POLB80H3 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Living Wage, Proletariat, Industrial Revolution
Document Summary
Marx was writing in response to the 19th c industrial revolution. Factory worker conditions at this time was dire. your whole life story is determined by your class, class strictures. Class structure shapes all social and political reality. Marxist writings about revolution had a powerful impact on anti-colonial fighter. Guerrillas were fighting against both political and economic subjugation by european colonialists. (you stay away from war field, somebody would knock your door) The fall of the ussr was a blow to marxist ideas. But there are still systems of production that were born out of colonialism and slavery that still poor and rich states rich. The world is divided between the core (haves) and periphery (have-nots) Capitalism create this unequal distribution of wealth, that is then self- perpetuating. Many factory workers do not enjoy a living wage or safe working condition, so that prices of these goods remain low. Economic conditions actively shape how the international system works.
