Karl Marx Essay -- sociology, marx, positivism

Chose one of sociology’s founding â€Å"figures† and critically assess his or her particular contribution. There are many of sociology's founding figures that have extremely well-built ideas, practices and studies that I could explore, but one renowned philosopher stands out amongst the crowd, and that person is named Karl Marx (1818-1883). In this essay I aim to explore and critically assess his ideas, theories, and studies in his contribution to sociology, and if his ideas, theories and studies are useful to this contribution to sociology. Sociology began in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries in Western Europe. Around this time, the political and economic systems in Europe were changing. Things like the Monarchy, (which was the rule of Kings and Queens) was disappearing, while capitalism was growing rapidly. Different societies began contacting eachother, and the economic markets began developing. Things were most definitely changing, and there was now room for new ideas to bloom. Something that had an enormous impact on the development of sociology was the Enlightenment. ''The Enlightenment was characterised by faith in the ability of human reason to solve society's problems.'' (Chapter 1, Andersen and Taylor , 2008). During the Enlightenment, ideas began to establish themselves and eventually effected sociological studies. Positivism is based on the idea that it is possible to observe social life and establish intricate knowledge about how it works. It says that sociology should only be observed with senses yet the theories of sociology should be observed in a methogical way. Although it does not effect modern sociology, as it does not take into account the fact that some methods do not allow the ideas to be observed... ...3] Boundless. The Marxist Critique of Capitalism. [Online] Available from: https://www.boundless.com/sociology/understanding-economy/economic-systems--2/the-marxist-critique-of-capitalism/ [Accessed on 17 Dec 2013] Chapter XX. Marx K. 1893. Das Kapital. Volume II Progress Publishers. Marx K. 1848. The Communist Manifesto. International Publishing Co. Marx K. 1848. The Victory of the Counter Revolution of Vienna. [Online] November 12th. Available from: http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1848/11/06.htm [Accessed on 17 Dec 2013] H. 1879. Interview with Karl Marx. [Online] January 5th.. Available from: http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/bio/media/marx/79_01_05.htm [Accessed on 17 Dec 2013] sociologytwynham. 2013. Marxist views of the Family [Online]. Available from: http://sociologytwynham.com/2013/06/13/marxist/ [Accessed on 17 Dec 2013] Karl Marx Essay -- sociology, marx, positivism Chose one of sociology’s founding â€Å"figures† and critically assess his or her particular contribution. There are many of sociology's founding figures that have extremely well-built ideas, practices and studies that I could explore, but one renowned philosopher stands out amongst the crowd, and that person is named Karl Marx (1818-1883). In this essay I aim to explore and critically assess his ideas, theories, and studies in his contribution to sociology, and if his ideas, theories and studies are useful to this contribution to sociology. Sociology began in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries in Western Europe. Around this time, the political and economic systems in Europe were changing. Things like the Monarchy, (which was the rule of Kings and Queens) was disappearing, while capitalism was growing rapidly. Different societies began contacting eachother, and the economic markets began developing. Things were most definitely changing, and there was now room for new ideas to bloom. Something that had an enormous impact on the development of sociology was the Enlightenment. ''The Enlightenment was characterised by faith in the ability of human reason to solve society's problems.'' (Chapter 1, Andersen and Taylor , 2008). During the Enlightenment, ideas began to establish themselves and eventually effected sociological studies. Positivism is based on the idea that it is possible to observe social life and establish intricate knowledge about how it works. It says that sociology should only be observed with senses yet the theories of sociology should be observed in a methogical way. Although it does not effect modern sociology, as it does not take into account the fact that some methods do not allow the ideas to be observed... ...3] Boundless. The Marxist Critique of Capitalism. [Online] Available from: https://www.boundless.com/sociology/understanding-economy/economic-systems--2/the-marxist-critique-of-capitalism/ [Accessed on 17 Dec 2013] Chapter XX. Marx K. 1893. Das Kapital. Volume II Progress Publishers. Marx K. 1848. The Communist Manifesto. International Publishing Co. Marx K. 1848. The Victory of the Counter Revolution of Vienna. [Online] November 12th. Available from: http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1848/11/06.htm [Accessed on 17 Dec 2013] H. 1879. Interview with Karl Marx. [Online] January 5th.. Available from: http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/bio/media/marx/79_01_05.htm [Accessed on 17 Dec 2013] sociologytwynham. 2013. Marxist views of the Family [Online]. Available from: http://sociologytwynham.com/2013/06/13/marxist/ [Accessed on 17 Dec 2013]