Karl Marx Social Class Conflict Analysis

Conflict theory originated from the classical founder of social science Karl Marx in the 1800s. The perspective was generally based on work by Karl Marx even though several other scholars have contributed immensely in the development of this theory. He viewed class conflict and exploitation as a moving force in society. Conflict theory generally surrounds the idea that most struggles in society happen because of conflicts among different social classes or groups. As opposed to functionalist perspective that explain society as a mechanized system of interdependent parts that unify to create coordination and to maintain social stability (Ferris & Jill, 2016). While the functionalist believed that social institutions are put in place to work …show more content…
He believed that capitalism was an economic system designed to keep power and wealth in the hand of the one percent, while the remaining 99 percent are forced to tolerate a social system created by the one percent, a system designed so that the minorities struggle and never be able to move up the social class ladder. He believed that history is branded by economic struggle between the have and the have-nots. Marx believed that once the minorities exploited become conscious of how they are being manipulated and oppressed in the society, they would come together in revolution. The new society would be based on communism in which every individual would be live equally in the society and it would remove class struggle among group in the society. Marx and Engel idea of communism is that “class inequality would end with collective control of property and growth in size of power of the working class” (Essay UK). In summary, under conflict perspective we can say that the basic form of interaction in society is not cooperation, but competition and this leads to conflict. Because individuals and groups compete for advantage and power, there is always going to be conflict in a society. However, when a large group in the lower social class is competing against the upper class for a change, the outcome would often be a major social …show more content…
I do not believe that equal distribution of wealth and resources in the society is attainable. While the idea of communism seems enticing, individuals need to be able to aspire, dream big and bring their ideas to lives. This could only be possible in capitalist society, where everyone has to work for what they want. Even in a small cooperative society, there is bound to be conflict among individuals. We humans are always struggling for power; we like to be at the position of authority where we can always control things. Also, capitalism as an economic system is deeply embedded in this society that it would be nearly impossible for a certain group of individuals to revolutionize it. While the idea seems promising, uprooting such system will be very challenging. Equality in a society is unattainable as much as we individuals crave