By relating the story of the labourer in relation to the flagrant exploitation he undergoes, Marx manages to have his message on revolution resonate with many of his readers at that current time. The Manifesto begins by addressing the issue of class antagonism, in its preface, where ‘all history has been a history of class struggles, of struggles between exploited and exploiting, between dominated and dominating classes at various stages of social development’[ Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, The Communist Manifesto, ed. by Jeffrey C. Isaac, (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2012).]. J. Elster in ‘An introduction to Karl Marx’ confirms this notion of the ‘contrast and the conflict between the haves and the have nots, the idle rich and the working poor, are constant themes of history. [ J. Elster, An Introduction to Karl Marx, (Cambridge, 1986), chapter 5, p.79.]
"What the bourgeoisie, therefore, produces, above all, is its own grave-diggers. Its fall and the victory of the proletariat are equally inevitable" (Marx, 1848). Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels famous work ‘ The communist manifesto’ is on of the most influential doctrines on the theory of Marxism. Marxism, as concluded from Marx and Engels is a conflict theory, which means that it believes that society is based on inequality and unequal distribution of power and wealth. The Marxist methodology uses economic and sociopolitical inquiry and employs that to the critique and analyse the development of capitalism and the role of class struggle in systemic economic change.
This essay will compare and contrast the aspirations and opinions of the Marxist and feminist ideologies, both of which continue to have a meaningful impact upon modern politics. At its simplest Marxism is a political ideology which aims to build from the critical analysis of the philosopher Karl Marx. The Marxist view of capitalism is that through the operation of the economy, the masses (workers) are exploited by the ruling class (capitalists) via profit, which is seen as theft. A strong proponent of this stance was the philosopher Friedrich Engels who stated, “all past history was the history of class struggles; that these warring classes of society are always the products of the modes of production and of exchange.” (Engles, 1877), developed
Thus, feminism sought to liberate women from androcentrism, which was prevalent in multiple aspects of life, including religion. Women’s views were not expressed in religion and theology, therefore, feminist theologians attempted to reinterpret religion based on the female experience. Feminist theologies can be divided into three categories, revolutionary, reformist and reconstructionist. The first, revolutionary feminist theology, views the bible and Christianity as patriarchal and antiwoman. Thus, women abandoned Christianity and looked to worshipping ancient female deities.
Marxism is a system of economic, social, and political philosophy based on ideas that view social change in terms of economic factors. A general opinion is that the means of production is the economic base that impacts or resolves the political life. Marxist literary theory of how everything relates back to wealth and social and financial status, reflecting on the economical experiences of Fitzgerald. It is clear that Fitzgerald has a Marxist message in the way he develops his characters in his novel. In the Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald demonstrates the concept of Marxist critique through social-economic relationships and conflicts that it can create.
Marx argues that due to division of labor and class struggle, “man comes to objectify himself through this mere one-dimension he has created and identifies with” (Marx p.475). The class struggle resulted from division of labor created an inequality where some will own the means of production, and the lower class who provides or sells their labor or “self” to survive working for those owners of means of product. This two groups are simply explained as bourgeoisies and proletariats by Marx. As the industrialization and society modernizes, the inequality will prevail observably. Marx argues that the proletariats will revolt against bourgeoisies and lead to the fall of capitalism and rise of communism.
Readers with a Marxist perspective would look for the oppression of the proletariat by the bourgeoisie. They would perhaps also look at the commodification of people, where people are taken advantage off. They might also focus on how social classes are represented and how they interact or conflict. A feminist perspective
Based upon works by Betty Friedan and documents like Declaration of Sentiments, feminism to these “classic feminists” is defined by the oppression faced by upper class, white, heterosexual, cisgendered women. By doing so these groups have hindered the plight of modern feminism. By this historical outdated definition of feminism institutions such as
This exploitation in work that happens under a capitalist economy is the reason why Marx arrived at the conclusion that working in this system would be very conflictual and oppressive. Grint
•The weaknesses of Marxist Feminism include its obscuring differences between distinct economic classes of men and women and its failure to make room for issues unrelated to the nature and function of work (the sex-gender system). SOCIALIST FEMINISM •influence: Marxism, psychoanalysis, radical feminism •key concepts: unity and integration of capitalist system and patriarchy •explanation: women 's oppression is complexly determined by a variety of forces, including economic, social, psychological. •Socialist feminism attempts to synthesize best insights of Marxist and Radical feminism. Capitalism, male do minance, racism, imperialism are intertwined and inseparable. •Socialist feminism remains more historical than biological and more specific than universal: recognizes all the important differences among human beings—class, sex, but also age, race, ethnicity, nationality, sexual orientation.