Marxism | Sociology for A Level - Year 13 PDF Download

Introduction

Karl Marx
Karl Marx argued that the working class suffers from false class consciousness, meaning they are unaware of the exploitation they endure under capitalism.

Social Institutions

Marx believed that social institutions deceive the working class into believing their exploitation is fair and their social position is natural and unchangeable.

False Class Consciousness

The ruling class is perceived as acting in society’s best interest, a view the working class accepts due to the influence of the Superstructure—institutions like religion, education, and family. Marx calls this false class consciousness because the working class remains oblivious to their exploitation.

Althusser

Louis Althusser adopts a structural perspective similar to Marx but critiques Marx’s economic determinism. He proposes that the ruling class maintains control through three interlocking systems that perpetuate capitalism.

Interlocking Systems

• Economic System: Produces all material goods.
• Political System: Organizes society, enacts laws, and provides leadership.
• Ideological System: Supplies the ideas and belief systems that shape the population’s worldview.

Gramsci

Antonio Gramsci, often called a Humanistic Marxist, believed the proletariat could drive social change by creating their own hegemony rather than relying on economic shifts as Marx suggested. He proposed the development of a counter-hegemony to offer an alternative to the capitalist system.

Capitalism Alternatives

Within this counter-hegemony, working-class intellectuals—educated individuals from the proletariat—would emerge to present alternatives to capitalism. Gramsci argued that revolution requires winning the hearts and minds of the proletariat by giving them a compelling alternative vision to believe in.