Base and Superstructure Definition of Marxs Terms

Base and Superstructure Definition of Marxs Terms Base and superstructure are two linked theoretical concepts developed by Karl Marx, one of the founders of sociology. Simply put, base refers to the forces and relations of production- to all the people, relationships between them, the roles that they play, and the materials and resources involved in producing the things needed by society. Thomas Lohnes / Getty Images Superstructure Superstructure, quite simply and expansively, refers to all other aspects of society. It includes culture, ideology (world views, ideas, values, and beliefs), norms and expectations, identities that people inhabit, social institutions (education, religion, media, family, among others), the political structure, and the state (the political apparatus that governs society). Marx argued that the superstructure grows out of the base, and reflects the interests of the ruling class that controls it. As such, the superstructure justifies how the base operates, and in doing so, justifies the power of the ruling class. From a sociological standpoint, it’s important to recognize that neither the base nor the superstructure is naturally occurring, nor are they static. They are both social creations (created by people in a society), and both are the accumulation of social processes and interactions between people that are constantly playing out, shifting, and evolving. Extended Definition Marx theorized that the superstructure effectively grows out of the base and that it reflects the interests of the ruling class that controls the base (called the â€Å"bourgeoisie† in Marx’s time). In The German Ideology, written with Friedrich Engels, Marx offered a critique of Hegel’s theory of how society operates, which was based on principles of Idealism. Hegel asserted that ideology determines social lifethat the reality of the world around us is determined by our mind, by our thoughts. Historical Shifts to a Capitalist Mode of Production Considering historical shifts in relations of production, most importantly, the shift from feudalist to capitalist production, Marx was not content with Hegel’s theory. He believed that the shift to a capitalist mode of production had sweeping implications for the social structure, culture, institutions, and ideology of society- that it reconfigured the superstructure in drastic ways. He posed instead a â€Å"materialist† way of understanding history (â€Å"historical materialism†), which is the idea that the material conditions of our existence, what we produce in order to live and how we go about doing so, determines all else in society. Building on this idea, Marx posed a new way of thinking about the relationship between thought and lived reality with his theory of the relationship between base and superstructure. Importantly, Marx argued that this is not a neutral relationship. There is a lot at stake in the way the superstructure emerges out of the base, because as the place where norms, values, beliefs, and ideology reside, the superstructure serves to legitimate the base. The superstructure creates the conditions in which the relations of production seem right, just, or even natural, though, in reality, they may be deeply unjust, and designed to benefit only the minority ruling class, rather than the majority working class. Marx argued that religious ideology that urged people to obey authority and work hard for salvation in the afterlife was a way in which superstructure justifies the base because it generates an acceptance of one’s conditions as they are. Following Marx, Antonio Gramsci elaborated on the role of education in training people to obediently serve in their designated roles in the division of labor, depending upon into which class they were born. Marx and Gramsci also wrote about the role of the state- the political apparatus- in protecting the interests of the ruling class. In recent history, state bailouts of collapsing private banks is an example of this. Early Writing In his early writing, Marx was very committed to the principles of historical materialism, and the related one-way causal relationship between base and superstructure. However, as his theory evolved and grew more complex over time, Marx reframed the relationship between base and superstructure as dialectical, meaning that each influences what happens in the other. Thus, if something changes in the base, it causes changes in the superstructure, and vice versa. Marx believed in the possibility of a revolution among the working class because he thought that once workers realized the extent to which they were exploited and harmed for the benefit of the ruling class, then they would decide to change things, and a significant change in the base, in terms of how goods are produced, by whom, and on what terms, would follow.

Case Study#1 Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

#1 - Case Study Example In the state of Florida, it can be found out that most of the wildlife has been safeguarded by one or the other law. Such laws of Florida have been enacted by the governments at the various level including local, regional, state or federal (Schaefer, Tucker & McGurie, â€Å"Laws that Protect Florida’s Wildlife†). The other law regarding that of two weeks counselling prior to marriage, for the interracial couples, has been enacted for the best interest of the couple. As, the involved individuals in such marriages are often from a very different cultural and economic background, so it can be identified that such counselling would help the future husband and wife to know each other better. Though it seems that the both the law statutes have been enacted for the greater good of the society, one to reduce the pollution content and save the ecological balance by protecting the extinct species of blood and the other contributing towards post marriage harmony but one might not like the statutes. The person travelling from outside the state of Minnesota might feel that he has to incur extra cost in lieu of pollution resistant device in his vehicle. The interracial couple can also have reservations as they are adult and the state can not impose them the counselling sessions. In such cases, the affected parties might appeal to the higher court of law i.e. the court of appeal. If the legislation permits, they can also appeal to the apex court i.e. the Supreme Court. As discussed earlier, the law of the land should not impose certain statutes upon the mature adults. If any of the individual decided to choose upon his life partner, who happens to be from a different race, the legalities of the nation should not compel him to have mandatory counselling session for two weeks. As matured individual adults, they have the right to get married to the person they want to. Also, it is very hurting

Business in Context LOLO Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Business in Context LOLO - Essay Example In the future also, this media is expected to play a vital role in its operation. The present business tactic adopted by them is the business to business model. E-business in Qatar Airways has improved gradually and has enhanced their marketing strategies, the marketing mix and also the investment opportunities. The suppliers’ power can also be further improved using the E-business. Besides, it will also help them to evolve better strategies to counter the threat from competitors as well as new entrants in the field. Oracle is the business suite adopted by Qatar Airways to improve its business. During the early years, business operations in Qatar Airways were done manually and there was no role for internet in its business. They have considered E-business as a very risky venture that was difficult and thus avoided its use in business. However, in the recent years they have changed their policy and adopted E-business strategies. Oracle business suite is the platform Qatar Airways adopted as a part of its expansion programme. Supplier power: Presently the supplier power is enhanced in Qatar Airways by the use of internet. In the future Internet will also make it possible for them to produces new and alternative suppliers using search engine technology. â€Å"The internet is also producing new and alternative suppliers of search engine technology.† (Doganis 2001, p.177). Threat of new entrants: Using the internet applications in its business Qatar Airways can through the web itself understand the business of its competitors and analyze which of the market players are likely to pos a threat to their operations. They have been doing this research in detecting their competitors. This internet application is of high utility both in the present and the future days to Qatar Airways. New entrants can be identified through the advertising. Internet has enhanced the advertising capabilities of Qatar Airways and,

Coscto Wholesale Corporation Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Coscto Wholesale Corporation - Case Study Example Consumers want new products, which often result from sizable expenditures on research and development that can be undertaken only by large enterprise. In reality, it seems that a market of partial monopolies has provided the greatest measure of abundance (Global Marketing Principles 2008). Competition occurs not only in markets of many small firms but also in markets of relatively few large ones. However, in markets with few large firms, competitive action can be countered, and price competition may not serve as an effective method of competition. Therefore, products and services also become competitive weapons, and nonprice competition assumes importance. This fact has not yet been sufficiently recognized and integrated into theoretical models (Costco Home Page 2008). Costco spends no on advertising following "the no-frills concept". Costco has no public relations and advertising department trying to prove that the main principle of business is to sell products "as inexpensively as possible" (DiCarlo 2004). Costco does not rely on advertising proposing customers unique services and wide assortment, low prices and customer support. Technological improvements facilitate the type of centralized management that characterizes these organizations. The economies of scale that result from increasing store count and the ability to divide tasks between store operations and central merchandising put them in very powerful positions vis--vis both their customers and their suppliers. Costco was founded in 1976 as Cash-and Carry Company. The owner of Costco, sol Price, opened the Price Club store in San Diego as a discount store. INTRODUCTION The sales model of Costco is to sell products at low prices but at high volumes. During the 1980s, economic turmoil opened the door to retailing innovators who cut the cost out of distribution and drove conventional department stores or discounters to their knees or to bankruptcy court. Of the top twenty discount department stores in 1980, fewer than half remain in operation today, while the doomed still stick to business as usual. The seeds of "creative destruction" were sown in the 1980s but will be harvested in the 1990s. As many as 20 percent of the regional shopping centers currently operating in the United States will close by the year 2000 (Costco Home Page 2008; Bearden et al p. 54). In order to remain competititve, Costco changed its strategy and introduce Costco membership. Goldstar and Business Memberships costs about $50 a year and the Executive membership is about $100 a year. Only Costco members can purchase main products except drugs, drinks and gasoline similar to other retailers of this type, Costco continues to rattle around within overstored retail square footage that outstripped both population growth and consumer spending over the past decade (Costco Home Page 2008). The coming shakeout in retailing has been preordained by a copycat, follow-the-leader mentality, a quiet conspiracy toward "sameness" in retailing--in layout, location, presentation, products, and service. Diversity in products, in consumers, in employees, and in the environment will demand diversity and dexterity among retailers. "Costco sells very large volumes of merchandise and achieving high inventory turnover In addition to

The American Dream According to John Steinbeck Essays -- Of Mice And Me

John Steinbeck, author of many classic American novels, greatly influenced modern American literature. Steinbeck often referred to the Salinas Valley of California in his writing. He often referred to the settlers and the adversities they had faced during the migration to the Salinas Valley area. With novels such as Of Mice And Men and The Grapes Of Wrath, Steinbeck explained the harsh reality of the severe hardships the settlers faced to accomplish the American Dream. These novels share many similarities in regard to their themes. To understand Steinbeck’s work, we must first understand Steinbeck.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  John Steinbeck was born in Salinas, California in 1902. His father was a treasurer for the county. Steinbeck’s mother was a school teacher. His mother taught him to appreciate books. Steinbeck attended high school locally. During his summers, he worked on ranches and farms to earn money. After high school, he studied marine biology at Stanford University. By the late 1920's, he moved back to California without an academic degree. Steinbeck had never planned to work in the field of his major. He had always known he would be a writer.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In 1929, now living in the Sierra Nevada mountains, Steinbeck was given an advance from a publisher to write a book. The publisher gave him $250. This book, called Cup Of Gold, failed to make a profit. Steinbeck did not get discouraged. By 1935, he released a novel called Tortilla Flat. This ... The American Dream According to John Steinbeck Essays -- Of Mice And Me John Steinbeck, author of many classic American novels, greatly influenced modern American literature. Steinbeck often referred to the Salinas Valley of California in his writing. He often referred to the settlers and the adversities they had faced during the migration to the Salinas Valley area. With novels such as Of Mice And Men and The Grapes Of Wrath, Steinbeck explained the harsh reality of the severe hardships the settlers faced to accomplish the American Dream. These novels share many similarities in regard to their themes. To understand Steinbeck’s work, we must first understand Steinbeck.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  John Steinbeck was born in Salinas, California in 1902. His father was a treasurer for the county. Steinbeck’s mother was a school teacher. His mother taught him to appreciate books. Steinbeck attended high school locally. During his summers, he worked on ranches and farms to earn money. After high school, he studied marine biology at Stanford University. By the late 1920's, he moved back to California without an academic degree. Steinbeck had never planned to work in the field of his major. He had always known he would be a writer.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In 1929, now living in the Sierra Nevada mountains, Steinbeck was given an advance from a publisher to write a book. The publisher gave him $250. This book, called Cup Of Gold, failed to make a profit. Steinbeck did not get discouraged. By 1935, he released a novel called Tortilla Flat. This ...

Macro Level Factors in an External Environment

MEMO To: Vice President John Doe From: Kathy Brewster-lee Subject: macro level factors in an external environment Date: November 20, 2012 Hello Mr. Doe, It is my understanding that the large presentation on social networking is quickly approaching and a brief memo discussing how macro level factors in an external environment have impacted the structure of the online social networking industry in the global marketplace is required. In order for that to be done properly there is some information that needs to be addressed.Just what are Macro environment factors; they are uncontainable external forces that influence how a company operates. They are essentially out of the control of the company, and it often requires a change in the operating, management, production, and marketing of the company. They are often called PEST or PESTEL. PEST stands for Political, Economic, Social, and Technological concerns and PESTEL has the same definitions for the pest but it also includes Environmental and Legal factors. Associated essay: KFC Planning, Organizing, Leading and ControllingPolitical macro environment factors encompass of effects such as tax policies, government-issued safety guidelines, the accessibility of government contracts, as well as the modifications in the governing political party. International laws, for instance trade agreements and tariffs, can influence the supply and demand chains also obtainable markets for several diverse corporations too. A market boom, recession, or growing increase delinquency can all modify the method an institute tactics for the opportunity as well as functions in the present-day.Economic factors exist frequently complicated to consider, because economic forecasts and analyses differ widely among professionals. Unemployment levels, comparative foreign exchange rates, and the condition of the global economy can completely assist otherwise damage a business' capability to get required constituents and preserve a stable profit. The mood and demographic s of the inhabitants can create the formation of the social area of macro environment factors.Social trends, such as a predilection for on-demand transportable media devices, can correspondingly persuade which products a company manufacturers and where it chooses to spend its advertising dollars. Technological macro environment dynamics can affect how a company ensures business. An innovative kind of machinery, computer chip, or products produced through research and improvement can help a corporation stay updated and at the forefront of the market curve. Holders must be able to precisely identify which new developments will be useful, as well as which be situated as just a trend.With environmental concerns they exist significant to businesses in cooperation in the short and long term of them. In the short-term things similar to natural disasters, can interrupt the production and supply operations or even extinguish a company’s assets. Programs for instance environmental risk assessment can assistance companies to arrange to handle most probable short-term crises. In the long view, businesses may have an interest in ensuring that their supply chains are not destroyed by unsustainable practices. Legal factors can limit or change how a business operates.As an example they may include to employ additional supervisory employees or acquire safety equipment following a new health and safety law that could have passed. Legal factors are determined in cooperation of local legislation, regional and national laws. In some cases, companies that do dealings internationally can also be affected by international laws. Reference: What Are Macro Environment Factors? From http://www. wisegeek. com/what-are-macro-environment-factors. htm Cachia, R (2008) Social Computing: Study on the Use and Impact of Online Social Networking From http://ftp. jrc. es/EURdoc/JRC48650. pdf

Observation And Analysis Of A Hispanic Infant - 1870 Words

Observation and Analysis of a Hispanic Infant Our Lady of the Lake University SOWK 7328 I) Introduction Jace is the pseudonym the parents chose for the anonymity of this youth. Jace means healing in Spanish and was chosen because every time the youth smiles his mother says it heals her and makes her happy no matter what. Jace was born in 2015 to a mixed family, his father is half Hispanic and half African American and the mother is half African American and half Caucasian, but Jace definitely takes after his father. Jace looks almost identical to the pictures of his father at the same age, Jace will be one-year-old this month. Prior to this observation research was done into the developmental stages of an infant and upon observation Jace seems to fit the normal progressive state of birth to one year old would go through. He is smart, charismatic, creative, happy, but maybe a little spoiled as he is the baby of the family. Jace was the last baby to be born and the third male out of the other five siblings. Anthony has two other children from a previous relationship who live with their m other, one child is an eighteen-year-old male and the other is a seventeen-year-old female. The other four siblings live in the home with Jace, he has an older brother who is sixteen, a sister who is thirteen, a brother who is eleven, and another sister who is eight years old. Anthony and Jeanine are the parents of Jace and who were in the room during Jace’sShow MoreRelatedObservation And Analysis Of Hispanic Infant Essay2428 Words   |  10 PagesOBSERVATION AND ANALYSIS OF HISPANIC INFANT OR TODDLER 2 I) Introduction Tre is the pseudonym the parents chose for the anonymity of this youth. Tres means three in Spanish but was shortened to Tre because he happens to be the third generation with his father’s name. 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