Feminism, Marxism And Marxism

Marxism is a theory that analyses social hierarchy and class struggle though the proletariats (lower class) and the

Marxism (1895–1900) is the economic and political theory and practice originated by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels that holds that actions and human institutions are economically determined, that the class struggle is the basic agency of historical change, and that capitalism will ultimately be superseded by communism. They include the notion of economic determinism that political and social structures are determined by the economic conditions of people. Marxism calls for a classless society where all means of production are commonly owned, a system to be reached as an inevitable result

Functionalism is a macro system theory which sees society as a mega structure of linked social institutions such as school, family and the legal system. Each different institution is functional to ensure the whole of society is maintained. For example primary socialisation takes place within the home where children are taught basic life

Both Sociological theories take very different viewpoints on most general societal subjects such as family for instance. At its most basic platform Marxists see the stereotypical nuclear family as a tool for the ruling class. Early on Marx realized the ability to pass down property through generations was a brilliantly useful mechanism for controlling wealth and capital. Marxists see the family as a potential assembly line of workers: the head of the household being the proprietor and ‘CEO’ whilst the children are being prepared to receive their inheritance and maintain their family’s wealth and capital status.

Marxism is a theory based on “a materialist interpretation of historical development and a dialectical view of social transformation” (Wikipedia, 2017) by philosophers Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. Marxism focuses on social contradictions and the struggle between socioeconomic classes, which are proletariat, who are the poor people and the working class; and bourgeoisie, the rich people that control the means of production. Marxist theory states that the only way to eliminate the differences between both classes is a violent revolution that will lead to a communist society.

At its core, Marxism critically analyses HYPERLINK "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Critique_of_capitalism" \o "Critique of capitalism"capitalism and the theory of HYPERLINK "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_change" \o "Social change"social change. They aim for a

The Communist Manifesto, originally drafted as, “Manifesto of the Communist Party”, is a pamphlet written by Karl Marx, that in essence reflects an attempt to explain the goals and objectives of Communism, while also explaining the concrete theories about the nature of society in relation to the political ideology. The Communist Manifesto breaks down the relationship of socio-economic classes and specifically identifies the friction between those classes. Karl Marx essentially presents a well analyzed understanding of class struggles and the issues concerning capitalism, the means and modes of production and how those means affect the classes as a whole.

AQA AS/A SOCIOLOGY ESSAY: CRITICALLY EXAMINE MARXIST PERSPECTIVES ON TODAY’S SOCIETY Classical Marxism is a conflict structural theory which argues that, rather than society being based on value consensus as functionalists would contend, there is a conflict of interest between different groups (social classes) because of the unequal distribution of power and wealth. Marxists are also interested in the way in which social change can occur, particularly in sudden and revolutionary ways. However, there are differences between Marxists especially over the way which social change can come about. For example, humanistic Marxists like Gramsci give a greater role to the conscious decisions and actions of human beings than do structural Marxists

Marxism tries to explain things by look at the world differently, the purpose is to look at the existence of a world or of forces beyond the natural world around us, and the society we live in. It looks for concrete, scientific, logical explanations of the world. The Marxist theory developed when Karl Marx and his friend Frederich Engels wrote The Communist Manifesto in 1848, focuses on class in societies, Marxism attempts to change the world while other philosophies look to merely understand it. Marx wanted to better understand how so many people could be in poverty in a world where there is so much wealth. His answer was simple: capitalism.

Before I introduce these concepts it is important I introduce as to where these two theories developed from. In the late nineteenth century, two German philosophers, by the name Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels who developed and laid out the foundations and methodology Marxism. According to Ted Trainer, “Marx gave us a theory of society, i.e , an explanation of how society works, of how and why history has unfolded, and especially an account of the nature of capitalism. These are of great value for the task of describing what is going on in the world and for understanding the problems and directions of our society today (Trainer 2010).” Marxism is a method that is known worldwide; it is a method in which focuses on class relations and conflict within society to suppress the individuals at the lower end of the economic ladder. This methodology uses economic and the politics within society to decipher and explore the development of capitalism and the role class plays’ in the economic system. According to their analysis, conflict within the

According to Marx, those who have power over society exert their control as a result of economic power and therefore determine the dominant ideologies within the superstructure model. Being the greater economical and cultural barrier, the structure provides the social world with norms, rules and beliefs pertaining to age, gender, class and one’s cultural identity. Within that structure it becomes apparent that inequalities restrict your agency in terms of nationality, geographical location, class etc. In agreement with Marx, the dominant views are generally the views of the superior class; the elite. One example

The Marxist's perspective is dominantly based on economic factors and over emphasizes them; money is assumed to be everything within society and social life. In my view, something is clearly missing here such as values and other social factors. Assuming that money is everything within society leads to assumptions that those owning the productive and therefore economic resources are given the power and use it to control those without to maintain their hegemony. Further factors that can form and shape society like gender, ethnicity, age, culture etc. are not taken into consideration and neglected. Hence the Marxist perspective focuses on having versus not having, earning versus not earning and powerful versus powerless.

Functionalism is consensus theory in sociology. Society based on Functionalism theory was defined as a system of interconnected institutions such as family,

In this paper, we will analyze Catharine MacKinnon’s work Feminism, Marxism, Method, and the State: An Agenda for Theory, and the unique way in which she tries to form a metaphorical parallel between Marxist theory and relate this to her stance on feminism. She uses this distinctive technique to develop her feminist theory of law. While most would agree that she is very innovative in her approach, we will try to examine the problems with looking at feminism and feminist theory in this manner. While not completely discrediting MacKinnon, the purpose of this paper will be to shed light on the dangers of trying to hijack Marxist theory, stifle it into a corner, and cover it in feminist theory, much like An Agenda for Theory does. We will then look at ways in which we can liberate Marxist theories form MacKinnon’s tight associations and give ideas to help them guide modern feminism as a helpful resource, instead of making it a clear cut metaphorical dictator to truthfully understanding Feminism and feminist theory.

Marxism can be seen throughout history and from this, it can be seen how socialism was derived and what a huge role it has played around the globe in the 19th and 20th centuries.