Читать книгу Sociology - Anthony Giddens - Страница 120

Marx’s work is important for sociology in a number of ways, but we will focus on just one – the analysis of capitalism – which is part of his broader theory of class conflict as the driving force in history. This ‘grand theory’ formed the basis of many later studies and theoretical developments. Marxist theory was also reinterpreted and used by numerous political movements and governments in the twentieth century, including the communist regimes of the former Soviet Union, Eastern Europe, Cuba, Vietnam and China. Clearly, Marxism is much more than just an academic theory.

Marx’s perspective is sometimes referred to as historical materialism; more accurately, perhaps, it is a materialist conception of history. This means that Marx is opposed to idealism, a philosophical doctrine which says that the historical development of societies is driven by abstract ideas or ideals, such as freedom and democracy. Instead, Marx argues that the dominant ideas and ideals of an age are in fact reflections of the dominant way of life, specifically of a society’s mode of production. For example, in an age when absolute monarchs reigned, it is not surprising that the dominant ideas suggested that kings and queens had a ‘divine right [from God] to rule’, while, in our own age of free-market capitalism, the dominant ideas are those of sovereign individuals who make ‘free’ choices. The dominant ideas of an age are those which support the ruling groups. Marx’s ‘historical materialism’ is interested primarily in how people collectively produce a life together. How do they produce food, shelter and other material goods, and what kind of division of labour exists that enables them to do so?