Karl Marx

Rhineland. First was called “Carl”.
Died on March 17th, 1883
Trier benefited from Progressive Philosophy of the Enlightenment such as the public work projects.
One of 9 children and only one to live until 40.

Rabbi
Mother: A Dutch Jew who, unlike her husband, was only

semi-literate. She claimed to suffer from "excessive mother love", devoting much time to her family, and insisting on cleanliness within her home.
Father: Lawyer, broke away from religious heritage by being the first to gain secular education.

of trades and professions.

Jews were once deprived.

environment to allow for fuller human capacity.
Ideals of Romanticism

where Marx developed a concern for individuals and collective struggles.

driving force in history. Conflict is inevitable.
Hegelian thought that objectivity

is a product of the mind’s activity. Humans fall into “bondage” of the laws and events that we create. Marx developed ideas of reification through this concept.

GERMAN IDEALISM

stresses the importance of processes, relations, dynamics, conflicts, and contradictions.
Idealism

– emphasizes the importance of the mind and mental products rather than the material world.

Marx used some of Hegel’s notions to construct ideas that society is a construct of human’s and can therefore be shaped and reshaped by humans.

the world of religious illusions, you remove the misery from

people’s minds.
Holistic approach where everything should be considered (totality) from beginning to end. One must start with the family unit when exploring society.

idealism was not as important as material reality.
Feuerbach furthered Marx’s

ideas on religion by stating that God is merely a human projection, and that humans place God above themselves. This acts as an alienation process for humans.

Human history is man made and therefore humans must realize happiness in this life.

rise up in revolution to save itself.
Marx realized, through

Engels, the concrete conditions and misery of the working class. This helped him realize all of history was a class struggle.

Every class struggle is a political struggle, therefore there is a connection of politics and the economy.

The working class (creators of the means of production)
Bourgeoisie –

The owners of capital.

world of material, physical reality.
Marx wanted a reconciliation of materialism

and idealism by combining scientific aspects of materialism with the historical components of idealism.
Marx’s dialectical approach – mind and matter, spirit and nature, together constitute the unified structure of reality.

Freedom and slavery are both ideas and exist in the real world. However, religions are just opiates that hamper human condition useless.

was necessary to advance human capital.
Human history is that through

which humans change themselves and change nature (where animals cannot).
Humans realize they can produce their own means of subsistence.
The production of material life is the cornerstone of history.
Once primary needs are met, humans seek secondary needs, and some reach secondary needs before others (division of labor)
Class distinction determined by possessions (land).

to the means of production and access to scarce resources.
It

is a common identification among members of a given class.
Once workers realized their common suffering, they would unite in revolution!

WORKERS OF THE WORLD UNITE!!!

DYSLEXICS OF THE WORLD UNTIE!!!

ridded themselves of false consciousness.
- The inability to see where

one’s best interest lies.
- Religion was a main force behind this.
5. Classes are structures external to, and coercive of, people
6. Possession of property becomes the ultimate determination of class formation and the inevitable development of class struggle.

1941.

The ruling class must keep the workers subjected to their

authority, yet are dependent upon their labor for wealth.
Labor is reproduced through wages.
Alienation results when humans become dominated by the force of their own creation (money, religion, etc.).
It confronts humans as alien powers.

They do not own what they produce.
Workers are alienated from

the process of production. They are not working for their own needs, but for the capitalist.
Workers are alienated from themselves. They are not allowed to realize their potential performing the same task over and over on a daily basis.
Workers are alienated from their fellow workers. They are either isolated or in direct competition with their companions.

becomes the object of
desire and alienates
humans from their true

essence.

Fetishism of Commodities – workers fail to realize that their labor is what gives commodities their value.

buyers and sellers of labor power.
Workers were exploited by

a system they helped produce. Once they realized this, they could change the system.
The superstructure of society consists of the sum total of the relations of production (raw materials, labor, and technology) and those who control production (capitalists).
Private property is the private ownership of the means of production by the capitalists.

potential, they must overthrow the validity of private property.
The means

of production should be shared equally through public ownership.
Under communism, people could realize their full potential.
Marx wanted all people to realize their full human potential and this could only occur once alienation, division of labor, private property, and other obstacles that blocked it were eliminated.
A worldwide revolution would occur in which the workers would overthrow the capitalists and create a classless society.

Sociological Thought.
Expert with controversy and opposing interpretations.
A Revolutionist t to

overthrow
capitalism and fought for the rights of workers.
Contributed to the Liberation of the Modern Proletariat.
His Concept of Communism served as a guiding tool toward a perfect Society

was a revolutionary.

Communist ideas were somewhat utopian.

Governments can create laws

to protect workers.

Marx never saw the development of the middle class and the power of labor unions.

Social justice programs have developed to help those in need.

Method critical in social sciences."
He criticized speculative philosophy, equating metaphysics

with ideology.
By using the above approach, Marx attempted to separate key findings from ideological bias and it set him apart from many contemporary philosophers.
 

state of being.
It is humans who made history, therefore they

can change it.


Viewed Capitalism as a step toward progressive society.

there are different interpretations

Realism v. Nominalism : The Tangible world

and capitalism.
-Ideas exist in tangible world.
-Connects abstract to real.

Idealist v. Materialist:
-Not about spirituality
- Human struggle and capital.

inequality in the United States took to the streets to

“take back Wall Street.”