Marxist Account of Class in Contemporary Society Essay

Marxist Account of Class in Contemporary Society - Essay Example During the twentieth century the working class has been shaped by three trends. In the workplace the displacement of craft and skilled labor by mass production techniques has allowed the employment of large numbers of unskilled workers; culturally, the integration of diverse ethnic strains produced by the centralization of production facilities and the constant infusion of petty bourgeois ideology has precluded the development of a clear-cut working-class consciousness; politically, the increasing intervention of the state in the regulation and management of the economy has added to the complexity of class relations and complicated the formulation of working-class strategy and tactics. These treads are typical; for modern society and social relations between the classes. The theoretical problems are linked because the relationship between the development process and class capacities largely depends on how one conceptualizes working-class capacities. If one accepts traditional plurali st notions of class capacity as applicable to the working class, then it is probably true that the capitalist development process erodes working-class capacities (Elster 1985). If, however, the capacity of the working class is something other than an aggregation of sovereign individuals, a more dialectical relationship between development and working-class capacity can be established (Braverman 2004). In modern society, similar to the Marxist approach to class, the institution of mass production techniques and the separation of the knowledge of how steel is made from the workers themselves is the key to breaking worker control of the industry. The rich would voluntarily renounce their wealth; a community of goods and absolute equality would be established. Marx began from the postulate that men, by their nature, are species-beings, that is, beings who are conscious of belonging to a species composed of others like themselves, and beings who can realize their full human potential only in loving collaboration with those others (Geschwender 1990). Perceiving their own imperfections as isolated individuals and not yet conscious of their collective potential, men seek consolation in an imagined God, abase themselves, and worship him as a power standing over them, when he is in reality their own alienated species-essence and represents only a schism within themselves. Marx now saw this phenomenon in politics as well as in religion. For him, man's present isolation is not simply a matter of perception but a reality, a product of modern civil society: "egoistic man is the passive and given result of a dissolved society" (Marx and Engels 1972, p. 65). Equally real is man's debasement: he is "corrupted by the entire organization (Braverman 2004). It is typical for modern society that the affable young man plunged himself into working-class activities, attending meetings by the score, and gained a profound respect for the people he came to know. Marx repeatedly marveled at "the extent to which the English workers have succeeded in educating themselves." "I have sometimes come across workers, with

Economical History (Macroeconomics) of South Africa Essay

Economical History (Macroeconomics) of South Africa - Essay Example Though the country is not well endowed with good farming land, it exports products like sugar cane, wheat and corn. Farmers also raise sheep, cattle and pigs for food and other products (Ross, 2008). Until the world financial that affected the country in 2008, the country economic progress has been stable and remarkable. For example from the graph, south Africa GDP rose by 3.7% in 2002. This has been attributed to the conducive environment which prevailed due to continuous economic growth. The economy has been improving since the adoption of democracy (Feinstein, 2005). In 2003, the GDP increased to 4.9%. This was due to macroeconomics reforms that were initiated by the government. These reforms boosted competitiveness thus enhancing the development of the economy. The implementation of these reforms created job opportunities in the country thus opening South Africa to the international markets (Feinstein, 2005). Deterioration in the country economy, has led to budget imbalance in South Africa. The situation has been improving, and in 2005, the deficits dropped dramatically to 0.5% of the total GDP. This can linked to the government policies to reduce taxes, cut tariffs and curbing inflation. All these measures allowed a relaxed exchange control in the country (Feinstein, 2005). This has led to the development of a rock solid macroeconomic framework that has seen the decline in the budgets deficits to its lowest in 2005. GDP declined in 2008, thus causing economic recession in the whole country. The main cause of this was the global economic crisis that affected the country. The crisis had a tremendous effect on the international market. South Africa export decreased as the global market deteriorated due to this crisis (Ross, 2008).As a result; this led to rapid decline in the country’s GDP. Exchange rate mostly affects the economy of a given country by changing the price of exchanging with other