Marxism Flashcards
1
Q
outline the structure of Marxist society
A
- built on an economic base (capitalism)
- society/ institutions (the superstructure) are formed to maintain capitalism
2
Q
outline pre modern society
A
pre industrial revolution, there was the pre-modern society;
- based on agriculture
- the landowner exercised political, economic judgement
- land was the main source of wealth and so was a motive force of the ruling class
- aim of production was consumption - not accumulation
- was a strong collective consciousness
3
Q
outline modern society
A
post industrial revolution, is modern society;
- cities + their populations grew - as did poverty, crime and other social issues
- people now work to generate money for themselves + produce goods for the owner of the means for production (bourgeoisie) in return for a salary
- workers have to take on low-paid roles
- modern production maximises output + minimises cost (profit is key)
- with the era of enlightenment, people looked to rational thought
4
Q
outline the case study of Grenfell Tower
A
- the Grenfell Tower is based in Chelsea; one of the most affluent areas
- killed 72/350 residents
- the fire was due to the less safe - but cheaper - materials used in its construction (flammable cladding) which enabled the fire to spread quicker
- Laws around construction were ambiguous and allowed loopholes for cheaper construction
- constructors of the block are also to blame as they cut corners to spend less money; profit is key and comes at the danger of the w/c
5
Q
outline the case study of the Rana Plaza
A
- in 2013, a Bangladesh factory producing fast fashion collapsed - killing 1,100 people
- after years of protest, murder charges were filed to those involved in forcing workers to work after a crack in the structure
- consumers of fast fashion must acknowledge their contribution to the continuity of w/c exploitation
6
Q
outline contextual examples of Marxism
A
- in the UK, the richest 1% own 24% (or 1/4) of the nations wealth
- globalisation allows for exploitation across boarders
- white collar crimes are ignored
- crumb analogy: ruling class feeds the w/c just enough to work without revolting
7
Q
outline Marx’s concept of historical materialism
A
- historical materialism: the idea that material conditions, e.g. the means + relations of production, are the cause of historical development
- society progresses through stages (feudalism, capitalism, + ultimately socialism) based on changes in production + who controls it
- changes in material conditions leads to shifts in social structures + ideas
- thus, history isnt driven by ideas/ actions alone, but by the conflict between social classes rooted in the economy
8
Q
outline Marx’s concept of class society and exploitation
A
- primitive communism: in early humanity, society was classless, there was no private ownership/ exploitation, everyone worked + everything was shared
- there were 3 successive class societies; ancient (exploitation of slaves legally tied to their owners), feudal (exploitation of agricultural workers legally tied to land), and capitalist society (exploitation of labourers)
9
Q
outline Marx’s concept of capitalism
A
- cap is based on the division between the owners/ bourgeoisie and the labourers/ proletariat
- 1) proletariat are legally free + separated from the means of prod. they have to sell their labour in return for wages
- this exchange of labour + wage is unequal. the capitalist makes surplus value/ profit
- 2) through competition, ownership of the means of production becomes concentrated in fewer hands. this drives independent owners into the proletariat
- competition also results in lower wages - causing immiseration (impoverishment of the proletariat)
- 3) cap continues to expand means of prod in its pursuit for profit meanwhile tech advances de-skills the workforce
- concentration of ownership + de-skilling of proletariat produces class polarisation of the minority capitalist class and the majority working class
10
Q
outline Marx’s concept of class consciousness
A
- capitalism sews the seeds of its own destruction
- e.g. by polarising the classes, bringing the proletariat together and low wages, this creates the conditions for which the WC can develop a consciousness for its won econ/ pol interests
- as a result, the WC becomes a class for itself, whose members are class conscious + aware of the need for a revolution
11
Q
outline Marx’s concept of ideology
A
- the class that owns the means of prod also owns + controls ideology
- thus, the dominant ideology in society is that of the bourgeoisie
- the institutions that produce + spread the ideology (e.g. education, media) are controlled by the ruling class and spread sets of ideas beliefs that legitimise the existing social order
- ideology curates a false class consciousness + helps to sustain class inequality
12
Q
outline Marx’s concept of alienation
A
- M believes that our true nature is based on our capacity to create things to meet our needs
- alienation is the result of our loss of control over our labour/ our separation from our true nature
- alienation exists in all class societies – but under capitalism its at its peak for 2 reasons;
1) workers are completely separate from + have no control over their means of production
2) the division of labour is at its most intense – the worker is reduced to an unskilled labourer mindlessly repeating a meaningless task
13
Q
outline Marx’s concept of the state and revolution
A
- Marx defines the state as ‘armed bodies of men’
- the state exists to protect the interests of the ruling class who own institutions. They use the state in the class struggle to protect their priv property, suppress opposition + prevent revolution
- the proletarian revolution that overthrows capitalism/ the ruling class will be majority against the minority
- revolution will: abolish state/ create a classless + communist society, abolish exploitation + priv ownership, end alienation as humans regain control of their labour + its products
14
Q
name the 2 aspects of criticisms of Marx
A
- Marx’s view of class
- economic determinism
15
Q
outline marxs view of class as a criticism of Marxism
A
- M has a simplistic, one-dimensional view of inequality
- he sees class as the only division: Feminists argue that gender is a more fundamental source of inequality
- Marx’s 2 class model is also simplistic: Weber subdivides the proletariat into skilled + unskilled classes
- class polarisation has not occurred: the MC has grown (instead of being swallowed into the proletariat) and the industrialist WC has shrunk
16
Q
outline economic determinism as a criticism of Marxism
A
- Marx’s base-superstructure model is economic deterministic (economic factors are seen as the only cause of everything in society) - this fails to recognise that humans have free will + can bring about change through their own actions
- the model also neglects the role of ideas: Weber argues it was the new emergence of a new set of ideas (Calvinist Protestantism) which helped to bring about modern capitalism
- Marx is also criticised for his prediction of a revolution that has not come true: M thought a rev would happen in the most advanced capitalist countries – but its only the economically backwards countries like Russia that have seen Marxist led countries
17
Q
outline the ‘two Marxisms’
A
- the absence of revolution in the west has led Marxists to reject the economic deterministic model and have tried to explain why capitalism has persisted
- there are 2 approaches: humanistic Marxism (has similarities with action + interpretive theories), structuralist Marxism (is a structural approach + has similarities with positivist theories)
18
Q
outline Gramsci’s general theory
A
- Gramsci is a Humanist Marxist who introduced the concept of hegemony, ideological + moral leadership of society to explain how the ruling class maintains their position (ideologically)
- he argues that the proletariat must develop a ‘counter hegemonic-bloc’ to revolt against the RC
19
Q
what are the 2 ways that Gramsci sees the ruling class as maintaining its dominance
A
1) coercion: it uses the army, police, prisons + courts of the capitalist state to force society to accept its rule
2) consent (hegemony): it uses ideas + values to persuade the subordinate classes that their rule is legitimate
20
Q
(Gramsci) outline the 2 reasons why ruling class hegemony is never complete
A
1) the ruling class is a minority: to be in complete control, they need to make power bloc alliances - e.g. with the MC. they must therefore make ideological compromises to ally
2) the proletariat have a dual consciousness: their ideas are influenced by bourgeois ideology, but also the poverty + exploitation experienced - thus they can ‘see through’ dominant ideology to an extent
21
Q
(Gramsci) outline ruling class hegemony
A
- in capitalist societies, the RC rely on consent/ hegemony to maintain power
- this is done through their control of state institutions that produce + spread ideas - e.g. media
- as long as society accepts the hegemony, revolution will not occur
- but, hegemony is never complete for 2 reasons (RC are a minority, proletariat have dual consciousness)
22
Q
(Gramsci) outline the possibility of a revolution
A
- there is always the possibility of RC hegemony being undermined, esp in times of econ crisis’ when WC question the status quo
- but; revolution is only possible if the WC develop a ‘counter-hegemonic bloc’ (offering moral and ideological leadership)
- this is done through an ‘organic intellectual’ who are a body of class conscious workers who are organised into a revolutionary political party who can form an alternative vision to how society could be run
23
Q
(Gramsci) outline an A03 evaluation of Gramsci’s theory
A
- Gramsci over emphasizes the role of ideology + under emphasizes the role of state coercion + economic factors
- e.g. workers may not revolt due to fear of consequences (e.g. state punishment or employment), not because they don’t see through the RC ideology
- e.g. Willis: describes WC lads as ‘partially penetrating’ bourgeois ideology by recognising that in schools, meritocracy is a myth
23
Q
outline Althusser
A
- Althusser is a structuralist Marxist
- he rejects both economic determinism + humanism - it is the structures that shape society
24
outline Althusser's criticisms of the base-superstructure model
- Althusser rejects Marx's original base super-structure model in favour of amore complex one, which Craib calls structural determinism
- A says that society is made up of 3 levels that have relative autonomy (independence); the economic, political and ideological level
- a collapse in one level means the others will still exist due to their relative autonomy - there is a two-way casualty (they can all affect each other)
25
outline Althusser's concept of ideological and repressive state apparatuses
- although the economic level dominates, the ideological + political levels perform indispensable functions - they manifest in 2 apparatuses:
- Ideological State Apparatuses (ISAs): Institutions like school, media, family that ideologically manipulate the WC to comply with the Bourgeois status quo
- Repressive State Apparatuses (RSAs): Institutions like the police, military that use force + coercion to maintain order and enforce the RC's dominance - 'armed bodies of men'
26
outline Althusser's criticisms of humanism
- Althusser (SM) critiques Humanist Marxism as for Structuralist Marxists, our sense of free will is an illusion - we are a product of underlying social structures - HMs believe that people can use their free will + reason to change society (revolt)
- A believes we are not free agents (as HM think) - we think we have free will due to the ISAs who produce our false class consciousness
- thus, socialism will not come about due to a change in consciousness - but will come because of a crisis of capitalism from over determination (the contradictions in the 3 structures - results in a collapsed system)
27
outline 2 AO3 evaluations of Althusser
- A claims to reject economic determinism, but more so replaces it with 'structural determinism' in which everything is determined by the 3 structures + their interrelationships
- A's scientific approach discourages political activism from individuals as it stresses that inds have no free will or affect on society
