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Marx’s Views

Karl Marx's 'Communist Manifesto' critiques capitalism for its unequal wealth distribution, where the bourgeoisie oppresses the proletariat, and advocates for the abolition of private property to end class hierarchies. He predicted class struggles, economic crises, and worker alienation as inherent flaws of capitalism. However, Marx overlooked capitalism's adaptability, the rise of a middle class, and the impact of consumer demand, innovation, and globalization, which have contributed to its resilience beyond his expectations.

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9 views3 pages

Marx’s Views

Karl Marx's 'Communist Manifesto' critiques capitalism for its unequal wealth distribution, where the bourgeoisie oppresses the proletariat, and advocates for the abolition of private property to end class hierarchies. He predicted class struggles, economic crises, and worker alienation as inherent flaws of capitalism. However, Marx overlooked capitalism's adaptability, the rise of a middle class, and the impact of consumer demand, innovation, and globalization, which have contributed to its resilience beyond his expectations.

Uploaded by

abuga duncan
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Question 1

In his 'Communist Manifesto,' Karl Marx considers wealth is used only for good by the

bourgeoisie (the capitalist class) to oppress the proletariat (the working class). He thought wealth

is unequally distributed in capitalism and that the class of rulers, which gains wealth by

exploiting the workers’ labor, comes to the top. Marx says that this system leads to an extreme

imbalance with a small individual elite controlling most of the resources while the majority fail

trying even to survive intake. Regarding property, Marx was for its abolition; he understood

private property as the principal means by which the bourgeoisie perpetuated power. He said that

private property led to the concentration of capital and wealth in the hands of the few and

perpetuated social inequalities. Marx also saw the way to end the class hierarchy was by ending

private property and collectively owning the resources and means of production. Marx also saw

education as an important tool for ideological control in capitalist societies. He contended that

school perpetuates the capitalist interests of the bourgeoisie by teaching values fostering the

interests of the bourgeoisie in competition and individualism. Through a reformed education

system, according to Marx, you would be taught to value collectively, and think critically and if

they didn’t, you would make sure to question its exploitation.

Question 2

Through centuries, Marx has anticipated a few of the major pitfalls of capitalism which have

brought it deeper and deeper into an abyss. He was one of his main predictions was that there

would inevitably be a class struggle (the working class would rise against the ruling capitalist

class because they would continually be being exploited and their working conditions were

getting worse). He predicted that soon the power and concentration of wealth would be the
exclusive domain of an elite few, increasing social inequality that would in time feed resentment

and revolution. The phenomenon of economic crises or 'crises of overproduction', another

prediction, was predicted. The inevitable overproduction of goods and workers’ earning low

wages reducing their spending power would be inevitable because folks in Marx’s world were

swayed by capitalism’s need to win profit, according to Marx’s. He suggested this imbalance

would result in economic down (periods), in which goods could not be sold, which led to layoffs,

poverty, and further instability. Marx did not imagine that capitalism would not result in the

alienation of workers. In capitalism, he said, workers are reduced to nothing but cogs in a

machine, performing repetitive tasks with no rhyme or reason to the final product of their labor.

The alienation by Marx dehumanizes workers because they are not in charge of the production

process and are not controlling their creative expression.

Question 3

Karl Marx’s critique of capitalism failed to examine some important things about modern

economies. However, the fact that capitalism was able to adapt and reform was a very serious

oversight. However, Marx predicted that capitalism would lead to inevitable collapse, but

capitalist societies have invented such social welfare schemes, labor laws, and regulatory

structures to prevent some inequalities, to stabilize the system. He also misjudged the emergence

of a big middle class that has served to blur class lines and undermine a revolutionary deadlock.

Furthermore, Marx never thought that consumer demand, now dictating markets and exerting

pressure on companies to conform to public tastes, would have much of an impact on market

forces. Another thing Marx did badly was to predict the role of innovation and globalization.

Manufacturers of myriad goods have ensured their survival through technological change and

development that prompted work and enhanced living standards without his foreseeing. With
globalization, we have expanded markets beyond borders for capitalism to grow and distribute

resources internationally. Marx also wouldn’t have anticipated the modern focus on

environmental and ethical concerns in the workplace and the development of welfare states, such

as healthcare and education, for example. Capitalism has turned out to be a much more resilient

system and more than Marx ever imagined it was.

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