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An Introduction To Marxism

Marxism examines why some people are rich while others are poor in capitalist societies. Its founder, Karl Marx, saw that society consisted of two main classes: the capitalists who owned businesses and resources, and the workers or proletariat who worked to produce goods but did not own what they created. Marx argued that in this system, workers became "alienated" from the production process, the products they made, other people, and their own human creativity - feeling like parts of a machine rather than whole people. This alienation occurs because workers do not control their labor or what they produce, but are directed by capitalists for profit.

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77 views2 pages

An Introduction To Marxism

Marxism examines why some people are rich while others are poor in capitalist societies. Its founder, Karl Marx, saw that society consisted of two main classes: the capitalists who owned businesses and resources, and the workers or proletariat who worked to produce goods but did not own what they created. Marx argued that in this system, workers became "alienated" from the production process, the products they made, other people, and their own human creativity - feeling like parts of a machine rather than whole people. This alienation occurs because workers do not control their labor or what they produce, but are directed by capitalists for profit.

Uploaded by

Jolia Gabuyo
Copyright
© © 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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An Introduction to Marxism.

Have you ever wondered why some people are rich and some are
poor? Or why some people are so rich that they can buy islands and
malls, and why some people are so poor that they cannot even afford
food? The idea of Marxism begun with questions such as these. The
founder of the critical concept, Karl Marx, wanted to understand how
the capitalist society works (for whom does it truly work better and
worse for) and where it would likely lead. For Marx, he saw the struggle
of the two classes in society: (1) the capitalists or owners of the
resource-producing companies and (2) the workers or proletariat, who
work to produce and, thus, survive. This is where Marxism comes from:
it is the analysis of the relationship between these two classes and their
struggles with each other.

One of the key terms in Marxism is the concept of alienation. Alienation


is looking at the way the workers are living and how this specifically
affects their overall well –being. This is because the workers in a
capitalist society do not own the materials with which they produce
and, thus, are owned by the capitalists who force the workers to sell
their “labor power,” or their ability to work, for money or wages.

What happens is that, first the workers are alienated from the
productive process itself, because he or she has no part in the decision -
making process of what to do and how to do it. This is because the
capitalist sets all the rules and conditions for the proletariat to work in;
the capitalist may even hire or fire the worker at will or by certain
reasons. Second, the workers are alienated from the product itself,
because the worker will almost never have the opportunity to
experience or use the product that they have produced by themselves,
because it is only produced for the ruling capitalist society. Third,
because of the excessive demands of mass production and labor, the
worker is alienated from society and other humans. The conditions in a
capitalist society force the worker to compete and be indifferent with
other human beings as the worker tries to survive and thrive in the
capitalist’s conditions. Fourth, the worker is alienated from the need of
the human being for creativity and community that is to be shared with
other human beings. Instead, the worker is faced with production day
in and day out and cannot be free to develop his or her own creativity
anymore. Thus, the worker is not allowed to feel and experience being
part of the human ecosystem. When the individual is alienated, he or
she becomes diminished and weakened. There is something missing,
and the proletariat does not feel whole anymore.

1. How can Marxism be applied in analyzing literary text?

2. How is alienation manifested in the Philippine experience? Cite a


concrete/specific example.

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