Assess the usefulness of Marxist theories in understanding religion today
In society today, there are many theories and ideals to what religion is, why it is used and how. Marxists believe that religion is a conservative force, used to oppress the proletariat and to keep the bourgeoisie in power. But is this the best analogy for understanding religion today?
Marxists believe that religion is created and promoted by the ruling class in order to pass on their dominant ideology to the working class of religion teaching you that you need to work, as figures such as Jesus and the Prophet Muhammad both had jobs, showing that your job is chosen by God almighty and that in no circumstances should you question your position. The ruling class dominant ideology essentially suggests to the working class that everybody has to work; it is natural and a part of life. Marx points out that this dominant ideology is only half of the job complete. It is up to the ruling class alone to make the working class feel like they are the ones who ultimately benefit from working; therefore the ruling class create a false class consciousness among the working class to stop them from revolting or tackling their oppressors. Lenin famously said that ‘religion is the opium of the people, a spiritual gin that dulls the pain of oppression’, showing that religion acts as a eventual escape from the suffering of the working classes in this life with the promise of a perfect life after death in heaven. To Marxists, religion helps maintain the unequal class structure and as such keeps societies balanced, unevenly.
The Essay on Ruling Ideologies
Core Studies 3 Casilda Adames Take-Home Exam November 16, 1999 The ruling ideology dealing with welfare is a negative view among the majority of Americans. It states that welfare recipients are lazy people who have lots of children and collect checks for a long period of time. This statement is believed mostly among higher-class people because they feel that if they can work hard for their money, ...
Evidence to support this Marxist view comes from the industrial revolution in England, where employers – mainly factory owners – used religion as a way of controlling their workers and keeping them sober. This shows how the ruling class can exploit the working class to their own advantage, to make profit based on a profit for profits sake.
Neo-Marxist Gramsci would agree with the idea that Marxists used ideas instead of coercion to maintain their position, the idea that work is natural and a part of life due to Jesus etc. having jobs. Gramsci used the term hegemony to refer to the way in which the ruling class used religion to maintain their position in society. Gramsci believed that the ruling class can maintain their position without the need of coercion. For example, in the 1920’s-30’s the Catholic churches conservative outlook helped win support for Mussolini’s fascist regime.
Another Neo-Marxist, Maduro, believes that religion, even within Marxism, can actually lead to social change, showing that maybe Marxism isn’t the most useful theory to use to understand religion today as it shows signs of it being a conservative force and it also bringing about social change which contradicts each other and may be the cause of some confusion. Maduro shows that religion can bring about social change with his idea of Catholicism in Latin America and the autonomy of religion. This is where the Catholic priests increasingly criticise the bourgeoisie and acting against the ruling class interests, perhaps in support of the proletariat masses. Showing that religion may not be a tool to control the working class, but a tool that could help them instead to revolt against the ruling class leaders; the oppressors.
The Term Paper on Marxist Theory
Marxist Criticism Marxist Criticism is, not surprisingly, concerned with economic conditions. Marxist Critics are often interested in social class (as feminist critics are interested in gender). They see literature as a "product"--something produced by work, (compare an auto--something produced by factory workers and engineers) sold in a marketplace. They thus can see readers as consumers of ...
Secularisation in northern Europe shows that religions influence over the masses is decreasing. This point goes to show that the Marxists view that religion is a tool used to rule the majority of people is false as its hold over northern Europeans, whose lives were once dominated by religion and instructed word by word by the bible. Therefore the usefulness of Marxists theory in understanding religion is criticised as the effect of religion in Northern Europe is decreasing annually.
Feminists would argue that religion is a patriarchal institution that oppresses woman and reflects and perpetuates this inequality. De Beauvoir believes that religion acts for women in very similar ways to those which Karl Marx suggested religion could act for the oppressed classes. De Beauvoir sees women as exploited and oppressed by religion, religion that is run by men who claim that their authority comes from God; for example, for Christians – man is master by divine right. This divine right means that the fear of God will prevent women from revolting. De Beauvoir also claims that religion creates a false consciousness for females, that their suffering will be rewarded in the next life and their position in society is based on a divine right. Women are fooled into thinking their position is equal to men, when really they are the second sex, or the oppressed. Linking back to Marx we can see how many theories are similar and draw from the same ideas, that women are falsified into thinking that through religion they are equal to men, similar to how the ruling class create a false class consciousness to make the proletariat think they are equal and will be rewarded in the next life in heaven. This shows that Marxist theories of understanding religion today may be true and could be useful to help decode what religion does for our society.
To conclude, we can see through these points and other social theories that Marxists theory of understanding religion today is not very useful. With secularisation showing that the hold religion did have over the people is now fading fast, decreasing religions power over the proletariat and therefore weakening the ruling classes’ power. Feminists draw very similar points from the Marxist theory, with women being oppressed by men – similar to the working class being oppressed by the bourgeoisie. Overall , I believe that the usefulness of Marxist theory in understanding religion today is void and outdated.
The Essay on Women Are Oppressed
“No one else is free while others are oppressed”, states Martin L. King. It is an essential claim that women are oppressed. What is oppression? Oppression is the subjugation by one group to another group. By being oppressed you are being denied your human right to be an equal. Equality should not be an unattainable ideal that is only imagined in a far off place. Equality should be realistic and ...
