The concept of religion is a contentious terrain with the subject being viewed as divisive and discordant within Nations. Beckford and Luckmann (1989) discuss religion as a continuous challenge to scientists studying society. Since the industrial revolution there has been ambivalent dichotomy of opinion towards religion with some perceiving religious ideology continuing as normal, whilst others believed the concept would be discarded as the new social order developed. This essay will consider the perspectives of Marx and Engels upon the role of Religion and will also discuss how relevant there argument is in the 21st century. The use of academic text, lecture notes and journal articles will be used to research and answer the essay question. The essay will cover the following topics: Marx and his importance in the science of Sociology, Marx and Engels ideology and how they move away from the philosophy of Hegel, the idea of false consciousness, Marx and Engels perspective on Religion by using the basis of the dogma as being a human phenomenon. This essay will also define the metaphor of base and superstructure, the theories of alienation and its connection with Marx and Engels religious premise. Finally, this essay will discuss the relevance of their argument within contemporary society. Karl Marx, a macro-sociologist was revered as one of the founding fathers of sociological discipline along with Emile Durkheim, Max Weber and George Simmel. Both Marx and Engels were members of the Berlin Doctors club which was a group of young Hegelians who believed Christianity was historical in man’s social need as discussed by Raines (2002). Young Marx moved from studying law to philosophy in 1837 and was fascinated by the work of Hegel, who co...
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...tory of the world. Verso.
International Sociological Association, Luckmann, T. and Beckford, J. A. 1989. The changing face of religion. Sage.
Law, A.2011. Key concepts in classical social theory. London: SAGE Publications.
Luckmann, T. and Beckford, J. A. 1989. The changing face of religion. London: Sage.
Marsh, I. et al. 2009. Sociology, making sense of society. 4th ed. London: Pearson Education.
Marx, K., Engels, F. 2002. Communist manifesto with and introduction by gareth stedamnd jones. 29th ed. London: Penguin Books.
Ollman, B.1976. Alienation: Marx's conception of man in capitalist society. 2nd ed. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Raines, J.2002. Marx on religion. Temple University Press.
Wilder-Smith, a. E.1975. Man's origin, man's destiny: A critical survey of the principles of evolution and christianity. Minnesota: Bethany House.
The fear of early twentieth century dystopian writers is the fear that people in general had in this era; what is the impact of communism or what the future of religion with evolution and Darwinism would be. The may concern was that if religion was obsolete, what would replace it as the moral compass of the people. One of the most important individuals of the early twentieth century Karl Marx had his own philosophy for a replacement. The role of religion in Karl Marx’s Communist Manifesto is stated as,” But Communism abolishes eternal truths, it abolishes all religion, and all morality, instead of constituting them on a new basis…’" (Marx 19) That new bases he mentioned in the quote is the state, the new morale code that society must follow.
The Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels was first published in 1848, with an easy to understand language and a simple structure (brief introduction, followed by three chapters and a conclusion short); it contained the main ideals of communism. It was written from a meeting between Communists of many Nations, and published in several languages.
Marx predicted that religion would disappear as a phenomenon of false (because there is no God, according to Marx), and churches will become museums. All see how the number of churches in the world increases, a church becoming the heavy believers. However, the council rejected Marx, and yet kept his not believing in God.
Some sociologists claim that what changes primarily is the social system and religious change is an effect of the change in the former. It is not religion but, to a larger extent, the economy that is supposed to legitimize reality. From this perspective it is the social system that changes and this change in relation to religion means secularization, which generally speaking means the diminishing impact of religion on social life at various levels, degrees and intensities. Theories such as Luckmann’s privatization thesis or Hervieu-Le´ger’s emotional theory of religion may be categorized as giving priority to changes within the individual. The fundamental thought is that in contemporary society it is primarily the individual who changes. It is the individual that seeks direct contact with the sacral sphere, is driven by emotion, feeling, a personal and individualized need. The third current of theoretical solutions to the question of what predominates in modern and post-modern changes is the one that points to religion itself as the sphere of these changes. It is neither the society nor the individual, but rather religion that is pushed to the forefront of the phenomenon. Religion in confrontation with modernity takes on new forms which function well in the modern
The concept of alienation plays a significant role in Marx's early political writing, especially in the Economic and Philosophical Manuscripts of 1848, but it is rarely mentioned in his later works. This implies that while Marx found alienation useful in investigating certain basic aspects of the development of capitalist society, it is less useful in putting forward the predictions of the collapse of capitalism. The aim of this essay is to explain alienation, and show how it fits into the pattern of Marx's thought. It will be concluded that alienation is a useful tool in explaining the affect of capitalism on human existence. In Marx's thought, however, the usefulness of alienation it is limited to explanation. It does not help in either predicting the downfall of capitalism, or the creation of communism.
Where does religion come from? Many have tried to answer this question, only leaving us with more questions than answers. This essay will focus on two philosophers David Hume and Karl Marx both has strong critiques on the existence of God. Both going against the design argument, the design argument is the argument for the existence of God or single creator; however, with Hume’s empiricist and Marx's atheist they both attack the design argument in different ways, ultimately coming to the same conclusion and that is there is no God.
Marx, Karl, and Friedrich Engels. The Communist Manifesto. Trans. Paul M. Sweeny. New York: Monthly Review Press, 1998.
Bender, Frederic L. Karl Marx: The Communist Manifesto. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. ed. 1988.
Marx’s theory of alienation is concerned primarily with social interaction and production; he believes that we are able to overcome our alienation through human emancipation.
In 1848, Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels pamphlet titled The Communist Manifesto displaying their opinions on economics and socialism for the public’s enjoyment. Little did they know their ideas would still be influential today.
During the European industrialization, theorist Émile Durkheim was the first to analyze religion in terms of societal impact. Durkheim defined religion as a “unified system of beliefs and practices relative to sacred things” (Keirns, N. et al, p. 337, 2012). In terms of society, Durkheim overall believed that religion is about community: It binds people together (social cohesion), promotes behavior consistency (social control), and offers strength for people during life’s tribulations (meaning and purpose) (Keirns, N. et al, p. 337, 2012). He held that the source of religion is the collective mind-set of society and that this cohesive bond of social order resulted from common values in a society (Keirns, N. et al, p. 337, 2012). Additionally, he contended that these values need to be maintained to sustain social stability (Keirns, N. et al, p. 337,
Marx, Karl and Friedrich Engels. "The Communist Manifesto." The Norton Anthology of Theory and Criticism. Ed. Vincent B. Leitch. New York: Norton, 2001. 769-773.
Marx saw religion as an evil that existed in society and that it brought down all the people that believed in that religion. Marx said that, ?It [religion] is the opium of the people,?[1] and in saying this, Marx meant that religion was contagious on society. Once the society had a taste for the religion, they became totally engulfed it in, and then they do not want to get out of that way of live because they see it as a good way to live. Then even if people wanted to get out of the religion it was hard to get out because the whole society had already been infected by the ?opium.?
Marsh, I and Keating, M., eds. (1996) Sociology: Making sense of society., ed [2006], England: Pearson Education.
Marx, Karl and Friedrich Engels. "The Communist Manifesto." The Norton Anthology of Theory and Criticism. Ed. Vincent B. Leitch. New York: Norton, 2001. 769-773.