Marxism

1. Marxism Michael Lacewing enquiries@alevelphilosophy. co.uk

2. On ideology • Political ideologies • Provide plan of action for creating political institutions • Seek to justify political arrangements • Bind individuals to society • Freeden: ideologies are structured interpretations of political concepts

3. Political concepts • Political concepts are ‘essentially contestable’ • E.g. liberty: absence of coercion, absence of interference, opportunity, autonomy, rational choice, self-determination… • Two reasons for disagreement • Political concepts are evaluative • Component structure • Different ideologies start from different key concepts, ‘decontesting’ them

4. Marxist theory of history • We are alive • We produce our ‘means of subsistence’ • Satisfying original needs leads to new needs, e.g. tools • We reproduce • Both production and reproduction are not only natural, but social, involving particular ‘modes’ of cooperating with others

5. Marxist theory of history • Economic sub-structure (= modes of production + modes of cooperation) determines nature of society • Modes change as society develops, esp. involving division of labour • Within the family • Mental v. physical • Agriculture v. commercial v. industrial • Superstructure (= customs, laws, education, religion, culture, state institutions) evolves out of substructure

6. Marxist theory of history • The state is based on power relations between classes • Modern state based on capitalism: capitalists own the means of production, and take profit, workers get salaries • Power of dominant class supported by the state and by an ‘ideology’ • State is biased, not neutral • Ideas are product of sub-structure

7. Alienation • Alienation: estrangement resulting in loss • From products of labour • From meaningful, creative work • From ‘species-being’ • From other people • Alienation need not be conscious or felt, but life is objectively less fulfilling

8. Emancipation • Liberal ideas of rights and justice are not emancipating, but alienating • Emphasis on individual rights (as basis for justice) in conflict with communal nature of human beings • Illusion of equality glosses over power differences between classes • Genuine equality would abolish the state: a communist revolution

9. Five core concepts • Equality: needs are met • Welfare: fulfilment of species-being • Importance of meaningful, creative work • Community • History: of sub-structure and super-structure

10. Marx on justice • Marx does not call capitalism ‘unjust’ • Conflict not described in ‘liberal’ terms; communism is beyond justice • Capitalism is a necessary stage of human development • Argument is not primarily moral, but historical – social change will be driven by developments in sub-structure, not ideas

11. Objections • Super-structure is not determined by sub-structure • State is partly independent of capitalism • Prediction of communism turned out false, ‘welfare state’ developed, and classes evolved • But has this led to emancipation? • Theory of human nature is wrong • What is necessary for human happiness to increase? • Communism is impossible