...ESSAY – ‘What is the Marxist theory of the state and how might it be criticised?’ Introduction Marxism first arose in 1987 when Marx and Engels were commissioned to write the manifesto for the political party of radical workers, The Communist League; this political party was formed in order to create a unity of the ‘working men’, in favour of the creation of a classless society. The purpose of The Communist Manifesto, and much of Marx’s early writings on the state, was to promote social change, in refutation to Hegel’s theory of the dialetic. This is achieved through the construction of a materialist interpretation of the state as ‘the active, conscious and official expression (of) the present structure of society' (Collected Works, 3, p. 199). Marx’s ultimate aim was to “lay bare the economic law of motion of modern society.” (Marx, Capital [1867] 1965, p10), which is to… This essay will explain and analyse Marx’s theory of state, a nd assess the legitimacy of the theory through criticisms. Marx’s theory of history/state: History is a study of past events in human affairs; Marx believes that historical events are driven forward by changing economic factors within the ‘base’ of society. According to Marx, human society is made up of two measures: a base and a superstructure. The superstructure is the set of 'non-economic institutions whose character is explained by the nature of the economic structure (the base).' (G. A. Cohen Karl Marx's Theory of History: A Defence pp 216...
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...English 1020-L22 November 3, 2013 Cultural Analysis-“From Silence to Words: Writing as Struggle” “From Silence to Words: Writing as Struggle” is an essay written by Min-Zhan Lu, in which she describes the effects, both positive and negative, she experienced while trying to obtain somewhat of a balance, between the learning techniques and language forced on to her and her sisters by their parents, and the education and language taught and enforced by their country, China. Lu describes the emotional strain, confusion, and the political persecution she experienced, beginning at the young, tender age of four years old, the year after the Communist Revolution of 1949. For many years, the only memories Lu had were of the many hardships she faced during the years of getting her education, which made it difficult to recall the benefits of her education. While writing this essay, Lu was forced to reflect over these particular years of her life and the effects it had on her, both good and bad. She finally realized that as hard as it was to endure these hardships, personal benefits resulted from these difficult times as well. Lu explains her revelation by stating, “My understanding of my education was so dominated by memories of confusion and frustration that I was unable to reflect on what I could have gained from it” (148). One of the benefits Lu gained was growth, in both her reading and writing skills, by persevering through the confusion and frustration during that time. ...
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...Marx, K. & F. Engels ‘Bourgeois and proletarians’ Tom Considine Marx, K. & F. Engels (1972 [1848], p.1) said ‘The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles.’ (Marx, K. & F. Engels 1972 [1848], p.1) This is the opening text from Marx and it is the theme of the rest of the chapter. Marx writes of the oppression of the proletarians and how the capitalist bourgeoisie have commodified them. He describes his disapproval for the capitalists stating that there is revolt from the proletariats due to the exploitation that was taking place, this would be the same for any capitalist society. Throughout the text there is the overriding idea that society would benefit with equality and public ownership (socialism). Then I will discuss the argument in favor of capitalism and the argument against socialism. The main concept of this text is that the capitalist society will always self destruct because of the tensions that occur between the bourgeois and proletarians. This tension is caused by the exploitation of the laborers, who work very hard for very little. Marx demonstrates that capitalism can be a destructive thing as it decreases a whole societies relationships to one that is based on greed and money. Anyone that once had a highly regarded job such as a doctor or lawyer is now a wage-laborer working in the industrial sector for the capitalists. His idea of a functioning economy is one that has societies working in cooperation with one another without...
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...Marx’s on Religion Karl Marx’s thought of religion as destructive in his theory of socialism. He went as far as calling it the opium of the people. He felt that religion exploited people and prevented them from their true destinies. In Marx’s theory he separate people into two social classes the bourgeoisie and the proletariat. That is they are the owners of businesses and the workers. In Marx’s theory he believed the bourgeoisie created religion to oppress the proletariat. He thought that it was created to keep the proletariat docile and accepting to the way things were. Marx’s also contended that region was an enemy to his socialist revolutionary state. This was base on that religion was sedating and misdirecting so being it was taking away from the proletariat rising and moving forward toward the perfect classless society. Now although Marx believed religion, was created by the bourgeoisie I tend not to agree with this theory. Religion was created long before the bourgeoisie. As we know religion has roots to the beginning of time. It is not to use to keep people in line as explained by Marx. People have used religion for various reasons whether it is for an explanations for why things happen, for a spiritual well being or for attaining eternal life. I do not believe it can be used a trickery so to speak to keep people in line. Of coarse I am sure it can be if one tries to manipulate it. I guess you may see this within some cults. But Marx was talking about society...
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...Marxist explanations of crime and deviance, like their work on other areas like the family and education, rest on an economic and structural analysis of society that sees a class struggle between the proletariat and the bourgeoisie. This struggle comprises the attempts by the proletariat to free themselves from the domination of the bourgeoisie as they seek to take over the means of production. David Gordon argues that crime is an inevitable product of capitalism and the inequality that it generates. He argues that inequalities in wealth and income create poverty and homelessness for the working class and crime is a rational response to these problems. This idea is supported by research which shows property crime rising during recession. Gordon suggests capitalism encourages values such as greed and materialism which are conducive to all classes committing crime. Such values promote non-economic crimes such as violence, rape, child abuse, vandalism and hooliganism because inequalities in wealth and power lead to frustration, hostility, envy and alienation for some members of the working class who may commit crime in an attempt to retrieve power and status. This theory argues that it is surprising that there is not more working class crime. The idea explained is one of continual conflict and of crime being a continuation or extension of the class battle. However, critics point out that such a view is a bit sweeping, and that the whole of the working class isn’t in revolt...
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...“To what extent was rapid economic growth the cause of social tensions in Wilhelmine Germany?” In Wilhelmine Germany, an industrial revolution was taking place. By 1910, Germany had almost caught up with Britain on the production of industries such as coal and steel, with the rate of growth overwhelmingly surpassing that of the Britons. Germany was also home to new industries, like that of chemicals, which quickly saw 90% of the world’s hair dye exported from Germany alone. However, the impact of a healthy economy was not entirely positive. Rapid economic growth brought an increase in class divisions, as the traditional system came under threat as a result of changing methods. Further, the industrial revolution saw urbanisation become a growing trend as people relocated to the job-filled cities; nonetheless, overcrowding saw a fall in living conditions and a rise in discontent with the working environment, leading to increased membership in trade unions. Moreover, pressure groups began to emerge as funding became readily available and confidence grew among the prosperous public. Although rapid economic growth was the main cause of social tensions in Wilhelmine Germany, the Constitution’s failure to establish the role of the Army led to anger among the public who felt as if they were being ignored by the Kaiser and the Chancellor. In addition, the increased following of socialism caused tensions between the traditional, conservative side of Germany, and those who felt change...
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...Marxist Theory Marxist stems from conflict theory that concentrates on social class, distinct by the relationship of a group to the means of production. This perspective claims that capitalists, who own and control the means of production, use the law to protect their property from people who threaten it like the lower or working class. Marx believed that throughout history, human societies have consisted of two classes: those who have power to create the rules everyone has to live under and those who neither resources nor the political power to have a say what those rules will be. Examples of these economic or political systems are lord versus serf, capitalist versus proletariat and master versus slave. The capitalists are those who own means of production and the proletariats are those who work for them. Crime of the wealthy and powerful is attributed to the greed generated by capitalist economic system, and crime by the powerless is attributed to the need violate the law in order to survive. Marxist asserts the relationship between capitalism and crime, but they offer little evidence that capitalism generates crime to a greater degree than alternative economic systems, such as socialism. Marx used a base structure metaphor to describe the role of social institutions, with the economic mode of production providing the base of that structure. For Marx, the mode of production determines the characteristics of other social institutions, examples the social, political, ethnical...
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...French Student Revolution Dunia Kaakati Lebanese International University Monday, December 2, 2013 During May 1968, students and workers in France united in the biggest strike and the largest mass movement in French history. Protesting capitalism, American imperialism, and Gaullism, nine million people from all walks of life, from shipbuilders to department store clerks, stopped working. The protests started on May the 3rd when students, motivated by their exotic and revolutionary ideas rebelled against the struggles that were associated with the capitalistic system of France and were soon joined by young workers. The nation was paralyzed—no sector of the workplace was untouched. The revolution had such a strong impact on the political leaders that all the conditions were maturing for a successful, even peaceful, overthrow of capitalism. The working-class’ leaders, the Parti Communiste Français however, were not as motivated in the people’s power. They feared the French working class engaging in a struggle that might push them aside. They feared workers replacing capitalism with a genuinely democratic form of socialism. Therefore, the PCF used the media’s power to influence the masses perception of the situation. The PCF press peddled the lie that the mighty capitalistic state could not be overthrown. There would have been violence, it argued. But even the bourgeois papers were commenting that to use the army against the workers’ movement would have been to...
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...that fought the war turned to wild and extravagant living to compensate. The Great Gatsby is highly symbolic meditation on 1920s America as a whole, in particular the disintegration of the American dream in an era of unprecedented prosperity and material excess. Fitzgerald portrays the 1920s as an era of decayed social and moral values, evidenced in its overarching cynicism, greed, and empty pursuit of pleasure. So, choosing The Great Gatsby and had the characters as its focus in this paper because it covers Marxism where each character’s purpose in life is money, and the essence of desire is wealth. It is clear within the text that the characters feel as if they are totally limited by the amount of money they make, therefore, their view of being satisfied and achieving in life is depicted against their financial status. b. Background of Choosing the Topic Characters is choosed as the focus in this paper because it is the most dominant topic to discuss in marxism approach. According to Lois Tyson, Marxist theory was...
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...Sociology November 15th 56 Up Throughout a lifetime, one may not realize all the changes that take place; however, Michael Apted managed to record the many changes an individual goes through and turn it in to his documentary, 56 Up. This documentary is about the lives of the same group of people over the course of 56 years. The interviews started when they were 7, and then they continued every seven years. The final interview takes place when they are all 56 years old. 56 Up contains many sociological terms, such as the various types of social mobility. To begin, one sociological term used in this documentary is social mobility. 56 Up represents many of the types of mobility with the subjects. First, Sue shows intragenerational mobility. Sue is a woman who at 56 works in the administration department of a big university in London, despite never going to college. Typically, women with no education are in a lower class; however, Sue moved up within her lifetime, which demonstrates intragenerational mobility. Along with this, Sue experienced vertical mobility. Sue experienced vertical mobility within her job changes. Her part time jobs were viewed as lower than her administrative job now. Paul, on the other hand, started in a lower class. He lived in a children’s home and never went to college. His daughter, Katie, was the first in the family to ever attend a university. This shows intergenerational mobility because going to college and getting a good education could lead...
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...Americans generally have a negative view towards communism. This is because communism preaches the exact opposite views on which our country was built on and what it stands for. Communism is a social, political and economic movement that establishes a common ownership of the means of production. In this society it is not like capitalism. They do not believe in the views that some people should be wealthier and have other luxuriates that others don’t. The theory was to abolish capitalist inequalities to have a working class who constitute the main producer of wealth in society. Since the communist views are complete opposite to American views, there are some key reasons why Americans are against it. For one, Americans say it goes directly against what our constitution says. Communism is all about the redistribution of wealth which we as Americans would not stand for. It also calls for a dictator to not fall apart. Marxist philosophers have also talked about gassing those who are mentally unfit or disabled and also they sometimes force sterilization to stop unneeded births of certain groups of people. In a communistic society you own nothing and you have no right to religion. This is directly taking away from the freedom of the peoples. The government controls the people, which we view as unconstitutional and unfair. All Americans should have the right to have their own views on religion and own personal luxuries as they please. Also, communism government has unlimited power...
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...Great Expectations offers a diversity of interpretations so various responders will be engaged by the text. The main character, Pip, is used to establish the journey of a young boy’s life as he learns the true meaning of life and what values are most important. Dickens uses a range of characters to show Pip learning this lesson and to provide insights into various aspects of the Victorian era culture. Characters such as Joe and Magwitch provide an insight into the education and the crime and justice systems of Victorian England, along the importance of social class and wealth. Whilst, Estella and Miss Havisham provide an insight into the position of women and the inequality of power between the genders. Throughout the novel Pip encounters a range of people and undergoes various experiences. It is through these people and experiences that Pip learns numerous lessons in life. Pips main learning-catalysts are Magwitch, Joe, Miss Havisham and Estella. Education was an important cultural aspect of the Victorian era. Education allowed wider access to employment, and respect; for one could not become a gentleman and part of the upper-class without an education. Yet access to education was greatly determined to one’s position in society. Those in the upper class were given a higher priority to receive education than those in the lower class. Therefore it was very difficult for one to advance within society. This provides Dickens with the opportunity to gently satirize...
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...Sociology Sociology Perspectives Functionalist; This is where the group is made up of lots of separate institutions. They believe that for a society to work they all have to work together as a whole, for example, the organs in a body had to work together for the body to work itself. Their beliefs in the working of the education system is such one, that each stage leads/prepares you for the next one e.g. nursery – primary school – comp school – college – work. They have a structuralist theory. “The functionalist view is that illness has a social consequence and must be swiftly dealt with, where possible, for the smooth running of society” (Billingham, 2007, p.350) Marxist; The approach of these people is biased on the social class of society, they believe that there are two roles of people, the bosses (bourgeoisie) and the worker (proletariat). They feel that they can exploit the worker as much as possible because they individually cannot make an impact on a whole. They difference is great between a boss and a worker because the boss controls the within working times. “Their job is to provide the company with a healthy workforce. In addition, the government allows companies to make profits from products that cause ill health, for example, tobacco and junk food.” (Billingham, 2007, p.351) Interactionist; This approach is the complete opposite to the Marxist way of looking at the society as a whole. They believe that every person has their own right to speak up and are...
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...Essay response to: Why did Stalin implement forced Industrialization, Collectivized Agriculture, and the Terror in the Soviet Union? Why did many Soviet peoples cooperate in this “Stalin Revolution,” despite the violence, cruelty, and tremendous sacrifices involved? Joseph Jughashvili (1878 – 1953), later known as Joseph Stalin believed that industrialization was necessary in order to create a true proletariat class so a true communist revolution could occur. Stalin and true Marxists believed that only through a modern industrialized economy could a true proletariat class be developed. Additionally, Stalin believed that the Soviet Union was “backward” and behind in the times and had to catch up with the rest of the world, otherwise the Nation would be conquered. Stalin made this clear when he said, “we are fifty or a hundred years behind the advanced countries. Either we do it, or they crush us” (Perry, 193). In doing so, Stalin brought about sweeping changes of economic reform. While Vladimir Lenin’s New Economic Policy (NEP) was successful in returning agricultural harvests to prewar levels, by the late 1920’s, Stalin sided with the critics of Lenin’s NEP in that the Soviet Union could not catch up with other industrialized countries by relying on taxes from peasant farmers (Coffin/Stacey, 908). In 1927, Stalin implemented the first five-year plan, which he referred to as the “revolution from above” and called for a command economy (McKay et al., 907). The five-year...
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...Social class Murray Chapter 8 July 3rd – 2nd exam- Tuesday June 21st class cancelled Social class and stratification in Canada Essay topics 1250 words, 5-10 references 1. Sociological Imagination” of your life, gender, family, ses, ethnic, migration 2. Sociological Analysis of a current event Toronto star – police violence, poverty , loss ofmanufacturing jobs 3 other topics of personal interest or HR Interest Annotated bibliography due July 10l 50 – 150 words on 4 research sources; proposal includes theses and outline What does sociology know about this Chapter focus: how are the lives of Canadians affected by social inequality how do prestige , power and wealth determine socialclass? What roles does occuptational structure play in a functionalist perspective What is social stratification? the hierarchical arragngement of a large social groups based on their control over basic resources “Life changes” the extent to which individuals have access to important societal resources such as food, clothing, shelter, education and health (102) Stratification systems are described as being closed or open closed: the boundaries between levels in the hierarchies of social stratification are rigid and peoples position are set by ascribed status Open: the boundaries between levels in the hierarchies of social stratification are flexible and may be influenced (positively and negatively) by people’s achieved status Social mobility the movement of individuals...
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