Reflection on Marxism

Marxism

The material conditions of life and the economic structure of society was the driving force behind Karl Marx’s theory of Marxism.  He believed that, “The mode of production of material life conditions the social, political and intellectual life process in general.  It’s not the consciousness of men that determines their well-being, but their social being that determines their consciousness.” (662) 

Marx set out to prove that the economic and social forces shape the human consciousness.  Stemming from dialectical materialism – believing that all change results from a constant conflict arising from oppositions inherent in all ideas - he argued that these internal contradictions in capitalism would eventually lead to its demise. 

He determined that society has a base and superstructure.   With the base being the class (workers) the superstructure emerges.  The base is the way people relate to one another in productive relations.

Marx’s theory of class struggle is a central element to his beliefs.   He was against capitalism (private ownership) insisting it created a barrier between the proletarians and bourgeoisie.   Within capitalism, the proletarians only own their capacity to work – to sell their own labor.  But as a result of the disparity between their labor value and the surplus value derived from their mean of production, the bourgeoisie continue to benefit by getting richer and the proletarians lives remain the same.

Marx believed that eventually a social revolution must occur when an economic recession takes place.  The proletarians would be unable to afford the very products they manufacture and the bourgeoisie would not be able to consume the surplus value.

With relation to commodity fetishism, little thought from the recipient goes into the labor value that is involved in making or producing a product as in our class example of coffee.