MORALES, Vianca Ronnin P.

September 6, 2019

Section AF

1. Identify the different factors Karl Marx considered in analyzing the different stages of development of society. (5points)
According to Marx, each stage in the development of society is determined by its primary mode of production,
and the division of labor that is seen in that particular stage (Felluga, n.d.). The former of these two is expounded upon
by a letter of Frederick Engels to W. Borgius, in which he states that aside from the mere mode of production, this also
determines and includes method of exchange between person to person, and furthermore, the division of products
among people (1894). On the other hand, Engels’ explains the latter of the two mentioned factors by stating in a letter
to Conrad Schmidt that society itself gives rise to certain societal roles that it cannot exist without. The people who are
selected for these roles grow to have particular interests and specializations, and consequently, make themselves
independent by having varying states of mind (1890).

2. Give specific examples of these factors per stage of development of society. (5 points)

Factors Hunting and Gathering Horticultural/Pastoral Agrarian Industrial

(Primitive Communalism) (Slave Society) (Feudal Society) (Capitalist Society)

Mode of Production -Lived on fruit-gathering
and hunting
-No wealth or property
created yet
(Ghosh, 1982)
Division of Labor -Based on kinship
relations; hunting is the
job of men while domestic
work is attributed to
women.
-Hunted collectively and
-Cattle breeding and -Trade guilds -Structured around
agriculture -Restricted condition of commodities and
-Tilling of land and production—small profit, i.e. Capitalism
cultivation scale land cultivation -Large-scale industries
(Ghosh, 1982) and craft type of (Ghosh, 1982)
industry
(Felluga, n.d.)
-Conception of the idea -Minimal division of -The powerful/the
that man can become labor; feudal peasants capitalist/the
“owner of the land” knew what percentage bourgeoisie owns the
and can employ the of his produce is due land/means of
“less powerful” ones the feudal lords, and livelihood
for labor which portion is due -The working
 shared what was (Ghosh, 1982) him (Felluga, n.d.) class/proletariat own
gathered with each other. little to no percentage
(Ghosh, 1982) of their produce
(Ghosh, 1982)

3. How did Marx perceive capitalism? (5 points)

Fundamentally, Marx believed that capitalism had evil effects on society. He believed that capitalism would
result in its own destruction and that it “contains the seeds of its own downfall” (Marx, 1848). Marx believed that
capitalism gave rise to two prominent evils: exploitation and alienation. Marx argued that the bourgeoisie exploited the
proletariat, and the proletariat in turn cannot do anything about it since their wages depend on the jobs offered by the
capitalists, even though they are paid an unjustly low wage. Capitalism thrives on having an underclass; and while this
remains true, great resentment from the underclass would grow and grow until it decided to start a revolution against
the capitalists. Further, Marx argued that another evil principal of Capitalism is Alienation, which could be divided into
four main concepts: (1) Alienation from humanity (the proletarian has no individuality and is commoditized; valued not
for his humanity but for his contribution to the production of capital by his labor); (2) Alienation of worker from
products of his labor (the product dominates the worker; the object becomes a “means for [the] physical substinence of
the worker himself” (Marx, 1844); (3) Alienation of the activity of labor from laborer (labor is coerced; labor becomes a
self-sacrifice), and; (4) Alienation of worker from fellow human being (if the worker is alienated from his own
humanity, thus he is alienated from the humanity of others as well) (Marx, 1848).

4. What is Marx ideal society? How will we achieve Marx’ ideal society according to him? (5 points)
Marx’ ideal society is a Communist society. He believed that a truly utopian society must be stateless and
classless. How Marx proposed to achieve this could be summarized in the phrase “abolition of private property” (Marx,
1848). His idea was straightforward; liberate the working class from poverty and give the poor a greater chance of
surviving and thriving. He proposed to do this by relinquishing all control to every means of production to the
government; an idea that has proven to be difficult to accomplish throughout the years. Further, Marx proposed three
essential phases in order to achieve his utopia: (Phase 1) A revolution must take place to overthrow and destroy the
current capitalist system; (Phase 2) An elite leader must gain total control over the proletariat, and the government
would then exert absolute control over every citizen’s choices, including education and marriage, and; (Phase 3)
Achievement of utopia in which everyone willingly shares the equal amount of wealth and property. Due to the
government having the power to distribute land and property, it sets a standard of equality among its people (Hoyt,
2008).

Work/s Cited:

Felluga, D. (n.d.). Modules on Marx. Retrieved from

https://www.cla.purdue.edu/academic/english/THEORY/marxism/modules/marxstages.html

Ghosh, S. (n.d.). Marxism and Development of Human Society. Retrieved from

https://www.marxists.org/archive/shibdas-ghosh/1960/06/18.htm

Hoyt, A. (2008, February 25). How Communism Works. Retrieved from

https://people.howstuffworks.com/communism1.htm

Marx, Karl, 1818-1883. (1996). The Communist manifesto. London ; Chicago, Ill. :Pluto Press.

Marx, K. (1964). Economic and philosophic manuscripts of 1844. New York: International Publishers.
(n.d.). Socialist Economy. Retrieved from http://hrlibrary.umn.edu/edumat/sustecon/others/socialist.htm

(2006, April 10). The Communist Manifesto - Bourgeoisie and Proletariat. Retrieved from
https://www.bl.uk/learning/histcitizen/21cc/utopia/methods1/bourgeoisie1/bourgeoisie.html

(n.d.). What is Marxism? Retrieved from http://marxist.net/marx/w2frame.htm?WhatIsMarxism3.htm