Marx’s Historical Materialism: Class Struggle and Capitalism’s Contradictions
Mat. Histórico
The following examines the historical changes in economic conditions. In the second half of the 19th century, capitalism was established, and its contradictions became visible. Marx’s philosophy aimed to encourage and guide the awareness and revolution of the workers and oppressed class against the ruling class and society.
Influences on Marx
One of the most profound influences on Marx was Hegel, with his notion of confrontation, historical progress, and the State. Marx retained the concept of dialectic but shifted to a materialist standpoint. The dialectical confrontation would be between social classes. Another influence was Feuerbach, who reevaluated the human and material, interpreting alienation as the projection of higher qualities onto an imaginary being. According to Marx, Feuerbach’s materialism was purely theoretical; the new materialism had to be revolutionary praxis. French socialism was also influential, providing the idea of class struggle and some of its socialist and revolutionary claims. Marx used the tools of economic theory as scientifically as possible, relying on studies of English economists.
Marx’s Synthesis
The starting point is humanity and the world around it. Human beings are material, with natural needs and desires that must be satisfied through activity or work. In work, humans interact with nature and other people. Their relationship with nature gives rise to productive forces (tools, labor force, raw materials, and the product itself). Their relationships with others create the social relations of production (division of labor and property relations). At certain historical moments, productive forces and relations of production align, moving society towards a new stage of social organization.
Infrastructure and Superstructure
- Infrastructure: The productive system, consisting of productive forces and production relations.
- Superstructure: The value system, beliefs, and norms existing in society.
Infrastructure and superstructure constitute the modes of production. The infrastructure is the basis, but elements of the superstructure exert influence and can determine the historical process. The history of any society is the history of class struggle.
Types of Societies
- Asian Society: Depends on irrigated land, with laborers working under despotic guards. Characterized by a despotic central government against numerous small villages.
- Ancient Society: Resulting from the merger of tribes into a city, either voluntarily or by conquest. A civilized society based on a slave system of production.
- Feudal Society: Class polarity focuses on those who own the land and those who do not.
- Capitalist System: Production increases through the division of labor, unions become more powerful, and overseas trade expands rapidly. Factories are established. The power of those who control capital develops progressively from the 16th century. By the late 18th century, the independent peasantry disappears, absorbed by industry workers in cities. Market expansion leads to the development of machinery and the Industrial Revolution.
Contradictions of Capitalism
The capitalist system is full of contradictions: unequal division of social classes, anarchy of production, crises, and the pauperization of the proletariat. The proletariat can only achieve a dominant position by abolishing existing property types, requiring conscious overall action. The ruling class uses ideology to keep the dominated classes in ignorance and lack of culture. The dominant ideas in a given age are the ideas of the ruling class.
Proletariat Awareness
According to Marx, other contradictions of capitalism can foster awareness within the system. Capitalism is competitive, with a historical trend towards centralization and concentration of capital. Periodic crises increase layoffs and lower wages, highlighting impoverishment. Productive activity alienates the worker from the result of their work, themselves, other people, and nature. Economic inequality is reflected in political inequality, as those with economic power hold political power and privileges in laws and their implementation, leading to political alienation.
Revolution and Liberation
Economic inequality, social crisis, proletarian pauperization, and alienation can be stronger than ideological control, forcing the proletariat to become aware. Through the historical process, humanity can be freed from economic forces. This liberation can be achieved through revolutionary praxis, an alliance among the alienated proletariat. Socialism is the primary objective of the revolution, seizing political power through violent revolution and force. The main goal is communism, preventing the bourgeoisie from restoring capitalism through the dictatorship of the proletariat. This involves completing the centralization of production and distribution, increasing productive forces, eliminating alienated labor, and achieving final liberation. The abolition of the division of labor will lead to the abolition of alienation throughout society.
Marx’s Predictions and Alternatives
Marx’s revolutionary predictions were incorrect; the revolution did not begin in industrial zones, and the Soviet revolution became a dictatorship. With the supposed inevitability of Utopia removed, the question becomes: Are there alternatives?