The Political Theories Of Karl Marx And John Locke

Katerina Siroruka Marx and Locke are two theorists with completely different ideas. When looking at their theories closely, several aspects emerge: Locke was a liberal political philosopher and Marx was a socialist political theorist, both men had different views on liberalism. Locke believed in the state of nature, in his account of natural law he wrote that all men are equal and independent; no one ought to harm another person in his life, health, liberty, or possessions. Marx would critique Locke heavily on private property because Locke had a more optimistic approach when it came to liberty and property because he believed that when a man put in labor, he had the right to own that property since the land was a god given right …show more content…
Private property according to Marx was the right to enjoy one's own possessions without the regard of others in a society; private property was also a man's self-interest (Marx, Karl (1994-03-15). Marx: Selected Writings (Hackett Classics) The Jewish Question, pg 16). Marx wanted to abolish private property because this meant different class systems and alienation of the working class people. Private property exploited the citizens because wealthy people can afford to buy land forcing the working class to work all day for the lowest possible income just enough to survive. Marx wrote that private property is greed, a division of labor, and land ownership in a capitalist society that created competition among men and alienates working class people because the laborer works hard to dehumanize him as the landowner gains everything and the laborer gains nothing (Marx, Karl (1994-03-15). Marx: Selected Writings (Hackett Classics) Alienated Labor, pg.59). The price of the commodity of labor was equal to the cost of production as the hours of work increased, the wages decreased (Marx, Karl (1994-03-15). Marx: Selected Writings (Hackett Classics) Private Property, and Communism, pg164) Private property grasp forms of possessions as a means for living the life it serves for is the life of private property, labor, and capitalization …show more content…
Marx is a socialist political theorist who brought revolutionary change and Locke is a liberal political philosopher. Marx critiques Locke's liberal theories such as the state of nature, private property, labor, money, and slavery. In Locke's state of nature, all men had natural rights to be equal and free without anyone placing harm on his life, liberty, and property. Marx believed that liberalism instead of providing equality among citizens it was promoting inequality. When Marx critiques Locke's liberalist theories he proves some contradictions that Locke was against. One contradiction was Locke wrote that men were equal and free in the state of nature and that they all had the same natural right to own property. Marx criticizes this principle because after the consent of money inequality emerged among citizens because the more money a man had the more property he can own, labor was no longer essential to own property. Another critique made by Marx was slavery, Locke wrote that a man cannot sell himself to slavery nor can he have someone overpowering him, again after money was invented it started a capitalist society and a class system of the wealthy bourgeoisie and the working-class proletariat. The working class was selling themselves to be slaves to the wealthy for minimum wage, the more hours the proletariats work the less valuable he was as a