Karl Marx's (1818 - 1883) theory of capitalism.

Marxism like functionalism is concerned with the overall picture of society. Marxism is seen as a conflict theory, Mainly because they see the primary interests of society as a whole as being made up of conflicting groups with conflicting interests or beliefs. We are a very materialistic society. A society made up of those who have, and those who have not. Marxists sociologists say that there will never be true social harmony because there are too many inequalities within our cultural society. Marx gave names to the haves and have nots, they are known as the Bourgeoise and the Proletariats. One way of assessing the power of the upper class is through the study of elites (people who fill the top positions in each of the major institutions of society); most of the sociological debates have centered on economic elites and political elites. (Sociology in focus 5th Edition, 2000, page 53) The main question asked by Marxist sociologists is how we all can benefit equally and how can we get rid of the social inequalities present in our society. They differ form functionalists in the way that they see the difference. Marxist sociologists see them as being persistent and not just as a temporary state of affairs to be overcome. Their theories state that for the superstructure to be effective, the infrastructure must function effectively, therefore any changes no matter how small,

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Politics
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"Responsible for remarkable and radical reforms." How justified is this verdict on the Liberal administration 1906-14?

Liberalism "Responsible for remarkable and radical reforms." How justified is this verdict on the Liberal administration 1906-14? With the dawn of a new century, attitudes in Britain about the nature of society underwent a profound rejuvenation, as the reformist ideas of liberal thinkers such as Hobson and Hobhouse, supported by damning studies of inner city life by men like Rowntree and Booth, caught hold. This "New Liberalism", as it came to be called, imbued the pre-war government, which established a social safety net and brought in redistributive taxation, in recognition of the fact that true equality of opportunity was inachievable in a society of such social and material disparity as Edwardian Britain. However, social reform was only a priority when it suited the cause of the Liberal Party, and even then it fell well short of the "Nanny State" and encouraged personal endeavour and thrift. the Liberal leadership was far more interested in satisfying traditional - well off - supporters with constitutional reform, than in attracting a working class vote still unfamiliar with Labour. The flurry of social reform bills that went through Parliament during the period were a dramatic new departure, for never before had such a major restructuring of social welfare been contemplated in such a short space of time. This demonstrated a comprehensive change in attitude towards the

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Politics
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To what extent does New Labour continue to embrace the beliefs and values of traditional democratic socialists?

To what extent does New Labour continue to embrace the beliefs and values of traditional democratic socialists? Traditional democratic socialism is characterised by a belief in equality, fraternity and liberty. In practice this means socialist governments attempt to create a classless societies through the means of collective ownership and redistribution of wealth. They strongly believe that all authority should originate from the workforce, the heart of socialism being that people should work collectively to achieve a common goal. Democratic socialists in the Labour Party would introduce a socialist regime, but limit it within the legal democratic system. They are committed to nationalisation of industry and also place great emphasis on community. Some people believe that the Labour Party's dominant ideology has never been truly socialist, and is more a watered down version of social democracy that some label "labourism". The Labour Party "emerged from the bowels of the trade union movement"1 and its initial commitment was essentially to labour representation rather than socialism. Some ties between the two did exist as some trade union leaders regarded themselves as socialists. Originally there was a "contentious alliance"2 between Trade Unions and the Labour Party, but following the 1926 general strike the Unions became more committed to the political party by

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Politics
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America Liberalism

America Liberalism The United States of America is known throughout the world as the benchmark of a free society. America believes in a complex philosophy of liberalism. The question is where did this complex idea come from? Well one idea is that it was inherited from the early settlers of the American Colonies and it has been transforming ever since and is now the form we see today. My purpose is to prove to an audience that Puritan Theology and culture, Anti-Federalist arguments, and Federalist political thought, have all been profound influences on this idea of liberalism. "By liberalism we mean that Americans tend to look first to the individual as the source of value rather than to an imposed dogmatic creed or hierarchy" (American Political Thinking). According to the way we look at liberalism in America today, there are two strands of it. The first strand is called "Classical Liberalism." This is the idea that peoples' property rights, their protection and a free economic market are more important than human welfare. For quite a long time, this was the only type of liberalism there was, until many people began to think that human rights were more important than any economic prosperity derived from free enterprise. This change in thought is called the progressive movement. This movement was created by a rise in the great concentrations of urban wealth. This

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Politics
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Even in the 21st Century There are Grounds for Arguing that Governments are Dominated by Small Elites

"Even in the 21st Century There are Grounds for Arguing that Governments are Dominated by Small, Exclusive Elites." Discuss. An elite is a small group of people that posses disproportionally large amounts of scarce sources of influence over political decision-making: money, social prestige or political power. Pluralism suggests that political power is more dispersed, sometimes amongst various interest groups. A power elite is where a small group of people who hold most of the power and control most of the wealth of a state. A state elite is where the state is more despotic and the state's power to limit the government is less than it should be. Marxism is the study of society as the conflict or struggle of social classes. There are many families that are heavily immersed in politics. George Bush senior and Junior, Hillary and Bill Clinton, Ed and David Miliband, Ted Kennedy and JFK, John Prescott and his son (who recently failed to make the selection to be a Labour candidate) and William Rees-Mogg, current peer and previous editor of the times and his two children who are both Conservative candidates for the next election. This links in with the claim from the extract where "the sons of the power elite" are "socialised" to enhance their "movement into positions similar to those held by their fathers." In the US, if Hillary Clinton becomes president, two families would have

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Politics
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Photomontage in Berlin, A critical study of the capitals inter-war artwork

Photomontage in Berlin, A critical study of the capitals inter-war artwork In this essay I will aim to look at the history of photomontage and to also draw concise conclusions from the artwork produced specifically in inter-war Germany. I will debate the ideas of why it became so popular, in a country with political unrest. Also I will look at Photomontages strengths and weaknesses, both artistically and politically. To fully understand how Photomontage came about, we must first look at the Dada movement of the early 20th century. This movement was very much responsible for influencing not only Photomontage, but also Surrealism and Pop Art. It is therefore a key phase of the modernist movement. Indeed many Dadaists eventually became experts in the field of photomontage, so it seems only right to first analyse briefly this Forerunner. Dada began in the First World War in Switzerland, and quickly spread to most parts of Europe as an anti-art movement. Dada was considered by its creators as an anti-art movement, because Dada aimed to be a complete contradiction of Arts socio-political values. Dada in Berlin leaned towards the angrier and politically motivated approach to the arts. Unquestionably because of what the war had done to the economy and state of Germany. The political climate in Germany was one of extremes, with the communist and fascist parties fighting for

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Politics
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'Socialists have disagreed on both the means and ends of socialism' - Discuss

'Socialists have disagreed on both the means and ends of socialism' - Discuss Socialism is a very broad ideology, encompassing many different ideas and viewpoints. Different socialists have disagreed on both the ways in which they believe socialism should be achieved and implemented, and on what exactly it is that they want to achieve. The two main viewpoints I am going to look at in terms of the means of achieving socialism are revolutionary socialism and evolutionary socialism, and in terms of the aims of different socialists I am going to discuss Marxism, including orthodox communism, and also social democracy and the 'third way'. Because socialism tends to have an oppositional character, and be seen as a force for change, the means in which socialism is achieved are quite significant, and tend to determine the form of socialism which results from this change. Early socialists believed that socialism could only be brought about through a revolutionary movement - the overthrow of the existing regime. Violence was accepted as an undesirable but necessary part of this process. In the 19th Century there were two accepted versions of this idea - some socialists believed the revolution would be carried out by a small group of dedicated revolutionaries, while others such as Marx and Engels believed that a class-conscious working class would rise up in a proletariat revolution

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Politics
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How revolutionary were Lutheran and Calvinist theories of authority?

How revolutionary were Lutheran and Calvinist theories of authority? Lutheran and Calvinist theories of authority were revolutionary as they laid the foundations of a radical shift in attitudes towards obeying authority. Political thought changed from a view that it was never legitimate to resist authority to the notion that 'like any other wild animal, a tyrant can be killed.' However it was later Calvinist theories that were more revolutionary than Calvin's own work On Civil government and Luther's On Secular authority. Moreover rather than promoting revolutionary theories of authority, Luther and Calvin were concerned to preserve order. Revolutions occurring throughout Europe in the sixteenth and seventeenth century were to an extent legitimised by Lutheran and Calvinist theories of authority but this was certainly not the original intent of the writings. Luther and Calvin were after all theologians, not political philosophers. The Lutheran and Calvinist theories of authority were a radical departure in political thinking in the sixteenth century in terms of an obligation to submit to authority. The tradition of biblical thought suggested that obligation was fundamental and thus, it was not considered legitimate to resist authority. Christian political theory was underpinned by the divine word of God, which stated 'obey the powers that be.' (Romans 13) The early

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Politics
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The humanistic approach - What is it and where is its place in Psychology?

THE HUMANISTIC APPROACH - WHAT IS IT AND WHERE IS ITS PLACE IN PSYCHOLOGY? The humanistic approach is another contrasting argument within psychology. It is neither scientific or deterministic. It represents a valid debate for 'free will', the individual having the ability and talent to reach their potential. The main ideas of this approach is that focus should be placed solely on the individual, their experiences and becoming whole in terms of human nature. The theory of 'self-actualisation' according to Maslow was the innate human motivation which everyone has helps us reach our potential by using our talents and abilities. We reach the 'peak experience' every time we feel a sense of fulfilment. Maslow developed the 'hierarchy of needs' this has seven levels, starting from the bottom are: physiological needs, safety needs, love and belongingness, esteem needs, cognitive needs, aesthetic needs and self- actualisation. Everyday people go up and down this ladder reaching different levels. Self-actualised individuals have an acceptance of who they are, deep interpersonal relationships, a good sense of humour and creativeness. This has contributed to education training teachers to motivate students to reach their potential, applied to management to understand the needs of employees and motivate them through

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Politics
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Environmental Issues in World Political Theories

Environmental Issues in World Political Theories For the first time in history, human beings have realized that the environment can be destroyed by human activity. The massive cutting down of forests, draining and flooding of bogs and lakes, changing the flow of rivers, and building of harmful factories and power plants, all of this contributes to damaging our environment. In the world right now an agreement has not been reached about to what extent are humans responsible for the changes in the environment on Earth. World Political forces according to their interests approach environmental issues in different ways, following the three main World Political Theories. Realism Realists look at the world in a "realistic" way. They don't think there is a point in trying to make the world a better place, because human nature is fixed and it is selfish, but instead try to adapt the situation in order to get maximum self-interest. The main actors for Realists are sovereign states. Since there is no supreme power that can decide over the states, this raises a struggle between the states, as all of them want to become the greatest power. The most important tool that they use to put into practice states' foreign policies is military force. Realists acknowledge the environmental problems of the world, but think that they should be dealt with on national levels. Thus every state

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Politics
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