Marx: Capitalism and Class

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses Karl Marx's development of communism or socialism in response to what he saw as the evils of capitalism. The author describes the industrial revolution, which brought about the social changes and conditions that Marx saw as unjust to the working class majority. He believed that capitalism and mass production destroyed the cohesion of fellow human beings and made self-interest more important than shared values and goals, thereby dehumanizing the worker. The author provides a brief overview of American society before the industrial revolution and explains how industrialization led to the exploitation of African Americans, immigrants and women as cheap labor. The author explains the concept of market socialism, a modern theoretical cure for both the ills of capitalism and the weakness of traditional communism, and discusses why Marxism failed. The author concludes by suggesting that what is most needed might be a blending of the two systems, in which capitalism and socialism could each counteract the evils of the other.

Outline:
Labor as a Commodity
History of Values and Attitudes
Strengths and Weaknesses in Marxism
Failures of Marxism

From the Paper:

"In an effort to explain the philosophical differences between capitalism and Marxism, it is helpful to ponder how philosophical values and ideas are shaped. According to Kolakowski (2005), the history of philosophy has two opposing viewpoints--materialism and idealism. Idealists theorize that spirit existed before nature, and materialists theorize that spirit materialized after nature. There have been countless creeds in the history of philosophy that have tried, unsuccessfully, to find a balance between the two main viewpoints."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Ellens, S. (2007). Relationship of philanthropy to the Industrial Revolution. Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University. Retrieved on 9 November 2007 from http://www.learningtogive.org.
• Gregory, J. (2005). The southern diaspora. The University of North Carolina Press.
• Grossman, J. (2002) The great migration: James Grossman lecture. The Digital Library: Social Studies. Retrieved on 12 November 2007 from http://ecuip.lib.uchicago.edu/diglib/social/greatmigration/lecture.html
• Kamenka, E. (1962). The ethical foundation of Marxism. M.I.A. Library Archives. Retrieved on 12 November 2007 from http://www.marxists.org/archive/kamenka/index.htm
• Kolakowski, L. (2005). Main currents of marxism. New York, London: W.W. Norton & Company.

More papers on Marx: Capitalism and Class:

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• Essay # 31547 : "Contradiction and Class Conflict"

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