Analysis of the Main Strengths and Weaknesses of Marx’s...

Analysis of the Main Strengths and Weaknesses of Marx’s Sociological Thought â€Å"The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles† Marx and Engels (1967, p.67) Born in 1818, Karl Marx, using his philosophical and socialist ideas, attempted to show how conflict and struggle in social development were important in the development of a society. The works of Marx were influenced by three distinct intellectual traditions: German idealist philosophy, French socialism and British political economy. German idealist philosophy is an approach based on the thesis that only the mind and its content really exist. This philosophy maintains that it is through the advance of†¦show more content†¦land, animals, tools etc which are a necessary means of survival in order to produce food, shelter and clothing. These are called the forces of production. Together with the relations of production between the workers and those who owned the forces of production, this resulted in the mode of production. All human beings must employ the forces of production in order to meet basic economic needs. However, there has always been one class of persons who ha ve owned the means of production. Marx argued that it is this ownership which leads to the most essential fact of materialist theory of history which is the division of society into economic classes.[1](Morrison, 1995). Marx saw societies as social systems which could be divided into two parts: the economic base and the superstructure. The economic base contained a particular mode of production as well as the economy and class relations. It is also the foundation upon which superstructures of political, legal, and social institutions are built. The economic base is also the basis of various forms of consciousness and knowledge. According to Marx, political views and cultural ideas simply reflect economic divisions and struggles. Relating to the issue of exploitation, the economic base – the exploitative way it produces its goods – creates the superstructure – its non economic institutions and systemsShow MoreRelatedThe Core Concepts Of Sociology1578 Words   |  7 PagesThe core concepts of sociology are a combination of original theories with improved sociological approaches that build upon them over time. Sociology utilizes three main theories to approach the study of soc iety with different focus points that result in different outcomes. 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