Karl Marx And Capitalism Essay
As stated by Heilbroner, “when [Marx] writes the great ‘chock’ which events have caused him, we can almost hear him speak”. Karl Marx strongly believed that there is an inequality to capitalist societies. Through his works, he emphasized the points of income distribution and surplus value. These two ideals go hand in hand to represent Marx’s ideas of how capitalism will inevitably destroy itself. In a capitalist society, it can be seen that the income distribution between the workers and the capitalists is unevenly distributed among the two groups. “Every society … is built on an economic base -- the hard reality of human beings who must organize their activities to clothe and feed and house themselves” (Heilbroner 144). Workers have a strong
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This occurs when uneven income distribution is in place due to the low salary of workers and the high profits of the capitalists. “For the value of commodity … is the amount of labor it has within itself” (155). The capitalists, in order to gain more profit from the products they sell, must monopolize the means of production so that they can expand production which in turn increases their profits. “The system is perfectly ‘equitable,’ and yet all workers are cheated, for they are forced to work a longer time than their own self-sustenance demands” (158). With the capitalists monopolizing production, it forces the worker to perform their jobs for longer hours just so that they can remain employed and reap the benefits, no matter how small. Other firms are competitive as well which then increases their workers’ salaries and decreases their surplus profits. Marx stated that “... capitalism must inevitably collapse” (139). The way that capitalism is set up leads to its downfall due to expansion of the economy which increases the working class and decreases the capitalist class due to larger firms engulfing smaller firms. This ultimately leads to the workers rising up and overcoming the capitalist economy so that it can disappear. Income distribution and surplus value, through Marx’s perspective, leads to the downfall of capitalism. The uneven distribution of wealth to the workers and the
This occurs when uneven income distribution is in place due to the low salary of workers and the high profits of the capitalists. “For the value of commodity … is the amount of labor it has within itself” (155). The capitalists, in order to gain more profit from the products they sell, must monopolize the means of production so that they can expand production which in turn increases their profits. “The system is perfectly ‘equitable,’ and yet all workers are cheated, for they are forced to work a longer time than their own self-sustenance demands” (158). With the capitalists monopolizing production, it forces the worker to perform their jobs for longer hours just so that they can remain employed and reap the benefits, no matter how small. Other firms are competitive as well which then increases their workers’ salaries and decreases their surplus profits. Marx stated that “... capitalism must inevitably collapse” (139). The way that capitalism is set up leads to its downfall due to expansion of the economy which increases the working class and decreases the capitalist class due to larger firms engulfing smaller firms. This ultimately leads to the workers rising up and overcoming the capitalist economy so that it can disappear. Income distribution and surplus value, through Marx’s perspective, leads to the downfall of capitalism. The uneven distribution of wealth to the workers and the