This new social order calls for an egalitarian society and collective ownership of all resources to ensure equal distribution of wealth. Evidently, both Marx and Smith propose vastly different systems in order to reach the same goal, which is socio-economic prosperity. Adam Smith and Karl Marx were two intellectuals, among many, who acknowledged that the division of labour was a principal element of the Industrial Revolution, although they both had radically different conclusions about the process. Indeed, Smith lived in a time that was vastly different Marx’s age. British society, which was then mercantilist, was only just beginning to enter the Industrial Age when Smith was born. Thus, he only envisioned a free and prosperous society that would result as a consequence of the division of labour; he did not actually live to see the worst facets of the Industrial Revolution, which is why his views are very optimistic in nature. Marx, on the other hand, grew up in the midst of the Revolution, and he personally witnessed the inhumane conditions in which workers laboured and were exploited. From these truths stems Marx’s cynicism towards capitalism, which influenced him to
This new social order calls for an egalitarian society and collective ownership of all resources to ensure equal distribution of wealth. Evidently, both Marx and Smith propose vastly different systems in order to reach the same goal, which is socio-economic prosperity. Adam Smith and Karl Marx were two intellectuals, among many, who acknowledged that the division of labour was a principal element of the Industrial Revolution, although they both had radically different conclusions about the process. Indeed, Smith lived in a time that was vastly different Marx’s age. British society, which was then mercantilist, was only just beginning to enter the Industrial Age when Smith was born. Thus, he only envisioned a free and prosperous society that would result as a consequence of the division of labour; he did not actually live to see the worst facets of the Industrial Revolution, which is why his views are very optimistic in nature. Marx, on the other hand, grew up in the midst of the Revolution, and he personally witnessed the inhumane conditions in which workers laboured and were exploited. From these truths stems Marx’s cynicism towards capitalism, which influenced him to