Karl Marx and Sigmund Freud: Human Perception and Morality

Jostein Gaarder’s novel, “Sophie’s World”, introduces the word of philosophy in the form of a story to the eyes’ of a commoner, or someone who has not been exposed to the teachings of philosophy. In this novel, numerous philosophers that have made an impact on the world we presently live in today are briefly mentioned along with their thoughts’, philosophies’, and teachings’. Two very significant people that have made an impact on our society through their realizations are Karl Marx and Sigmund Freud. Karl Marx and Sigmund Freud both have strong views on society’s perception and morality. They have proved that society is driven on our perceptions, morality, and code of ethics.

Karl Marx was a German philosopher, born May 5, 1818. He was not a philosophical materialist nor did he advocate mechanical materialism like others who did around the seventeenth and eighteenth century. Marx was a historical materialist. Being so, Marx believed that we are described through history and it has made us who we are. All throughout history the central conflict of the human society has always been defined by “people who have” and “people who don’t have.” These are the underlying problems behind the majority of many conflicts had throughout the world, even today. This is because humans will always try to find a way to distinguish themselves from one another. It is in our nature to. Historical development was driven by the tension between opposites. We categorize things, or people, by their differences so it is put into simple terms and easier to understand. People like things that are as simple as “black” and “white,” but things in the world are almost never as simple as just one or the other. Most things have more complex backgrounds and would b...

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...been faced with a situation that would try to make his desire give in to his guilt. He did not give in to his superego, but think about how many people donate money or walk past a homeless person on the street. Many people do this with the intention to make themselves feel better, not necessarily because they care about the wellbeing of the homeless people.

There are many comparisons between the beliefs and philosophies of Karl Marx and Sigmund Freud. They are two very significant people that have made an impact on our society through their realizations. Karl Marx and Sigmund Freud both have strong views on society’s perception and morality. They have proved that society is driven on our perceptions, morality, and code of ethics. I believe that their philosophies are accurate. They are considerable and even in our present society, their philosophies shine through.