneself. A worker's loss of connection to her profession is one of the ultimate effects of industrialization. A worker no longer has a feeling of self since there is nothing connecting her to her work.A person is just a cog in the machine rather than being able to take pleasure in an identity such as being a chef, watchmaker, or vehicle manufacturer. When considered comprehensively, alienation in contemporary culture denotes a lack of personal agency. A individual has autonomy over the timing and method of his labour, even in feudal civilizations. Therefore, why doesn't the contemporary working class rebel? (In fact, Marx foresaw that this would be capitalism's final result and collapse.) The idea of false awareness is another term that Marx created. A person who has views, values, or an ideology that do not serve their own interests is said to have false awareness. The proletariat is actually subjected to the ideology of the ruling class, in this case the bourgeois capitalists. It is obvious that concepts like the value of hard effort being its own reward or the preference for competition over collaboration are advantageous to business owners. As a result, employees are less prone to doubt their role in society and take personal accountability for the state of affairs. Marx suggested that class consciousness —the understanding of one's role in society—replace false consciousness in order for society to overcome it. To bring about social change, the proletariat must transform from being a "class in itself" into a "class for itself" (Marx and Engels, 1848). This means that rather than becoming a passive class inside society, the class might take on the role of an advocate for social advancements. Society would not be prepared for a social revolution until it reached this level of political consciousness.