Question
READING AND TEXTBOOKS
- Bronner and Kellner: Chapters 1, 9, 16 – 20
- Koyzis: Chapters 5 – 6
- This week you’ll grapple with the influence of Socialism, Marxism, and Critical Theory. Many argued that these ideologies would die with the collapse of the Soviet Union. As we have seen, those predictions were premature. Socialism, Marxism, and Critical Theory are major players in the 21st century. This week, you’ll get a front-row seat in understanding these theories, exploring their impact, and analyzing them a Christian worldview.
- For this week, would you please consider the following: 1) read Koyzis’ chapters 5, 6; the two linked articles Why Marxism and Critical Theory Still Matter and Critical Theory, 2) please watch the weekly video Socialism, Marxism, and Critical Theory, and 3). For this research paper, you’ll get to identify the main elements of each of these three theories, assess their impact on public policies, analyze their strengths and weaknesses, and critique all three from a Christian perspective. The goal is to deepen our understanding of the prevalence of these ideologies and their impact on policy in the 21st century. Here is a birds-eye view of your tasks.
- Apply:
- Research Paper: Socialism, Marxism, and Critical Theory Assignment
- Devotional thought: Consider the ramifications of Psalm 24:1 (NIV) for both our political and social lives.
- This week you continue to think through the political implications of the Christian worldview. The late Wheaton College professor, Arthur Holmes, talked about how all truth was God’s truth. One of the implications of the Christian worldview is that if God is sovereign then the state is not. The state is limited in nature and is limited to justice. The Dutch theologian and statesman, Abraham Kuyper, summed up God’s total claims on our lives and all of reality saying, ” No single piece of our mental world is to be hermeneutically sealed off from the rest, and there is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is sovereign over all, does not cry: “Mine’”. Psalm 24:1 puts it this way, “The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.” Would you kindly consider the implications of the Christian worldview this week?
Module 3: Week 3 Introduction
Overview
This module considers socialism’s attempted abolition of private property. Marxism and socialism are aligned, although Marxism is revolutionary. Even without the USSR, economic collectivism and its postmodern derivatives have grown more influential. Critical theory adapted Marxism to 20th-century culture, and in this form, it has grown in influence.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this module, you will be able to:
- Synthesize the key ideas of socialism, Marxism and Critical Theory
- Evaluate the impacts of Socialism, Marxism and critical theory on American politics and policy
- Evaluate the above within a model of Biblical principles of statesmanship and government
Overview
You will discuss assigned questions in different modules.
- Answers to questions must be supported with research and citations. It is not unusual, for instance, to have 3-4 citations per paragraph in doctoral level research.
- Remember also that writing a research paper, especially at the doctoral level, requires you to weave in ideas from numerous sources and then in turn synthesizing those ideas to create fresh insights and knowledge.
Instructions
- 12-14 pages of content, double-spaced
- Must include citations from relevant readings, videos, and at least 20 scholarly sources
- Turabian format
Research Paper: Socialism, Marxism, and Critical Theory Assignment
Discuss the following:
- Synthesize the key ideas of socialism, Marxism and Critical Theory
- Evaluate the impacts of Socialism, Marxism and critical theory on American politics and policy
- Evaluate the above within a model of Biblical principles of statesmanship and government
Solution
Socialism, Marxism, and Critical Theory
Currently, capitalism is in almost every country, but socialism, Marxism, and critical theory are becoming more relevant, especially as a critique of capitalism and liberal democracy. These three theories are becoming a dominant force in world politics. They are against the negative effects of dependency on wage labor that have led to various forms of oppression[1]. Without a good social network, people in the US turn against the system that has affected them due to the relentless drive for profit. As a result, some Americans prefer democratic socialists who will help establish a society that cares for everyone’s needs[2]. As a result, socialism, Marxism, and critical theory are necessary for the survival of many Americans. This paper will discuss the key elements of these three theories, explore their influence on American politics and policies and analyze them through a Christian perspective.
At first, socialism is one of the principal operational forces of capitalism that pronounces the disadvantages and oppressed people’s interests in many capitalist societies. The main aim of socialism is to ensure that all employees and people are equal in society, particularly by letting workers own the means of production[3]. Fundamentally, socialism argues that there should be collective ownership of means of production. This allows collective decisions on how the produced wealth of society can be used for the benefit of everyone. Therefore, socialism favors developing a society of democratic control, collective ownership, and production for use rather than profit[4]. For socialists, cooperation and collectiveness are better than competition and individualism; thus, equality is the defining value of socialism. Viewing human beings as social beings, socialism argues that a measure of social equality is necessary to enhance social cohesion and stability and support freedom through helping personal development and gratifying material needs. The socialist movement continues to voice individual working class’s interests which are viewed as structurally disadvantaged or systematically troubled in capitalist societies[5]. Socialists’ main objective is to minimize oppression caused by the capitalist system and lessen or eliminate class divisions.
In Marxism, Karl Marx argues that every society is divided into social classes. There are two classes in a capitalist society, precisely the bourgeoisie, who are often the rich that control the means of production and have the capital, and the proletariat, the laborers whose labor is used in the production. The proletariat lack power in a capitalist society, and the business owners pay them the lowest wages possible and get the most of their work in order to maximize profits, thus creating an unfair imbalance[6]. Since the workers may turn against the bourgeoisie, these owners use social institutions such as the bank, media, organized religion, media, and government as weapons to protect themselves and maintain privilege and power[7]. According to Marx, the inherent exploitation and inequalities would cause a revolution where the workers would rebel against the owners, abolish capitalism and take control of the means of production. Marx believed that the inherent seeds of own destruction in capitalism would also prompt enlightened leaders who understood the society’s class structure to establish a proletariat movement through class consciousness and enhancing awareness. According to Marxism, after the fall of capitalism, collective or government ownership of property and means of production would replace the individual ownership of property and means of production under socialism and communism[8]. As a result, Marx views the final stage of human development as one free from class divisions and class struggle……………for help with this assignment contact us via email Address: consulttutor10@gmail.com
[1] Antonio, Robert J. “Immanent critique as the core of critical theory: Its origins and developments in Hegel, Marx and contemporary thought.” British Journal of Sociology (1981): p. 331.
[2] Sanders, Bernie. “On Democratic Socialism in the United States.” In Ideals and Ideologies, Routledge, 2019, pp. 325.
[3] Kolodko, Grzegorz W. “Socialism, capitalism, or Chinism?.” Communist and Post-Communist Studies 51, no. 4 (2018): p. 286.
[4] Mokrzycki, Edmund. “The legacy of real socialism, group interests, and the search for a new utopia.” In The Polish Road From Socialism, Routledge, 2019, p. 270.
[5] Bernstein, Eduard, and Henry Tudor. The preconditions of socialism. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993
[6] Blom, Raimo, and Markku Kivinen. “Analytical marxism and class theory.” In Organization Theory and Class Analysis, De Gruyter, 2017, p. 86.
[7] Parkin, Frank. Marxism and class theory: A bourgeois critique. Routledge, 2018.
[8] Gregor, A. James. Marxism, China, & development: Reflections on theory and reality. Routledge, 2017.