Preview

Mill Vs Marx

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1280 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Mill Vs Marx
Mill and Marx on Wealth and Justice by Adrian Navarro

Stuart Mill and Karl Marx each had their own reasons for what makes the world unjust. Mill thought that it was unjust to deprive anyone of personal liberty, property and other things which belong by law. He also thought that it was unjust to deprive anyone of their own happiness. Marx on the other hand believed that property, classes, competition, and inequality all made the world an unjust place. He thought that these things separated the people and didn't allow people to reach their full potential and happiness. In order to make the world more just Marx believed that we needed to change these things, he created ten different proposals to create a change in our world. He believed that
…show more content…
Marx's entire approach is for the benefit of the people. While Mill states that the main goal is to be happy Marx's approach would ensure that most people are happy. Marx approach allows people to have many jobs and not just one, it also allows people to feel just like everyone else. This is significant as there are many differences between people today, such as inequality, racism, different social classes, and etc. Mills approach doesn't guarantee people that they will be happier, it simply says that people should work to make themselves and others happy. Marx allows people to receive free education and be able to work to become anything they want. The end of classes would create no greed or want leading everyone to satisfied because everyone has the same as them. There will also be no opposition towards classes and no hatred towards the “peasants” or the “surfs” because those will be no more. This is significant as these differences caused wars such as the civil war, and other world wars. Removing social classes will help decrease the level of tension between people and overall provide moral benefit to people. The abolition of private property also helps the majority of the people because now people won't look at other people's house in awe and say “wow i wish i lived in a house like …show more content…
I believe this is because these are very difficult things to achieve. People today still work to achieve happiness, but it is difficult when there are so many things on people's shoulders now a days. Because of this people are sometimes less happier because they have to work harder to get by. Mills theory in my opinion isn't in society because it doesn't take into account any kind of law or juridical system. There are times where people do bad things that may make them happy. For example we cannot condone a serial killer's activities because it brings them happiness, because it overall is a bad thing for everyone else. Marx idea of communism also isn't used by societies because it places too much trust in the state. While this started out as a great idea for people to become equal and remove inequality it has since created another problem which is corruption in the state. With all the power in their hands the people from the state would be likely to overuse this power. This is why democracy and capitalism prevails because the people have a say in everything that happens. Another reason why Marx idea isn't practiced is because it doesn't encourage any sort of economic growth of a country. In order for people to live better new technologies have to be made and companies have to prosper. This can't happen in Communism because there is no

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Better Essays

    First, Marx focused on the economic aspect of societal progress or the material conception of history. He highlighted how one society progressed to another because of the pursuit for the economic means of production. On the other hand, Mill emphasized on the importance of liberty as he pointed out that this is the driving force of societal progress. This is what he called the philosophy of history.…

    • 1335 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Marx’s plan for reforming society may be more tangible than Kuyper’s, but his plan uses rather cruel and destructive tactics. For instance, Marx believes that the family has become an instrument of oppression and should be eliminated. Marx’s plan for consolidating the family directly contradicts biblical principles and is no less than an attempt to undermine God’s authority. Marx believes the family is merely a product of the class system and not a God ordained institution. Besides Marx’s cruel elimination of the family, his plan further feeds man’s greed and selfishness. Communism’s prohibition of private property claims to produce economic equality. However, this notion seems only to further feed man unhealthy relationship with the material world and denies God his rightful place of power. Without God’s moral authority, man is left to reshape society as he sees fit but at the cost of losing all that is good. After examining Marx argument, the idea of communism does not seem to present an effective solution for resolving poverty in either Marx’s day or in the twenty-first…

    • 897 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Marx and Engels wrote the Communist Manifesto to explain the history of class struggles in Europe and how communism was the ultimate form of government meant to bring equality to society and end the oppressive rule of the rising Bourgeoisie class. For Marx, humans are rational beings. But in a bourgeoisie capitalist dominated society, reality has become distorted and diminished a once functioning society. Industrialization has created a society of working class citizens who are manipulated, easily exploited, and oppressed for monetary gains. This is counterintuitive for the advancement of society and a successful government and brings about struggles of class. Therefore Marx argues the working class should be in control of government, because they are the ones ho keep the bourgeoisie rich and the economy running. “Formation of the proletariat into a class, overthrow of the bourgeois supremacy, conquest of political power by the proletariat” (Marx 14). Marx argues the average working class citizens are capable of governing the land and distributing wealth evenly amongst the people. Writing is simply not enough he calls for revolution in order to restore peace and end the impoverishment of many…

    • 1869 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    marx and carnegie

    • 1118 Words
    • 4 Pages

    By eliminating the gap between rich and poor, Marx believes Communism should replace the economic system of Capitalism. In his perspective, he claims, “They have nothing to lose but their chains. They have a world to win. Working men of all countries, unite” (Marx 476). Because he sees the Capitalist system exploits workers who are unfairly treated, he asserts that the proletarians should become the ruling class. The principle of Communism is the ideology of collectivism. Marx states, “Communism deprives no man of the power to appropriate the products of society: all that it does is to deprive him of the power to subjugate the labor of others by means of such appropriation” (470). This means that no private property should be allowed, and no one has even a less or more power in a Communist society. Because Marx illustrates the property ownership would enhance greed, and ambition to win in the…

    • 1118 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Week 1 Sociology Notes

    • 1548 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Karl Marx’s class conflict theory states that the bourgeoisie (or the capitalists) are locked in conflict with the proletariat (the exploited workers). Marx believed that this conflict could only end when the working class united and violently broke free of the “bondage”. Once this happens, society will be classless and people will work according to their abilities, while receiving goods and services according to their needs. Although Marxism does propose revolution, it should not be confused with communism.…

    • 1548 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    According to Karl Marx, the struggle between the upper class, the bourgeoisie and the lower class, the proletariat, has always been a constant conflict throughout history. The bourgeoisie controlled all means of production and continuously oppressed the proletariat, which was unfair because the proletariats were the ones doing hard labor, yet the bourgeoisie gained all of the benefits. Marx believed that in order to end this class struggle, class distinctions would need to be eliminated. In order for everybody in society to be considered equal, there could be no private ownership of materials. If private ownership of materials were allowed, then some people would have more things than other people which would create another class and thus another conflict. Therefore, an equalized society would get rid of all conflict. Marxism has been…

    • 1743 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    His theory covers the culture, politics, economics and industrialization of his time. He called the leading role of the social parts of each individual societies superstructures. In Marx 's eyes there were two classes: The Bourgeoisie and the Proletariat. The upper class, more wealthy, Bourgeoisie, had the smaller more powerful aristocratic class. On the other hand, the Proletariat are less skilled lower class workers that are the majority. Do to the separation of these two classes the Bourgeoisie own all the means of production and have the rights to all the riches. They have the power to influence there thoughts and beliefs in society because of their economic and social dominance (Rigauer, 2000).…

    • 863 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    There is no such thing having a perfect life because there is always something offline. Marx believed that mankind was moving forward and never behind in their resource, however working class was getting paid unfairly for the work they have done. Industries are taking advantages of their employees and they do not get any benefits out of it. Even when the capitalism is improving, the wages did not improve the prosperity in the community. Marx believed that the society is achievable when everyone is working together.…

    • 1770 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Marx and Mills

    • 1200 Words
    • 5 Pages

    John Stuart Mill suggests that a person's ethical decision-making process should be based solely upon the amount of happiness that the person can receive. Although Mill fully justifies himself, his approach lacks certain criteria for which happiness can be considered. Happiness should be judged, not only by pleasure, but by pain as well. This paper will examine Mill's position on happiness, and the reasoning behind it. Showing where there are agreements and where there are disagreements will critique the theory of Utilitarianism. By showing the problems that the theory have will reveal what should make up ethical decision-making. John Stuart Mill supports and explains his reasoning in his book, Utilitarianism. Mill illustrates the guidelines of his theory. Mill defines utilitarianism as the quest for happiness. His main point is that one should guide his or her judgements by what will give pleasure. Mill believes that a person should always seek to gain pleasure and reject pain. Utilitarianism also states that the actions of a person should be based upon the "greatest happiness principle". This principle states that ethical actions command the greatest amount of happiness for the greatest number of people. Mill further explores the need for pleasure by noting "a being of higher faculties requires more to make him happy." . He acknowledges that some pleasures are more alluring than others are. He adds to this by making known that when placing value in things to calculate pleasure, not only quantity important but quality as well. Mill's criteria for happiness is easily understood, some statements that he gives are questionable. John Stuart Mill plainly laid out what he believes that the basis for ethical decision-making. First, the pursuit of pleasure is directly related to happiness. This idea can be easily accepted. It is natural for a person to focus his goals on things that will bring him pleasure. It would be absurd if someone's goal in life was to be poor and…

    • 1200 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Stuart Mill Conformity

    • 581 Words
    • 3 Pages

    As a social theorist in the mid 19th century, John Stuart Mill maintained a Utilitarian outlook. Yet, his enlightened perspective discouraged forced conformity and promoted the misfit. Furthermore, Mill argued that individual liberty is necessary to obtain progress in society.3 This concept remains relevant to the world we see today because, without deviants such as Brenda Berkman and Autherine Lucy, society would stagnate.…

    • 581 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    John Stuart Mill was a classical liberal thinker and believed, through the influence of his father, that man deserved to live a life that promoted the greatest amount of happiness with limited government intervention. Mill grew up with the belief that there was no God and therefore believed that man is born inherently good; government should be limited to allow individuals to make their own decisions from their inherently good instincts; economic freedom provided individuals with the protection of rights and promoted the ideology that Mill stood for most, Utilitarianism which highly influenced classical liberalism.…

    • 2106 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    A major argument that Marx put across in his scripts was that capitalism would force society to polarise, causing two classes within society, the bourgeoisie and the proletariat. These classes were at both extremes of the social spectrum, the bourgeoisie been the rich "fat cats" who reeped the fruits of capitalism, they were normally the factory or…

    • 1464 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    John Stuart Mill

    • 1708 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Mill was a philosopher, economist, and (like his friend Jeremy Bentham) was a proponent of Utilitarianism. Utilitarians believed that an action is right if it tends to promote happiness and wrong if it tends to produce the reverse of happiness -- not just the happiness of the person involved in the action but also the happiness of everyone affected by it. In other words, things that produce the greatest happiness for the most people are good. He particularly approves of common sense morality. There are things people do without systematic thought.…

    • 1708 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    REFLECTION #9 – Marx After reading Marx, I am thinking a lot about the state of nature. Locke and Rousseau had some very clear ideas about what the state of nature looks like and I am wondering how Marx might respond to their ideas. I am also wondering about the critique Marx provides of capitalism. I am thinking a lot about what Marx might say about our labor and economic systems.…

    • 1079 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays