...Assess the contribution of Marxist theories to our understanding of society today Within sociology there are many varieties of conflict perspectives. Marxism is one of these. It is both a structural and a conflict theory. From a structural perspective, Marxists analyse the way society as a whole fits together. It views society as a structure in which the economic base determines the shape of the superstructure. The superstructure is made up of all the institutions such as the family, the media and the education system. Their function is to serve ruling class interests and maintain a capitalist society, according to traditional Marxists. Traditional Marxism has been extended through the work of neo Marxism. Neo Marxism is a more modern, new and up to date version of traditional Marxism. Karl Marx is the founding father of Marxism and Marxism is based on the ideas of Karl Marx, hence the name Marxism. Marx describes the concept ‘Polarisation of the Classes’. This describes the historical process of the class structure becoming increasingly polarised. Marx describes how in capitalist society the class structure becomes polarised into a wealthy bourgeoisie and an impoverished proletariat. One way in which Marxist theories helps us to understand society is through explaining historical materialism. Materialism is the view that all humans are beings with material needs, such as food, clothing and shelters and must therefore work in order to meet them. Overtime tools have been developed...
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...Marxist feminist Michelle Barrett (1980) argues that the role ideology plays in convincing women that unpaid domestic labour is fulfilling is important. Barrett discusses the ideology of ‘familism’ the notion that female fulfillment lies in the family. For Marxist feminists, the cause of female oppression is rooted in capitalism. They argue that although individual men benefit from women’s subordination, the main beneficiary is capitalism. Women are an unpaid labour force, as unpaid housewives, and have been used in WW1 as a reserve army of labour. This oppression is believed to be maintained by the role women adopt within the capitalist’s system as the unpaid homemaker in the family. Women are conceived that this unpaid role is natural and normal, through the ideology of ‘familism’ that promotes female fulfillment as achieved through motherhood intimacy and sexual satisfaction. Marxist feminists believe that in order to end female subordination, we must overthrow capitalism as well as the ideology of familism. This would free the sexes from restrictive family roles and ensure that domestic labour was shared equally. Strengths of Marxist feminists include the fact that they have demonstrated the power of structural factors, such as capitalism and ideology in constructing an explanation for women’s subordination. However, Marxist feminists have been criticised for failing to explain women’s subordination in non-capitalist societies. Marxist feminism also places insufficient emphasis...
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...Capitalism acts to constrain the forces of production. The notion of free and competitive market penalizes inefficiency and redistributes the surplus to the more efficient enterprises. Adam Smith’s idea of invisible hand promotes rivalries. Therefore the majority of petty owners is pushed out of the market and forced to sell labor power. The surplus value is derived from exploiting these workers. The rate of exploitation is surplus value divided by the labor value. Laborers produce a use value but get paid only for their labor value. The left-over surplus value becomes profit for the capitalist. This wealth can be use for investment, mechanization, research development, management and etc. Industrial enterprises spend money on capital and labor to produce a product. Rate of profit is calculated from surplus value divided by capital and labor cost. Therefore the rate has an inverse relationship with labor and capital cost. As they fall, rate of profit rise. The average cost is total spent divided by output. By mechanizing, it allows companies to produce more resulting in cheaper price per unit For example, say three companies produce the same amount of goods using identical labor and capital cost structure. When one company mechanizes, it can produce more goods by only increasing capital and not labor cost. It can also produce more merchandise with same amount of capital and labor. These two scenarios are both forms of increase efficiency. They also are forms of labor exploitation...
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...manipulate true statement against false statement. Key focus on Arguments is evidence stating the true statement or false statement on the situation. Stating the situation on the first essay its argument deals with the lifestyle on which we live in. “The argument on which cars will be an uproar to our communities, disrupting sleep, terrifying animals, destroying public and private property, and placing members of our emergency services in life threatening situations”. Fairfax, M. (2005, Nov 11). Everybody has their opinions on different situations that evolve around the world, some may be true statements, some may be false statements regardless which is the right statement. We will make an argument to prove who is right are who is wrong. The second essay talks about woman with cancer who died in 1989. The woman named was Bronwen Wallace who went to Queen’s University and Marxist politics. The essay talks about how Wallace who died at the age of 44 wrote a book about knowing your damage about anything wrong with your body.” The power of feminism is the power of the victim who has recognized a way to use her damage.” “When you get in touch with your damage, recognized it and care for it, you also discover the source of your power.” Wallace, B., Page, J., & Robertson, H. (1993, Feb). The third essay talks about arguments between one another going through debates, while expressing your opinions with reasons to support it without arguing with any particular person or group of people...
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...Latricia Proctor "Professional (General) - Personality" Test Results Organization Organization is the tendency to establish and maintain a specific structure in goals, behaviors, and the home or work environment. Professional Fit: People high in Organization tend to be suited for jobs that require self-discipline, tidiness, or careful planning of activities and schedules. Potential Risk: People high in Organization can miss potential opportunities if they are too rigid in their pursuit of specific goals and behaviors, and may be perceived by others as lacking in creativity or innovation. Preference for Pressure Preference for Pressure is the tendency to thrive in stressful environments and situations. Professional Fit: People high in Preference for Pressure tend to be suited for jobs that involve constant demands or urgent deadlines. Potential Risk: People high in Preference for Pressure can lose motivation, become bored, or have difficulty focusing in low-pressure environments or situations. Precision Precision is the tendency to be careful and attentive to small details. Professional Fit: People high in Precision tend to be suited for jobs that require work to be completed very delicately, accurately, and with few errors. Potential Risk: People high in Precision can sometimes have difficulty being productive in fast-paced environments, and may be inefficient at tasks that benefit from certain shortcuts or can allow for minor errors. Page 1 Intuitive Thinking ...
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...Cody Unit 1 Assignment 2 I was also surprised with my high creativity score. I have never considered myself very creative. I always assume I can’t come up with something from scratch; I need something to build onto. The more I think of it though I always seem to get required things done even if I don’t have much experience or knowledge of the subject. It is my drive I am assuming that enables me to achieve my requirements. My lack of full self-confidence came as a surprise with a score of eighty-five indicating considerable stress when my expectations aren’t met. I have a tendency to put off many things that would advance my career and bring me feelings of success but I have a hard time believing that because going back to school for my Bachelor’s was a choice I made for the simple fact to advance my career. Maybe up until this point in my life I may have had those tendencies thinking my previous two positions were where I should be but not at my full potential. The assessment also showed that I dawdle on some projects or tasks and tend to be over attentive to details on other tasks. I assume that is just my way of knowing my priorities. Scoring in the middle doesn’t seem too bad to me even though I have room to improve I am not at the bottom recognizing that I do take the time to negotiate and listen to all views. I will argue my case to show the merits of my position but I try to avoid arguments to do...
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...Trying to manage money and financial expenses are one of the most difficult personal management an independent individual can have. Individuals try to manage their money in different ways, some of them work and some are not. In this essay, two given possible solutions for this issue will be addressed. One way to control the financial income is by saving some of it and invest it. Individuals can, for example, open a saving account in the bank in which they can specify the percentage of the money transfer from the main account to the saving one on monthly basis, and they can buy shares. This way they will try to adapt themselves on the remaining salary they have and can spend it as they like without worrying about being broken in the end of each month. There is one take on this way which is that there might be some occasions where someone needs to spend the whole salary or more in a month, and it will be difficult to do so if the whole saved money are in the shares. Another way for managing money is by eliminating the purchasing as much as possible. Adults need to look after their real needs and the luxurious things. For example, instead of shopping every time, they can make a list of all their needs and buy them at once every month. By shopping less, they will tend to avoid the struggle between buying or not buying that will most likely end up buying unnecessary things. To conclude, controlling money and budget is not an easy task, yet it's very crucial to everyone's...
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...One Step At A Time Haven’t you ever noticed how things were so much easier when we were in kindergarten? You could go up to someone, share their chocolate milk, and immediately become best friends. When you were angry, you could just scream and stomp your foot but try and do that now and you’re sure to get some stares. If you liked that little girl or boy you sat next to, and they offer to share their crayons, you are in heaven. If you are angry at someone, you could threaten not to be their friend, and they’d immediately say sorry. There was no “start thinking about your future” thing either. You didn't get grounded or have your phone taken away from you, you just got a minute in the bad kid chair and that was it. Back then, life wasn't looming over you like a hawk. As we grow older, the pressure just builds up on us. We are expected to do the best we can to accomplish a lot of things like having high grades in school and being a dean’s lister when we reach college, and when we graduate, we are expected to land a good job immediately. And because of these, we tend to rush things and do them all at the same time. Maybe that’s why old people are so worn down. People always try to make something out of everything. They ask questions such as “Why does the sky have to be blue because of gases in the atmosphere?” and “why can't it simply be blue?” Then there are times that we ask the question “Why can’t be things be easier for just a little while?” It's true that we do need...
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...Case 4: Where was your food grown? 1- Do you believe that it is a positive or negative for multinational companies that many customers might perceive their products to be foreign in certain markets? Ethnocentric consumers believe that buying foreign products hurts the domestic economy and national employment. Consumer ethnocentrism implies the normative belief that purchasing domestic products is more beneficial than purchasing foreign goods so it is believed to have a negative effect on customers’ repurchase intent to foreign products, although that may vary within cultures and between different country-of-origin products. Particularly, consumers who hold strong ethnocentric beliefs are more likely to evaluate foreign products negatively than are those who do not hold such beliefs. Those who believe that it is wrong to buy foreign goods also tend to perceive those goods as lower in quality than domestic goods; ethnocentric consumers prefer domestic goods not only because of economic or moral beliefs, but also because they believe that their own country produces the best products. Researchers believed that consumers with ethnocentric tendencies have a tendency to evaluate domestic products favorably, often unreasonably so, compared to imported products. 2- Over 60% of the population of Malaysia are Muslin consumers. Most domestic food products have the JAKIM logo printed on the packaging, which certifies that it is safe to be consumed by Muslims. This may be a key reason...
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...Conflict rarely leaves one unscathed Scars, fear, loss of hope and faith. These are all outcomes of the difficulty that lies within a conflict. The precise definition of conflict refers to arguments and disputes which in many cases escalates into becoming a threat to an individual’s life, family or country. It has a major impact on an individual’s life as conflict barely leaves one unscathed. The after effect of conflict leaves some individuals to be scarred for a short period of time and some for life. The key factors of encountering conflict will be focused on the consequences and impacts of conflicts encountered by individuals. They include, the adversities faced by individuals and surroundings due to the circumstances of certain conflicts, the change within oneself that is discovered through conflict, and the drastic aftermath attached. Conflict is a part of life which is better resolved, as it may influence others, who are no involved, to face difficulties due to the circumstances that come along. Some conflicts can occur based simply on our perspectives and judgments on sensitive issues. We as individuals need to learn to accept things the way they are. This idea is demonstrated in an American film, ‘Remember the Titans’, directed by Boaz Yakin, which proves how our perspective on certain things can create dilemmas. The film demonstrates the impact of sensitive issues related to conflict, such as racism. The clashes that occur as impact of racism between individuals is...
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...Academic essay on Annie Proulx's "Job Story" Choices are something we all make. Not necessarily important choices, but there will always be a time to make them. It's not always good choices, but they have to be made. There will always be consequences, whether it's bad or good. Throughout the story, Leeland Lee has to make a lot of choices. Where to live, where to work and when to work. All the different choices he made, put him in the position he is now. Leeland Lee is an awkward-looking young boy. His face is heavily boned, which he has gotten from his mom, his neck is quite thick and he has red-gold hair. His eyes are as pouchy as a middle-aged alcoholic. His nose is broad and lays close to his face. Lori Bovee is Leeland Lee's wife. She has an undistinguished oval face, and hair of medium length. Leeland Lee is the protagonist of the story, because he is the main character. I would say Leeland is a flat and static character as he is an endless optimist. He doesn't give up when it comes to finding a new job, and despite his wife dying he still gets a job at Unique Eats. The reason he is a static character is because he doesn't change at all. After getting several different jobs he doesn't change anything, after his mom and wife dies he doesn't change one single thing except the fact he isn't listening to the radio anymore, but since that have been an important factor of the story all along, it can also show a lot about how he has changed. The story starts November...
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...Essay on “Job History” written by Annie Proulx In the short story “Job History” written by Annie Proulx, we follow Leeland Lee from the time of his birth, until he is about fifty years old. In the short story we follow Leeland through his harsh life, with ups and downs, in the form of thoughts, feelings, incidents, etc. Leeland is born in a ranch in Wyoming, and lives there with his wife Lori. Leeland does not look particularly good, in fact he is a very unattractive man; (page 91, line 12)“Leeland’s face shows heavy bones from his mother’s side. His neck is thick and his red-gold hair plastered down in bangs. Even as a child his eyes are as pouchy as those of a middle-age alcoholic, the brows rod-straight above wandering out-of-line eyes. His nose lies broad and close to his face, his mouth seems to have been cut with a single chisel blow into easy flesh” And in the top of that, we see how Leeland through his life, tries to find a successful career, but fails consistently. He moves various times from place to place, too seek occupation and good business. But it is hard when you’re a high school dropout, without a career. Leeland have to changes his job constantly, because of his lack of luck, and since he can’t get along white his bosses. He is never able to stay at one job or place for long, which lead to problems in the family. He has a hard time supporting his wife, and their children financially. Throughout the story the author, Annie Proulx manages...
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...An essay is a piece of writing which is often written from an author's personal[->0] point of view[->1]. Essays can consist of a number of elements, including: literary criticism[->2], political manifestos[->3], learned arguments[->4], observations of daily life, recollections, and reflections of the author. The definition of an essay is vague, overlapping with those of an article[->5] and a short story[->6]. Almost all modern essays are written in prose[->7], but works in verse[->8] have been dubbed essays (e.g. Alexander Pope[->9]'s An Essay on Criticism[->10] and An Essay on Man[->11]). While brevity usually defines an essay, voluminous works like John Locke[->12]'s An Essay Concerning Human Understanding[->13] and Thomas Malthus[->14]'s An Essay on the Principle of Population[->15] are counterexamples. In some countries (e.g., the United States and Canada), essays have become a major part of formal education[->16]. Secondary students are taught structured essay formats to improve their writing skills, and admission essays[->17] are often used by universities[->18] in selecting applicants and, in the humanities and social sciences, as a way of assessing the performance of students during final exams. The concept of an "essay" has been extended to other mediums beyond writing. A film essay is a movie that often incorporates documentary film making styles and which focuses more on the evolution of a theme or an idea. A photographic essay[->19] is an attempt to cover a topic...
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...We all know love. We have all loved in some kind of way. We love our parents, significant others and even our friends. But we can also love other things like animals or material things. But what is the difference between loving and liking? And is it better not to love and feel pain or to love and be hurt in the progress? Jonathan Franzen seeks to answer these questions in his essay “Liking Is for Cowards. Go for What Hurts”. The essay “Liking Is for Cowards. Go for What Hurts” is, as mentioned, written by Jonathan Franzen and published in The New York Times, May 28, 2011. Jonathan Franzen is born in 1959, and he is an acclaimed American novelist and essayist. The essay is based on the commencement speech he delivered at Kenyon College in Ohio, USA. “Our technology has become extremely adept in creating products that correspond to our fantasy ideal of an erotic relationship, in which the beloved object asks for nothing and gives everything, instantly. (…)” As Franzen claims in his essay, many people can feel like they love their technological object. It gives them a satisfaction, which human interaction maybe wouldn’t. Franzen however thinks, that people in general don’t love material things: they like them. There is a major difference between loving and liking – even though it might appear small. “Liking, in general, is commercial culture’s substitute for loving.” Products are made to be likeable, but if that concept in transferred to a person, you would instantly see...
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...Reaction – “Salvation” The nonfiction short essay “Salvation” written by Langston Hughes in 1940, presents a theme on the literal and often manipulated perception of children. Hughes narrates the essay as he recounts his disappointing attempt at salvation. Hughes aunt told him that when she was saved by Jesus she saw a light, and felt something happen within herself. As children will do, Hughes took her story literally and was heartbroken as he sat in front of the church and watched other children “saved” while he was not. He believed that Jesus must not want him because he did not see or feel anything. In the end, Hughes is forced to lie about accepting Jesus and in turn rejects the Christian faith all together. I related to Hughes story on many accounts. I am a mother of three young children who perceive everything in life literally, and as a young girl I was raised in a very religious environment. I could visualize and almost feel Hughes devastation as he sat at the front of the church crushed by the thoughts of God not wanting him. “Still I kept waiting to see Jesus” (Barnet, Cain, & Burto, 2011, pp. 351). One of the churches that my family attended for a short time during my childhood practiced speaking in tongs. I specifically remember feeling just like Hughes during a service when other children were speaking in unnatural languages perceived to be sent from God himself. I could not understand why I was not chosen to talk for God and intern was hurt and...
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