Marxism

Marxism is the theory which looks at the analysis of capitalism, a theory of social change and an athiest view of human liberation. This is from the work of Karl Marx and Frierich Engels. The identity of a social class derives from its relationship to the means of production ; Marx describes the social classes in capitalist societies.

Proletariat: “those individuals who sell their labour power, and who, in the capitalist mode of production, do not own the means of production“. The capitalist mode of production establishes the conditions enabling the bourgeoisie to exploit the proletariat because the workers’ labour generates a surplus value greater than the workers’ wages.

Bourgeoisie: those who “own the means of production” and buy labour power from the proletariat, thus exploiting the proletariat; they subdivide as bourgeoisie and the petit bourgeoisie. Petit bourgeoisie are those who employ labourers, but who also work, i.e. small business owners, peasant landlords, trade workers et al. Marxism predicts that the continual reinvention of the means of production eventually would destroy the petit bourgeoisie, degrading them from the middle class to the proletariat.

Class Consciousness denotes the awareness — of itself and the social world — that a social class possesses, and its capacity to rationally act in their best interests; hence, class consciousness is required before they can effect a successful revolution.

This relates to my study as it looks at how the media owned by the ruling class influence the working class. This allows them to maintain the status quo. Also the heroes maybe seen as the ruling class who dominate society. Therefore the people who look upto them are the working class. This demonstrates that the working class are the subordinates. Also that there is a division and class differences as there is a barrier between the two classes because of the media.