Philosophy/Marxism
Your papers must be a minimum of 4 pages in length and should strive to be more than mere exposition, by which I mean a general analysis or recycling of the themes discussed in class. You will be expected to do a close reading that includes citing the texts, providing evidence, and demonstrating strong argumentative and rhetorical skills. In other words, do not merely summarize. You may use up to two secondary sources, though I would like you to try and limit the core of your argument to the writings of Karl Marx.
For about a century The Communist Manifesto was one of the most widely read (and
some would argue misread) documents in the world. He also claimed that a capitalist society suffers from Commodity Fetishism (obsession with material goods) when they: ‘Place more value on goods and services than the people who produce them.’
Does capitalism—as Marx argues—inevitably sow the seeds of its own destruction? Is capitalism inherently unethical or immoral as if it inevitably leads to income inequality? In the wake of recent political and economic crises around the world, is communism (or socialism for that matter) still a viable political/economic ideology in the 21st century? Why or why not? Please provide evidence from either The Communist Manifesto and/or Capital Volume One.
