Marx's Historic Materialism

The first 200 words of this essay...

Marx's Historic Materialism

In this essay, I shall define what a general theory of society is. I will then look in depth at Historic Materialism, and consider how well it fills the criteria of such a theory. Alternative theories will then be explored and finally the essay will question whether any general theory of society could ever be feasible.

In order to determine whether a Theory of Society is feasible, it is necessary to decide what such a theory should be able to explain. Such a theory should be able to explain and predict human behaviour in the field that it deals with. An epistemological distinction must be made between scientific theories, which must always be correct and which seek causal explanations for phenomena and more general theories which are meant to guide and which allow exceptions.

Marx's General Theory continually centres on how the relationships between men are shaped by their relative positions in regard to the means of production and by their differential access to scarce resources. He considered it axiomatic that the potential for class conflict is inherent in every differentiated society, since such a society systematically generates conflicts of interest between persons and groups