A Critical Analysis Of Karl Marx And Modern-Day China

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A contradictory society, modern-day China blends a “communist” government with a capitalist economy. Though China’s society seems counter-intuitive to Karl Marx’s sociological theories, Eli Friedman provides an in-depth analysis of what is actually going on. Marx reads the analysis, finding out how and why it relates to his theory. Friedman’s analysis of Chinese workers emphasizes the constant strikes held in China, but Marx sees these efforts as fruitless due to minimal grand change. Friedman (China in Revolt, 3) states the workers are winning, some “amounting to a 50 percent [wage] hike for regular workers”. Marx identifies that the bourgeoisie of China is protected by the state which creates policies and a military that keep the proletarian …show more content…

Employers see potential because “migrants will be available closer to the source, and a looser labor market also has immediate political advantages for capital” (Revolt in China, p. 8). A bourgeois concept, Marx defines capital as “raw materials, instruments of labour and means of subsistence of all kinds” (WLC, 3). If capital does indeed grow, Marx believes that the proletariat will be further suppressed because increased capital leads to a decrease in labor’s shares and wages. However, Friedman sees potential for the proletariat to revolt because migrants will have a home where they work. A home leads to life outside work, and “migrants will likely demand all the things one needs for a decent life – housing, health care, education, and some protection against the risks of unemployment and old age” (China in Revolt, 9). These increased social benefits will be more likely aimed at the state and can start a revolt against the capitalist system. Marx disagrees with Friedman because the move inland will restrain the proletariat. However, he admits that a grand revolt is necessary for the capitalist society to fall and it could start with this spatial fix. In contrast, if the move inland is successful and the bourgeoisie has more capital, they will have more power to control the

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