marxism Flashcards
key ideas of marxists
-economy driving force in infulecing everything
-conflict between proletriat and bourgeosise)
-ruling class exploit the w/c by paying them low wages for hard labour
why is competiton encouraged
-generates more wealth and divides the w.c
-ruling class have power and control
what can we say about the economic base and the capitalism
-economic base refers to the means of prodcution e,g land, factories , machinery
-relations of production is between the owners and workers
what is known as the superstructure under the economic base
-all the institiutions in society that transmit norms and values
what did the superstructure transmit
-ideas and values of the ruling class
-taught w/c to accpet their posititon
-referred as ruling class ideology(want to transmit idea that capitalism is just and fair)
is the marxists ideas still relevant today
-capitalism is alive in uk and spread round the world
-comapanies now compete for profit on a global scale to reach greater customer bases
-they exploit cheaper labour in other countries
how do the bourgeiosie exploit the proletariat
marx believe that the ruling class exploit w/c by not paying them true value of their labour so keep greater profits for themselves
is this still relevant in contemporary UK
we now have:
-equal pay act
-equal opportunities e.g protects against discrimination e.g when ill or hv a kid
- maternity pay
-minimum wage
-zero hour contract
-health and safety
-sickness and pension benefits
-fight bullying and harassment in work place
what is an example of boohoo?
-low wages , harsh conditions ( blocked up windows and use of face masks)
-fast fashion
- exploitation of textile workers
what is an example of the sports direct mike ashley’s case
-low pay being made
- work culture of bullying
-accused of zero hour contract
-high level of pressure to work even when sick
-lack of rights due to 0 hour contact
what’s further evidence of the marxists ideas from clips and articles
-members of aristocracy and corporations have control of half the country
-land and ownership is largely unequal
-bulk of population own very little land or none at all
what are stats on the retail sector
-big pay gaps
- e.g JD the chief executive has 5.6m but only pays staff average of £18,300
- many households struggle
how did the bourgeoise have power and control in society
-marx claimed upper class held majority of senior positions in a range of institutions in the UK
- e.g army, business , media
- those at the top likely to have gone to top independent schools to make important decisions to affect eveyone
is the ideas of bourgeoise having power and control in society still relevant in contemporary UK
-7% of all MPs are considered working class compared
-29% of MPS come from private schools , far higher than the electorate they represent
- house of commons less representative = 57% of their members educated privately
how do marxists bring in the media
- newspaper shape the national conversation with 44% have attended private schools
- influencing editors 43% privately educated
what do marxists say about communism and the revolution
-marxists believed the proletariats would eventually reach “ class consensus”
- eventually overthrow the bourgeoisie
- leading to a communist society
-means of production ideally opened by the state and run in the interests of everyone
- this would happen eventually if the w/c became aware of their position
strengths of the marxist theories
-recognises importance of the economy
and how the economy influence a range of other social institutions
- offers explanations for extreme social inequalities
- recognises importance of a social structure
-influence on other theories such as marx feminists
weaknesses of marxists theory
-predictions don’t come true bc people i’m western have a better standard of living
-china is a communist country which is going through significant inequalities
- governments now have less power as corporations like apple make lots of profit and cheap goods
- marxists over emphasise, functionalists shared values are more important
-social class don’t quite work how marxists describe as we now have the emerging middle class which don’t fit into either
-ignore gender, ethnicity focus too much on class
-economic base theory is too deterministic (sees individuals as passive doesn’t provide choice)
-tried to explain everything from single perspective
