SRAP3000 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: The Communist Manifesto, Class Conflict, For Marx
14 Jun 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
LECTURE NOTES WEEK 1 - KARL MARX
Background
• 1818 (b. Germany) – 1883 (d. England)
• Jewish heritage
• Philosopher, politics, economics
• Revolutionary
• Expelled from Germany and France
• Alienation and Social Class (1844); The Communist Manifesto (1848); Capital (1867)
1. Marx gave us a theory of society, i.e., an explanation of how society works,
including how and why history has unfolded, and especially of the nature of
capitalism. Many see this as being of great value for the task of describing what is
going on in the world and for understanding the problems and directions of our
society today
2. But Marx also regarded capitalism as extremely undesirable and he was very
concerned with getting rid of it. He thought its contradictions would lead it to
self- destruct, enabling the establishment of (a variety of) communist society. If
you wish you can reject his values here...you can love capitalism and hate
communism... while accepting the value of his ideas about how capitalism
functions
History
• Change in society, historical development, emerges through class struggle
o History doesn't evolve independently of individuals. Rather, historical
changes occurs through tensions, struggles, or contradictions emerging from
social arrangements
• The history of all hitherto eistig soiet is the histor of lass struggles Mar,
Communist Manifesto)
• History is primarily a function of material or economic conditions, i.e., of the
productive situation. Hence Marxism is referred to by the terms "historical
aterialis" ad "dialetial aterialis
Society
• Economics – substructure of society. Social institutions and ideas, the system of law,
of morality and education - elements within the "superstructure" of society
• Marx argued that dominant ideas are the result of material or economic conditions
and class relations and he was therefore strongly opposed to reformers who thought
that mere change in ideas can change society
• The key to understanding a society at any point in history is to focus first on the
ode of produtio, the a produtio is orgaised
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
