Conficts

According to Karl Marx in all stratifed societies there are

two major social groups: a ruling class and a subject
class. The ruling class derives its power rom its
ownership and control o the orces o production. The
ruling class exploits and oppresses the subject class. As a
result there is a basic confict o interest between the two
classes. The various institutions o societ! such as the
legal and political s!stem are instruments o ruling class
domination and serve to urther its interests.
Marx believed that western societ!
developed through our main epochs"primitive
communism# ancient societ!# eudal societ! and capitalist
societ!. $rimitive communism is represented b! the
societies o pre"histor! and provides the onl! example o
the classless societ!. %rom then all societies are divided
into two major classes " master and slaves in ancient
societ!# lords and sers in eudal societ! and capitalist
and wage labourers in capitalist societ!. &eber sees class
in economic terms. 'e argues that classes develop in
mar(et economies in which individuals compete or
economic gain. 'e defnes a class as a group o
individuals who share a similar position in mar(et
econom! and b! virtue o that act receive similar
economic rewards. Thus a person)s class situation is
basicall! his mar(et situation. Those who share a similar
class situation also share similar lie chances. Their
economic position will directl! a*ect their chances o
obtaining those things defned as desirable in their
societ!. &eber argues that the major class division is
between those who own the orces o production and
those who do not. 'e distinguished the ollowing class
grouping in capitalist societ!:
The propertied upper class
The propert! less white collar wor(ers
The pett! bourgeoisie
The manual wor(ing class.
%unctionalist
Talcott $arsons believe that order#
stabilit! and cooperation in societ! are based on value
consensus that is a general agreement b! members o
societ! concerning what is good and worthwhile.
+tratifcation s!stem derives rom common values it
ollows rom the existence o values that individuals will
be evaluated and thereore placed in some orm o ran(
order. +tratifcation is the ran(ing o units in a social
s!stem in accordance with the common value s!stem.
Those who perorm successull! in terms o societ!)s
values will be ran(ed highl! and the! will be li(el! to
receive a variet! o rewards and will be accorded high
prestige since the! exempli! and personi! common
values.
According to Kingsle! ,avis and Moore
stratifcation exists in ever! (nown human societ!. All
social s!stem shares certain unctional prere-uisites
which must be met i the s!stem is to survive and
operate e.cientl!. /ne such prere-uisite is role allocation
and perormance. This means that all roles must be flled.
The! will be flled b! those best able to perorm them.
The necessar! training or them is underta(en and that
the roles are perormed conscientiousl!. ,avis and Moore
argue that all societies need some mechanism or
insuring e*ective role allocation and perormance. This
mechanism is social stratifcation which the! see as a
s!stem which attaches une-ual rewards and privileges to
the positions in societ!. The! concluded that social
stratifcation is a device b! which societies insure that the
most important positions are conscientiousl! flled b! the
most -ualifed persons.
CA+T0
Caste is closel! connected with the 'indu philosoph! and
religion# custom and tradition .1t is believed to have had a
divine origin and sanction. 1t is deepl! rooted social
institution in 1ndia. There are more than 2344 castes and
sub"castes with all their peculiarities. The term caste is
derived rom the +panish word caste meaning breed or
lineage. The word caste also signifes race or (ind. The
+ans(rit word or caste is varna which means colour.The
caste stratifcation o the 1ndian societ! had its origin in
the chaturvarna s!stem. According to this doctrine the
'indu societ! was divided into our main varnas "
5rahmins# Kashtri!as# 6aish!as and +hudras.The 6arna
s!stem prevalent during the 6edic period was mainl!
based on division o labour and occupation. The caste
s!stem owns its origin to the 6arna s!stem. 7hur!e sa!s
an! attempt to defne caste is bound to ail because o
the complexit! o the phenomenon. According to 8isel!
caste is a collection o amilies bearing a common name
claiming a common descent rom a m!thical ancestor
proessing to ollow the same hereditar! calling and
regarded b! those who are competent to give an opinion
as orming a single homogeneous communit!. According
to Maclver and $age when status is wholl! predetermined
so that men are born to their lot without an! hope o
changing it# then the class ta(es the extreme orm o
caste. Coole! sa!s that when a class is somewhat strictl!
hereditar! we ma! call it caste.M.9+rinivas sees caste as
a segmentar! s!stem. 0ver! caste or him divided into
sub castes which are the units o endogam! whose
members ollow a common occupation# social and ritual
lie and common culture and whose members are
governed b! the same authoritative bod! vi: the
pancha!at.According to 5aile! caste groups are united
into a s!stem through two principles o segregation and
hierarch!. %or ,umont caste is not a orm o stratifcation
but as a special orm o ine-ualit!. The major attributes o
caste are the hierarch!# the separation and the division o
labour.&eber sees caste as the enhancement and
transormation o social distance into religious or strictl! a
magical principle. %or Adrian Ma!er caste hierarch! is not
just determined b! economic and political actors
although these are important.
Main eatures o caste s!stem
%unctions o the caste s!stem
,ominant caste
$urit! and $ollution
+ans(riti:ation
Main features of caste system
Caste s!stem hierarchicall! divides the societ!. A
sense o highness and lowness or superiorit! and
ineriorit! is associated with this gradation or
ran(ing. The 5rahmins are placed at the top o the
hierarch! and are regarded as pure or supreme. The
degraded caste or the untouchables have occupied
the other end o the hierarch!. The status o an
individual is determined b! his birth and not b!
selection nor b! accomplishments. 0ach caste has its
own customs# traditions practices and rituals.1t has
its own inormal rules# regulations and procedures.
The caste pancha!ats or the caste councils regulate
the conduct o members. The caste s!stem has
imposed certain restrictions on the ood habitats o
the members these di*er rom caste to caste. 1n
9orth 1ndia 5rahmin would accept pa((a ood onl!
rom some castes lower than his own. 5ut he would
not accept (achcha ood prepared with the use o
water at the hands o no other caste except his own.
As a matter o rule and practice no individual would
accept (achcha ood prepared b! an inerior
casteman.The caste s!stem put restriction on the
range o social relations also. The idea o pollution
means a touch o lower caste man would pollute or
defle a man o higher caste. 0ven his shadow is
considered enough to pollute a higher caste man.
The lower caste people su*ered rom certain socio"
religious disabilities. The impure castes are made to
live on the outs(irts o the cit! and the! are not
allowed to draw water rom the public wells. 1n earlier
times entrance to temples and other places o
religious importance were orbidden to them.
0ducational acilities# legal rights and political
representation were denied to them or a ver! long
time. 1 the lower castes su*er rom certain
disabilities some higher caste li(e the 5rahmins enjo!
certain privileges li(e conducting pra!ers in the
temples etc.There is gradation o occupations also.
+ome occupations are considered superior and
sacred while certain others degrading and inerior.
%or a long time occupations were ver! much
associated with the caste s!stem. 0ach caste had its
own specifc occupations which were almost
hereditar!. There was no scope or individual talent#
aptitude# enterprise or abilities. The caste s!stem
imposes restrictions on marriage also. Caste is an
endogamous group. 0ach caste is subdivided into
certain sub castes which are again
endogamous.1ntercaste marriages are still loo(ed
down upon in the traditional 1ndian societ!.
Functions of the caste system
The caste s!stem is credited to ensure the continuit! o
the traditional social organi:ation o 1ndia. 1t has
accommodated multiple communities including invading
tribes in the 1ndian societ!. The (nowledge and s(ills o
the occupations have passed down rom one generation
to the next. Through subs!stems li(e ;ajmani s!stem the
caste s!stem promoted interdependent interaction
between various castes and communities with in a
village. The rituals and traditions promoted cooperation
and unit! between members o the di*erent castes.
The dysfunctions
Caste s!stem promoted untouchabilit! and discrimination
against certain members o the societ!. 1t hindered both
hori:ontal and vertical social mobilit! orcing an
individual to carr! on the traditional occupation against
his or her will and capacit!. The status o women was
a*ected and the! were relegated to the bac(ground. The
caste s!stem divided the societ! into mutuall! hostile and
conficting groups and subgroups.
Dominant caste
This concept given b! M.9 +rinivas holds that a caste is
dominant when it is numericall! higher than the other
castes. 1n the M!sore village he described the peasant
/((alinga composed o nearl! hal o the population
made up o nineteenth jati group. The /((alinga were the
biggest land owner. The chie criteria o domination o a
caste are
<. 0conomic strength
2. $olitical power
=. 8itual purit!
>. 9umerical strength
The dominant caste also wields economic and political
power over the other caste groups. 1t also enjo!s a high
ritual status in the local caste hierarch!. The dominant
caste ma! not be rituall! high but enjo! high status
because o wealth# political power and numerical
strength. The presence o educated persons and high
occupation rate also pla! an important role in deciding its
dominance over other caste groupings. +ometimes a
single clan o dominant caste controls a number o
villages in areas. The dominant caste settle dispute
between persons belonging to their own and other
jati.The power o the dominant caste is supported b! a
norm discouraging village rom see(ing justice rom
area#govt o.cial# court or police located outside the
village. The members o the dominant caste particularl!
those rom the wealth! and powerul amilies are
representative o this village in dealing with the o.cials.
Purity and Pollution
The notions o purit! and pollution are critical or defning
and understanding caste hierarch!. According to these
concepts# 5rahmins hold the highest ran( and +hudras
the lowest in the caste hierarch!. The 6arna +!stem
represents a social stratifcation which includes our
varnas namel!" 5rahmans# Kshatri!as# 6ais!as and
+hudras.The+hudras were allocated the lowest ran( o
social ladder and their responsibilities included service o
the three 6arnas. The superior castes tried to maintain
their ceremonial purit!
,umont holds the notion o purit! and pollution
interlin(ed with the caste s!stem and untouchabilit!.The
hierarch! o caste is decided according to the degree o
purit! and pollution. 1t pla!s a ver! crucial role in
maintaining the re-uired distance between di*erent
castes. 5ut the pollution distance varies rom caste to
caste and rom place to place.
,ipan(ar 7upta observes that the notion o purit! and
pollution as ,umont observed is integrall! lin(ed with the
institution o untouchabilit! .5ut unli(e untouchabilit! the
notion o purit! and pollution is also a historical accretion.
/ver time this notion reed itsel rom its specifc and
original tas( o separating untouchables rom the others
and began to be operative at di*erent planes o the caste
s!stem.
The concept o purit! and pollution pla!s a ver! crucial
role in maintaining the re-uired distance between
di*erent castes. 5ut the pollution distance varies rom
caste to caste and rom place to place.
Sanskritization
$ro M.9 +rinivas introduced the term sans(riti:ation to
1ndian +ociolog!. The term reers to a process whereb!
people o lower castes collectivel! tr! to adopt upper
caste practices and belies to ac-uire higher status. 1t
indicates a process o cultural mobilit! that is ta(ing
place in the traditional social s!stem o 1ndia.M.9+rinivas
in his stud! o the Coorg in Karnata(a ound that lower
castes in order to raise their position in the caste
hierarch! adopted some customs and practices o the
5rahmins and gave up some o their own which were
considered to be impure b! the higher castes. %or
example the! gave up meat eating# drin(ing li-uor and
animal sacrifce to their deities. The! imitiated 5rahmins
in matters o dress# ood and rituals. 5! this the! could
claim higher positions in the hierarch! o castes within a
generation. The reerence group in this process is not
alwa!s 5rahmins but ma! be the dominant caste o the
localit!.+ans(riti:ation has occurred usuall! in groups who
have enjo!ed political and economic power but were not
ran(ed high in ritual ran(ing. According to ?ogendra +ingh
the process o sans(riti:ation is an endogenous source o
social change .Mac(im Marriot observes that sans(ritic
rites are oten added on to non"sans(ritic rites without
replacing them. 'arold 7ould writes# oten the motive
orce behind sans(ritisation is not o cultural imitation per
se but an expression o challenge and revolt against the
socioeconomic deprivations.
C@A++ +?+T0M
Class System
The class s!stem is universal phenomenon denoting a
categor! or group o persons having a defnite status in
societ! which permanentl! determines their relation to
other groups. The social classes are de acto groups Anot
legall! or religiousl! defned and sanctionedB the! are
relativel! open not closed. Their basis is indisputabl!
economic but the! are more than economic groups. The!
are characteristic groups o the industrial societies which
have developed since <Cth centur!. The relative
importance and defnition o membership in a particular
class di*ers greatl! over time and between societies#
particularl! in societies that have a legal di*erentiation o
groups o people b! birth or occupation. 1n the well"
(nown example o socioeconomic class# man! scholars
view societies as strati!ing into a hierarchical s!stem
based on occupation#economic status# wealth# or
income.According to /gburn and 9im(o* a social class is
the aggregate o persons having essentiall! the same
social status in a given societ!. Marx defned class in
terms o the extent to which an individual or social group
has control over the means o production.1n Marxist terms
a class is a group o people defned b! their relationship
to the means o production.Classes are seen to have their
origin in the division o the social product into a
necessar! product and a surplus product. Marxists explain
histor! in terms o a war o classes between those who
control production and those who actuall! produce the
goods or services in societ! Aand also developments in
technolog! and the li(eB. 1n the Marxist view o capitalism
this is a confict between capitalists AbourgeoisieB and
wage wor(ers AproletariatB. Class antagonism is rooted in
the situation that control over social production
necessaril! entails control over the class which produces
goods "" in capitalism this is the exploitation o wor(ers
b! the bourgeoisie. Marx saw class categories as defned
b! continuing historical processes. Classes# in Marxism#
are not static entities# but are regenerated dail! through
the productive process. Marxism views classes as human
social relationships which change over time# with
historical commonalit! created through shared productive
processes. A <Cth"centur! arm labourer who wor(ed or
da! wages shares a similar relationship to production as
an average o.ce wor(er o the 2<st centur!. 1n this
example it is the shared structure o wage labour that
ma(es both o these individuals Dwor(ing class.DMaclver
and $age defnes social class as an! portion o the
communit! mar(ed o* rom the rest b! social status.Max
&eber suggest that social classes are aggregates o
individuals who have the same opportunities o ac-uiring
goods# the same exhibited standard o living. 'e
ormulated a three component theor! o stratifcation
with social# status and part! classes Aor politicsB as
conceptuall! distinct elements.
+ocial class is based on economic relationship to the
mar(et Aowner# renter# emplo!ee# etc.B
+tatus class has to do with non"economic -ualities
such as education# honour and prestige
$art! class reers to actors having to do with
a.liations in the political domain
According to &eber a more complex division o labour
made the class more heterogeneous.1n contrast to simple
income""propert! hierarchies# and to structural class
schemes li(e &eber)s or Marx)s# there are theories o
class based on other distinctions# such as culture or
educational attainment. At times# social class can be
related to elitism and those in the higher class are usuall!
(nown as the Dsocial eliteD.%or example# 5ourdieu seems
to have a notion o high and low classes comparable to
that o Marxism# insoar as their conditions are defned b!
di*erent habitus# which is in turn defned b! di*erent
objectivel! classifable conditions o existence. 1n act#
one o the principal distinctions 5ourdieu ma(es is a
distinction between bourgeoisie taste and the wor(ing
class taste.+ocial class is a segment o societ! with all the
members o all ages and both the sexes who share the
same general status.Maclver sa!s whenever social
intercourse is limited b! the consideration o social status
b! distinctions between higher and lower there exists a
social class.
Characteristics o +ocial Class
;ajmani s!stem
Characteristics of Social Class
A social class is essentiall! a status group. Class is related
to status. ,i*erent statuses arise in a societ! as people
do di*erent things# engage in di*erent activities and
pursue di*erent vocations. +tatus in the case o class
s!stem is achieved and not ascribed. 5irth is not the
criterion o status. Achievements o an individual mostl!
decide his status. Class is almost universal phenomenon.
1t occurs in all the modern complex societies o the world.
0ach social class has its own status in the societ!. +tatus
is associated with prestige. The relative position o the
class in the social set up arises rom the degree o
prestige attached to the status. A social class is relativel!
a stable group. A social class is distinguished rom other
classes b! its customar! modes o behaviour.This is oten
reerred to as the lie"st!les o a particular class. 1t
includes mode o dress# (ind o living the means o
recreation and cultural products one is able to enjo!# the
relationship between parent and children. @ie"st!les
refect the specialt! in preerences# tastes and values o a
class. +ocial classes are open" groups. The! represent an
open social s!stem. An open class s!stem is one in which
vertical social mobilit! is possible. The basis o social
classes is mostl! economic but the! are not mere
economic groups or divisions. +ubjective criteria such as
class" consciousness# class solidarit! and class
identifcation on the on hand and the objective criteria
such as wealth# propert!# income# education and
occupation on the other hand are e-uall! important in the
class s!stem. Class s!stem is associated with class
consciousness. 1t is a sentiment that characteri:es the
relations o men towards the members o their own and
other classes. 1t consists in the reali:ation o a similarit!
o attitude and behavior with members o other classes.
+ociologists have given three"old classifcation o classes
which consists o " upper class# middle class and lower
class.+oro(in has spo(en o three major t!pes o class
stratifcation "the! are economic# political and
occupational classes. @lo!d &arner shows how class
distinctions contribute to social stabilit!.6eblen anal!:ed
the consumption pattern o the rich class b! the concept
o conspicuous consumption. &arner has classifed
classes into six t!pes" upper"upper class# upper"middle
class# upper"lower class# lower"upper class# the lower
middle class and lower class. Anthon! 7iddens)s three
class model is the upper# middle and lower Awor(ingB
class.
Jajmani system
&illiam ' &iser introduced the term ;ajmani s!stem in
the vocabular! o 1ndian sociolog! through his boo( The
'indu ;ajmani s!stem where he described in detail how
di*erent caste group interact with each other in the
production and exchange o goods and services. 1n
di*erent parts o 1ndia di*erent terms are used to
describe this economic interaction among the castes or
example in Maharashtra the term 5alutedar is used.
'owever in sociological literature jajmani s!stem has
come to be accepted as a general term to describe the
economic interaction between the castes at the village
level. This s!stem is also a ritual s!stem concerned with
the aspects o purit! and pollution as with economic
aspects. 1t unctions so that the highest caste remains
pure while the lowest castes absorb pollution rom them.
6illages are composed o number o jatis each having its
occupational specialit!.;ajmani s!stem is essentiall! an
agriculture based s!stem o production and distribution o
goods and services. Through jajmani relations these
occupational jatis get lin(ed with the land owning
dominant caste. The jajmani s!stem operates around the
amilies belonging to the land owning dominant caste the
numbers o which are called jajmans.The land owning
caste occup! a privileged position in the jajmani relations.
The interaction between occupational castes and the land
owning castes ta(e place within the ramewor( o non"
reciprocal and as!mmetrical t!pe o relations. The land
owning castes maintain a paternalistic attitude o
superiorit! towards their occupational castes that are
called Kamins in 9orth 1ndia. The term Kamin means one
who wor(s or somebod! or serves him.
1n terms o Karl $olan!i)s classifcation o exchange
s!stem ";ajmani exchange can be termed as
redistributive s!stem o exchange. The %unctionalist view
o jajmani s!stem regards it as the basis o sel"
su.cienc!# unit!# harmon! and stabilit! in the village
communit!. 'owever the Marxist scholars hold a ver!
di*erent opinion. The! regard the jajmani s!stem as
essentiall! exploitative# characteri:ed b! a latent confict
o interest which could not cr!stalli:e due to the
prevalent social setup. Thus i in uture the conditions o
the lower caste improve an open confict between the
lower and upper caste is inevitable. /scar @ewis who
studied 8ampur village near ,elhi and 5iedelmn has been
critical o the ;ajmani s!stem which the! regard as
exploitative. According to them the members o
occupational jatis are largel! landless labourers and have
no resources to wage a struggle against the dominant
caste out o the compulsion o the need or survival. The!
succumb to all injustice perpetuated b! the landowning
dominant caste who enjo! both economic and political
power. +cholars li(e 5erreman# 'arold 7ould and $auline
Kolendaetc accept that there is an element o truth in
both the unctionalist and Marxist views o the jajmani
s!stem. The! believe that consensus and harmon! as
well as confict and exploitation are prevalent in the
village societ!. According to ,umont jajmani s!stem
ma(es use o hereditar! personal relationships to express
the division o labour.This s!stem is a ritual expression
rather than just an economic arrangement.+.C,ube reers
to the s!stem as corresponding to the presentation and
counter presentation b! which castes as a whole are
bound together in a village which is more or less
universal in nature. @each believes that the s!stem
maintains and regulates the division o labour and
economic interdependence o castes.
Karl Marx
Karl Marx's !"!"# !""$% thought was strongl!
infuenced b!:
The dialectical method and historical orientation o
7eorg &ilhelm %riedrich 'egelE
The classical political econom! o Adam +mith and
,avid 8icardoE
%rench socialist and sociological thought# in particular
the thought o ;ean";ac-ues 8ousseau.
The most im&ortant conce&ts of Karl Marx
The ollowing concepts o Marx have aided sociological
thought signifcantl!E
Dialectical Materialism
Materialistic 'nter&retation of (istory i)e
(istorical Materialism
Class and Class conflict
*lienation
Marx believed that he could stud! histor! and societ!
scientifcall! and discern tendencies o histor! and the
resulting outcome o social con+icts. +ome ollowers o
Marx concluded# thereore# that a communist revolution is
inevitable. 'owever# Marx amousl! asserted in the
eleventh o his Theses on Feuer,ach that Dphilosophers
have onl! interpreted the world# in various wa!sE the
point however is to change itD# and he clearl! dedicated
himsel to tr!ing to alter the world. Conse-uentl!# most
ollowers o Marx are not atalists# but activists who
believe that revolutionaries must organi:e social change.
Marx's -ie. of history# which came to be called the
materialist conce&tion o histor! Aand which was
developed urther as the philosoph! o dialectical
materialismB is certainl! infuenced b! 'egel)s claim
that realit! Aand histor!B should be viewed dialecticall!.
'egel believed that the direction o human histor! is
characteri:ed in the movement rom the ragmentar!
toward the complete and the real Awhich was also a
movement towards greater and greater rationalit!B.
+ometimes# 'egel explained# this progressive unolding o
the Absolute involves gradual# evolutionar! accretion but
at other times re-uires discontinuous# revolutionar! leaps
" episodal upheavals against the existing status -uo. %or
example# 'egel strongl! opposed the ancient institution
o legal slaver! that was practiced in the Fnited +tates
during his lietime# and he envisioned a time when
Christian nations would radicall! eliminate it rom their
civili:ation. &hile Marx accepted this broad conception o
histor!# 'egel was an idealist# and Marx sought to rewrite
dialectics in materialist terms. 'e wrote that 'egelianism
stood the movement o realit! on its head# and that it was
necessar! to set it upon its eet. A'egel)s philosoph!
remained and remains in direct opposition to Marxism on
this (e! point.B
Marx)s acceptance o this notion o materialist dialectics
which rejected 'egel)s idealism was greatl! infuenced b!
@udwig %euerbach. 1n The 0ssence o Christianit!#
%euerbach argued that 7od is reall! a creation o man
and that the -ualities people attribute to 7od are reall!
-ualities o humanit!. Accordingl!# Marx argued that it is
the material world that is real and that our ideas o it are
conse-uences# not causes# o the world. Thus# li(e 'egel
and other philosophers# Marx distinguished between
appearances and realit!. 5ut he did not believe that the
material world hides rom us the DrealD world o the idealE
on the contrar!# he thought that historicall! and sociall!
specifc ideologies prevented people rom seeing the
material conditions o their lives clearl!.
The other important contribution to Marx)s revision o
'egelianism was 0ngels) boo(# The Condition of the
/orkin0 Class in 1n0land in <3>># which led Marx to
conceive o the historical dialectic in terms o class
confict and to see the modern wor(ing class as the most
progressive orce or revolution.The notion o labour is
undamental in Marx)s thought. 5asicall!# Marx argued
that it is human nature to transorm nature# and he calls
this process o transormation DlabourD and the capacit!
to transorm nature labour power. %or Marx# this is a
natural capacit! or a ph!sical activit!# but it is intimatel!
tied to the human mind and human imagination:A spider
conducts operations that resemble those o a weaver#
and a bee puts to shame man! an architect in the
construction o her cells. 5ut what distinguishes the worst
architect rom the best o bees is this# that the architect
raises his structure in imagination beore he erects it in
realit!. ACapital# 6ol. 1# Chap. C# $t. <B Karl Marx inherits
that 'egelian dialectic and# with it# a disdain or the
notion o an underl!ing invariant human nature.
+ometimes Marxists express their views b! contrasting
DnatureD with Dhistor!D. +ometimes the! use the phrase
Dexistence precedes consciousnessD. The point# in either
case# is that who a person is# is determined b! where and
when he is " social context ta(es precedence over innate
behaviorE or# in other words# one o the main eatures o
human nature is adaptabilit!. Marx did not believe that all
people wor(ed the same wa!# or that how one wor(s is
entirel! personal and individual. 1nstead# he argued that
wor( is a social activit! and that the conditions and orms
under and through which people wor( are sociall!
determined and change over time.Marx)s anal!sis o
histor! is based on his distinction between the means G
orces o production# literall! those things# such as land#
natural resources# and technolog!# that are necessar! or
the production o material goods# and the relations o
production# in other words# the social and technical
relationships people enter into as the! ac-uire and use
the means o production. Together these comprise the
mode o productionE Marx observed that within an! given
societ! the mode o production changes# and that
0uropean societies had progressed rom a eudal mode o
production to a capitalist mode o production. 1n general#
Marx believed that the means o production change more
rapidl! than the relations o production Aor example# we
develop a new technolog!# such as the 1nternet# and onl!
later do we develop laws to regulate that technolog!B. %or
Marx this mismatch between AeconomicB base and
AsocialB superstructure is a major source o social
disruption and confict. Marx understood the Dsocial
relations o productionD to comprise not onl! relations
among individuals# but between or among groups o
people# or classes. As a scientist and materialist# Marx did
not understand classes as purel! subjective Ain other
words# groups o people who consciousl! identifed with
one anotherB. 'e sought to defne classes in terms o
objective criteria# such as their access to resources. %or
Marx# di*erent classes have divergent interests# which is
another source o social disruption and confict. Confict
between social classes being something which is inherent
in all human histor!:The histor! o all hitherto existing
societ! is the histor! o class struggles. AThe Communist
Maniesto# Chap. <B
Marx was especiall! concerned with how people relate to
that most undamental resource o all# their own labour"
power. Marx wrote extensivel! about this in terms o the
problem o alienation. As with the dialectic# Marx began
with a 'egelian notion o alienation but developed a more
materialist conception. %or Marx# the possibilit! that one
ma! give up ownership o one)s own labour " one)s
capacit! to transorm the world " is tantamount to being
alienated rom one)s own natureE it is a spiritual loss.
Marx described this loss in terms o commodit! etishism#
in which the things that people produce# commodities#
appear to have a lie and movement o their own to which
humans and their behavior merel! adapt. This disguises
the act that the exchange and circulation o commodities
reall! are the product and refection o social relationships
among people. Fnder capitalism# social relationships o
production# such as among wor(ers or between wor(ers
and capitalists# are mediated through commodities#
including labor# that are bought and sold on the mar(et.
Commodity fetishism is an example o what 0ngels
called alse consciousness# which is closel! related to the
understanding o ideolog!. 5! ideolog! the! meant ideas
that refect the interests o a particular class at a
particular time in histor!# but which are presented as
universal and eternal. Marx and 0ngels) point was not
onl! that such belies are at best hal"truthsE the! serve
an important political unction. $ut another wa!# the
control that one class exercises over the means o
production includes not onl! the production o ood or
manuactured goodsE it includes the production o ideas
as well Athis provides one possible explanation or wh!
members o a subordinate class ma! hold ideas contrar!
to their own interestsB. Thus# while such ideas ma! be
alse# the! also reveal in coded orm some truth about
political relations. %or example# although the belie that
the things people produce are actuall! more productive
than the people who produce them is literall! absurd# it
does refect the act Aaccording to Marx and 0ngelsB that
people under capitalism are alienated rom their own
labour"power. Another example o this sort o anal!sis is
Marx)s understanding o religion# summed up in a
passage rom the preace to his <3>= Contribution to the
Criti2ue of (e0el's Philoso&hy o 8ight: 8eligious
su*ering is# at one and the same time# the expression o
real su*ering and a protest against real su*ering. 8eligion
is the sigh o the oppressed creature# the heart o a
heartless world# and the soul o soulless conditions. 1t is
the opium o the people. &hereas his 7!mnasium senior
thesis argued that the primar! social unction o religion
was to promote solidarit!# here Marx sees the social
unction as a wa! o expressing and coping with social
ine-ualit!# thereb! maintaining the status -uo. Marx
argued that this alienation o human wor( Aand resulting
commodit! etishismB is precisel! the defning eature o
capitalism. $rior to capitalism# mar(ets existed in 0urope
where producers and merchants bought and sold
commodities. According to Marx# a capitalist mode o
production developed in 0urope when labor itsel became
a commodit! " when peasants became ree to sell their
own labor"power# and needed to do so because the! no
longer possessed their own land or tools necessar! to
produce. $eople sell their labor"power when the! accept
compensation in return or whatever wor( the! do in a
given period o time Ain other words# the! are not selling
the product o their labor# but their capacit! to wor(B. 1n
return or selling their labor power the! receive mone!#
which allows them to survive. Those who must sell their
labor power to live are Dproletarians.D The person who
bu!s the labor power# generall! someone who does own
the land and technolog! to produce# is a DcapitalistD or
Dbourgeois.D AMarx considered this an objective
description o capitalism# distinct rom an! one o a
variet! o ideological claims o or about capitalismB. The
proletarians inevitabl! outnumber the capitalists.
Marx distinguished industrial capitalists rom merchant
capitalists. Merchants bu! goods in one place and sell
them in anotherE more precisel!# the! bu! things in one
mar(et and sell them in another. +ince the laws o suppl!
and demand operate within given mar(ets# there is oten
a di*erence between the price o a commodit! in one
mar(et and another. Merchants# then# practice arbitrage#
and hope to capture the di*erence between these two
mar(ets. According to Marx# capitalists# on the other
hand# ta(e advantage o the di*erence between the labor
mar(et and the mar(et or whatever commodit! is
produced b! the capitalist. Marx observed that in
practicall! ever! successul industr! input unit"costs are
lower than output unit"prices. Marx called the di*erence
Dsurplus valueD and argued that this surplus value had its
source in surplus labour.
The capitalist mode o production is capable o
tremendous growth because the capitalist can# and has
an incentive to# reinvest profts in new technologies. Marx
considered the capitalist class to be the most
revolutionar! in histor!# because it constantl!
revolutioni:ed the means o production. 5ut Marx argued
that capitalism was prone to periodic crises. 'e
suggested that over time# capitalists would invest more
and more in new technologies# and less and less in labor.
+ince Marx believed that surplus value appropriated rom
labor is the source o profts# he concluded that the rate
o proft would all even as the econom! grew. &hen the
rate o proft alls below a certain point# the result would
be a recession or depression in which certain sectors o
the econom! would collapse. Marx understood that
during such a crisis the price o labor would also all# and
eventuall! ma(e possible the investment in new
technologies and the growth o new sectors o the
econom!.
Marx believed that this c!cle o growth# collapse# and
growth would be punctuated b! increasingl! severe
crises. Moreover# he believed that the long"term
conse-uence o this process was necessaril! the
enrichment and empowerment o the capitalist class and
the impoverishment o the proletariat. 'e believed that
were the proletariat to sei:e the means o production#
the! would encourage social relations that would beneft
ever!one e-uall!# and a s!stem o production less
vulnerable to periodic crises. 1n general# Marx thought
that peaceul negotiation o this problem was
impracticable# and that a massive# well"organi:ed and
violent revolution would in general be re-uired# because
the ruling class would not give up power without violence.
'e theori:ed that to establish the socialist s!stem# a
dictatorship o the proletariat " a period where the needs
o the wor(ing"class# not o capital# will be the common
deciding actor " must be created on a temporar! basis.
As he wrote in his DCriti-ue o the 7otha $rogramD#
Dbetween capitalist and communist societ! there lies the
period o the revolutionar! transormation o the one into
the other. Corresponding to this is also a political
transition period in which the state can be nothing but
the revolutionar! dictatorship o the proletariat.D
1n the <H24s and )=4s# a group o dissident Marxists
ounded the 1nstitute or +ocial 8esearch in 7erman!#
among them Max (orkheimer3 Theodor *dorno3 1rich
Fromm3 and (er,ert Marcuse. As a group# these
authors are oten called the %ran(urt +chool. Their wor(
is (nown as Critical Theor!# a t!pe o Marxist philosoph!
and cultural criticism heavil! infuenced b! 'egel# %reud#
9iet:sche# and Max &eber.The %ran(urt +chool bro(e
with earlier Marxists# including @enin and 5olshevism in
several (e! wa!s. %irst# writing at the time o the
ascendance o +talinism and %ascism# the! had grave
doubts as to the traditional Marxist concept o proletarian
class consciousness. +econd# unli(e earlier Marxists#
especiall! @enin# the! rejected economic determinism.
&hile highl! infuential# their wor( has been critici:ed b!
both orthodox Marxists and some Marxists involved in
political practice or divorcing Marxist theor! rom
practical struggle and turning Marxism into a purel!
academic enterprise./ther infuential non"5olshevi(
Marxists at that time include 7eorg @u(acs# &alter
5enjamin and Antonio 7ramsci# who along with the
%ran(urt +chool are oten (nown b! the term &estern
Marxism. 'enr!( 7rossman# who elaborated the
mathematical basis o Marx)s )law o capitalist
brea(down)# was another a.liate o the %ran(urt +chool.
Also prominent during this period was the $olish
revolutionar! 8osa @uxemburg.1n <H>H $aul +wee:! and
@eo 'uberman ounded Monthl! 8eview# a journal and
press# to provide an outlet or Marxist thought in the
Fnited +tates independent o the Communist $art!.1n
<HC3# 7. A. Cohen attempted to deend Marx)s thought as
a coherent and scientifc theor! o histor! b!
reconstructing it through the lens o anal!tic philosoph!.
This gave birth to Anal!tical Marxism# an academic
movement which also included ;on 0lster# Adam
$r:ewors(i and ;ohn 8oemer. 5ertell/llman is another
Anglophone champion o Marx within the academ!