He argued that capital society and social order are all link to a capital system to human beings. Durkheim on the other hand, argued that sociology should be look at social facts as objects. Roles and institutions act like bodily organs, each depending on other. The world should be divided into subjective and objective, regarding society as a reality in itself. Durkheim sees anomie as responsible for the world’s disorder of economics- the lack of morality and regulation resulted in overpowering the weak; thus, he feels that only norms can prevent the abuse of power and calls for regulation and equal opportunity from birth- the greater the equal opportunity the less need for restraint.
According to Marx – in a capitalist society, the economic relationship of exploitation requires ideologies in the superstructure to cover up inequality – they are not innocent/neutral because they justify inequality and serve the interest of powerful groups. Marx argued that the organisation of production in a society shapes the nature of society – refers to this as base/superstructure. The base of the infrastructure is the economy – determines the ideas of society and superstructure – social, cultural, political and ideological parts of society. All history can be divided into five epochs/period; primitive consumerism – everything is shared, in class
Foundations of Sociology Essay : Outline and Discuss Marx’s Theory of Alienation Sociology was born through the need of social change after social problems such as crime, urban light and homelessness began to emerge after the Industrial Revolution. Amongst other things Karl Marx was an excellent German sociologist (1818-1883). He was a communist manifesto and one of the world’s global best sellers. Much of sociology is a debate with the ghost and ideas of Karl Marx. In this essay I am going to outline and discuss Karl Marx’s theory of alienation.
Therefore, for Marxists, the functions of the family are to benefit the capitalist system. Marxists see three functions that the family fulfil for capitalism; inheritance of property, ideological functions and a unit of consumption. Inheritance of property; Marxists argue that the mode of production is the key factor in determining the shape of all social institutions (such as the family). They say, as the mode of production evolves, so does the family. Marx called the earliest, classless society, primitive communism.
Weber on the Spirit of Capitalism and its Questionable Utility to Society Weber, in his book, The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, aims to examine the motivations as well as the events behind the formation of the spirit of capitalism. The development of the spirit of capitalism, as described by Weber, can be understood as a facet of the development of economic rationalism1. At the same time, he believes that the ‘Protestant Ethic’ was vital for the perpetuation of the capitalist spirit. However, a problem arises because the ‘Protestant Ethic’ - or any religious/fanatic basis for that matter – transcends (or ignores) rational thought. His task, therefore, is to identify the roots of the spirit of capitalism with respect to the Protestant Ethic.
Lastly, the economic causes which was the need of new markets in which to sell their manufactured goods, Europeans needed raw materials to keep their factories busy, and place to infest profits. The political causes are the European needed bases for trade and navy ships and the spirit of nationalism. Document 3 is an excerpt, from Raymond Aron’s book The Century of Total War, suggests another cause for imperialism. For example, a nation should be in power and should be motivated for the quest of capitalist profits. In document 4 Cecil Rhodes, a successful British imperialist in Africa, expressed his position in Confession of Faith, written in 1877.
In this new capitalist period, the more simplified means of production as seen in feudalism, had developed into a “complex industrial state” as stated in Haralambos and Holborn (2008). Capitalism brought a new way to sustain humanity; industrial production. Marxism, as a sociological theory, focuses on the economics of Britain. Lee and Newby (1983) say that to “organize the production of its subsistence” is the most basic human instinct. The economy provides us with our means of survival and defines our society.
Marxism holds at its core a critical analysis of capitalism and a theory of social change. The powerful and innovative analytical methods Marx introduced have influenced a broad range of disciplines. This is both a conflict and structuralist model.
Marxists see society as based on unequal class conflict between the two social classes; the capitalist class, who owns the means of production and the working class whose labour the capitalists exploit for mere profit and power. Marxists have identified several functions that they see the family as fulfilling all for the needs for capitalism. One of these functions the Marxists believes keeps society in a ruling class ideology is the inheritance of property. The key factor, according to Marxists, in shaping society is the mode of production which includes who controls and owns societies as well as productive forces such as tools, machinery, raw materials, land and labour. Karl Marx stated that the earliest, classless society was almost “primitive communism” where there was no private property and all members of society owned the means of production communally.
Both Lyotard and Baudrillard believe that other sociological theories such as Marxism or Functionalism, are ‘meta-narratives’ or ‘grand narratives’, which means they are both elaborate stories that give the impression that society is largely under control, when in reality we find that this is not the case. These ‘grand narratives’ were developed in order to justify and explain a sense of control over the ever-expanding economic system, which in fact human beings have no control over at all. This therefore means that the role of sociology has been to justify and explain. However, Lyotard disagrees with this view and says that contemporary society consists of merely isolated individuals linked together by few social bonds, rather than how other sociological theories describe them. They both rejected the ‘grand narrative’ theories, Post Modernists instead focus upon the concepts of identity and difference rather than inequality.