Functionalism and Marxism. A Critical Evaluation Essay

Functionalism and Marxism. A Critical Evaluation During the 18th and 19th centuries, political and industrial revolutions coupled with a philosophical movement which promoted a new scientific way of thinking (`The Enlightenment), heralded the advent of several new scientific disciplines. These social sciences attempted to explain the rapid and fundamental changes which were shattering traditional ways of life in Britain and Europe. Sociology emerged as one of these innovative areas and sought to analyse the nature of society and the complexities within it using collective theories and perspectives. The construction of a sociological perspective can best be illustrated by the application of several fundamental questions, the responses†¦show more content†¦Functionalists seem to suggest that societies have rules of behaviour prior to the existence of its members, therefore leaving the enigma of who decides the functional characteristics of a society if its not the members themselves. This is a problem called reification. Fun ctionalists treat society as a thing by endowing it with the ability to think and act intentionally. The analogous comparison by which the operation of society and the functions of the social institutions is likened to a biological organism, illustrates the idea that all parts of society have their function and are interdependent on each other for the good of society as a whole. Sickness in the living organism would be likened to a loss of social equilibrium, an abnormal state for a society that is normally in balance. Functionalists believe that the balance is achieved through a consensus- the majority of people in society having the same moral values. Marxism however has contradictory views and rejects the idea that society is based on value consensus for the benefit of all. Instead society is acknowledged as being organised to meet the interests of the most powerful groups. The ideas of Karl Marx (1818-1883) suggested that society functions on the basis of continual class conflict, except ironically in times of war. He viewed the economic system as the foundation of society. This infrastructure effects all other areas of society, which are collectively termed as theShow MoreRelatedOutline and Assess the View That Vocational Education Simply Trains Workers for Exploitation.1119 Words   |  5 Pageseducation simply trains workers for exploitation. [50] The idea that vocational education allows workers to be exploited is a view held by Marxism. Vocational education is that which gets an individual ready for the workplace, either through a course directly complimenting a skill, like hairdressing, or that which has a broader area of learning. Whilst functionalism sees a great system underlying vocational education, Marxists have a more cynical view of the idea. 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You get 6 marks for AO1 skills, and 12 marks for AO2 skills. So, weight your answers much more heavily in terms of Analysis, Interpretation, Evaluation and Application. To get full marks for this question, you have to successfully interpret material and apply it to answering the question, and explicitly refer back to the question, make it clear how your discussion is answering the question. ItRead MoreIgnou Eso-11 Free Solved Assignment 20124877 Words   |  20 Pagesand better amenities and living conditions of individuals. Also it gave birth to a spirit of inquiry in the minds of Indian intellectuals who came in contact with western education. Both the social reformists and the conservatives took a fresh and critical look at their own society and culture as a reaction to western interpretation of the same. ================================================================= 4. Is the meaning of family changing in contemporary modern societies? Discuss. 12 Solution:Read MoreOrganisational Theory230255 Words   |  922 PagesUniversity, UK This new textbook usefully situates organization theory within the scholarly debates on modernism and postmodernism, and provides an advanced introduction to the heterogeneous study of organizations, including chapters on phenomenology, critical theory and psychoanalysis. Like all good textbooks, the book is accessible, well researched and readers are encouraged to view chapters as a starting point for getting to grips with the field of organization theory. Dr Martin Brigham, Lancaster University

Charles Dickens Hard Times Essay - 1746 Words

Class systems sadly are an institutional part of society since biblical times and are still prominent in all cultures today. In British society, class systems are still as prevalent as they were in the 19th century, there are seven social classes, ranging from the elite at the top to the extreme poor at the bottom. Typically, in English society social class was always defined by occupation, wealth, and education with an addition of social and cultural classes. Social classes is a prevalent aspect of British society since before recorded history, it was the addition of money, land and title that increased the division of the classes. As the industrial revolution swung into full force, the division of classes strengthened. Social mobility became a common occurrence as society developed and moved forward towards the twentieth century. This holds true in the novel Hard Times, written by Charles Dickens in the Nineteenth century, examines the British class system through examples of so cial relationships and the labor force. (4) Class systems throughout British society are visible in each book of Hard Times. In Book One: Sowing, the first distinctions of class discrepancy are evident in the relationship between schoolmasters and students. Education and educators were deemed higher up in society than most people. The school masters of Coketown, Mr. and Mrs. Chokeumchild, and Mr. Gradgrind. The children who were the stories center focus were Louis, Tom, Sissy, and Bitzer. TheShow MoreRelatedCharles Dickens Hard Times1494 Words   |  6 Pages May 1, 2015 Mr. Johnson Literature Dickens Calls for Desperate Measures in Hard Times â€Å"I want to change the world.† How many times is that line heard from small children, aspiring to be someone who achieves their maximum potential? If a child is asked how they might go about doing so they might respond with an answer that involves a superhero or princess who helps people for the greater good. As one grows and adapts to their surrounding society, the art of seeing the big picture includingRead MoreCharles Dickens Hard Times Essay1717 Words   |  7 Pagesbecame a common occurrence as society developed and moved forward towards the twentieth century. This holds true in the novel Hard Times, written by Charles Dickens in the Nineteenth century, examines the British class system through examples of social relationships and the labor force. (4) Class systems throughout British society are visible in each book of Hard Times. In book one: Sowing, the first distinctions of class discrepancy are evident in the relationship between the schoolmasters andRead MoreCharles Dickens Hard Times971 Words   |  4 PagesIn Hard Times, Dickens presents life philosophies of three men that directly contradict each other. James Harthouse sees one’s actions in life as meaningless since life is so short. Mr. Gradgrind emphasizes the importance of fact and discourages fantasy since life is exactly as it was designed to be. Mr. Slearly exhibits that â€Å"all work and no play† will make very dull people out of all of us. He also proclaims that one should never look back on one’s life and regret past actions. Dickens is certainlyRead MoreHard Times By Charles Dickens1502 Words   |  7 Pagesnovel, Hard Times by Charles Dickens, concentrates on the Gradgrind family; of Mr. Thomas Gradgrind, his daughter Louisa, and son Tho mas Jr. A major theme of friendship is portrayed in the books through the character of Mr. Gradgrind as he struggles with the idea of friendship between other characters. According to the Nicomachean Ethics, by Aristotle, it explains a detailed account of friendship and what it is to be a friend to others. In comparing the character Mr. Gradgrind in Hard Times, to theRead MoreHard Times and Charles Dickens1845 Words   |  8 PagesThe novel Hard Times by Charles Dickens is a fictitious glimpse into the lives of various classes of English people that live in a town named Coketown during the Industrial Revolution. The general culture of Coketown is one of utilitarianism. The school there is run by a man ready to weigh and measure any parcel of human nature . This man, known as Thomas Gradgrind, is responsible for the extermination of anything fanciful and integration of everything pertinent and factual into the young, pliableRead MoreCharles Dickens Hard Times For These Times1074 Words   |  5 Pageselse, only to constantly find yourself memorizing empty facts over and over again? In Hard Times for these Times, Charles Dickens embodies the consequences of an absolutely factual world: blindness, imbalance, and nonfulfillment. Through the convoluted stories of the opposite worlds, Sissy’s journey to becoming a jewel of balance, Louisa’s tragic fight for fulfillment, and the harmonious character Sleary, Dickens defines the urgency for the proportional combination of fact and fancy. Gradgrind’sRead MoreIndustrialization in Hard Times by Charles Dickens1626 Words   |  7 PagesThe industrial revolution was an era of mechanization. During this era, in 1854, Charles Dickens (1812-1870) wrote Hard Times to comment upon the change within society and its effect on its people. Dickens points out the flaws and limitations of this new society in his eloquent and passionate plea on behalf of the working poor (Charles Dickens Hard Times, 2000). The novel shows presents to readers the authors perspective of life during the nineteenth century and makes comments on the central themeRead More Charles Dickens Hard Times Essay1102 Words   |  5 PagesCharles Dickens Hard Times There are a huge variety of characters in Hard Times, ranging from the good to the unnaturally cruel. The novel is full of extremity in its characterisation; cruel, bitter and selfish characters such as Mrs. Sparsit contrast dramatically with characters such as Stephen Blackpool and Rachael, who are benevolent and altruistic. Among the cruellest and most villainous characters in the novel is James Harthouse, who is completely ammoral, and therefore renderedRead MoreAnalysis: Hard Times by Charles Dickens1807 Words   |  7 PagesHard Times as a Social Commentary with Parallels in the Modern Era The novel Hard Times by Charles Dickens is clearly an incitement of the economic and social burden associated with economic and social disparity. The work is set in a small fictional mill town, Coketown, where the challenges of the newly emerging industrial revolution were fundamentally being set at the footsteps of the poor, who had little if any opportunity for upward mobility. During this period the alternatives for those withRead MoreEssay on Charles Dickens Hard Times2066 Words   |  9 PagesCharles Dickens Hard Times The book Hard Times was written in 1854. It was written in weekly instalments in a magazine called Household Words. This is like a normal soap but was weekly. The magazine was owned by Charles Dickens as he was a journalist. The book was written at the time of the Industrial Revolution. This was when factories were being built near major towns and cities such as Manchester, Liverpool and Birmingham. The Industrial Revolution was a time when there were big

Comparison of Wade-Davis Bill to Proclamation of Amnesty free essay sample

Both the Wade-Davis Bill and the Proclamation of Amnesty came about after the civil war as a means to try to kick start the reconstruction process by dealing with the former Confederate states. Both plans accounted for the wrongdoings of the Southerners and the Confederate leaders and went to punish them accordingly but to also act as forgiving pardons in their own ways. While both the bill and proclamation may have used different levels of intensity or different ways or persuasion, they shared a common goal in trying to merge the South back into the Union. The Wade-Davis bill and the Proclamation of Amnesty both had lots of similarities between them that link the two documents together. One of the biggest similarities is the fact that both of them are willing to grant pardons to the people and states of the Confederacy, despite the horrible crimes they had committed. Not only did the documents grant pardons to the people but the Proclamation of Amnesty went as far as to grant a full pardon, â€Å"a full pardon is hereby granted to them†. We will write a custom essay sample on Comparison of Wade-Davis Bill to Proclamation of Amnesty or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Both documents also made the people swear an oath of loyalty to the Union before they are granted the pardon. Both of the documents also withheld their respected pardons from high holding officers of the Confederacy, with the proclamation rejected all persons above kernel in the army and in the bill rejecting only those who had a substantial role in the military of the Confederacy. While both documents tried to use similar means to achieve their goal, they also split in some areas and major differences can be seen. As well as having similarities, the Wade-Davis Bill and the Proclamation of Amnesty also had glaring differences too. One of the most profound differences between the documents was the tone with which they were presented. The Proclamation of Amnesty had a very forgiving tone and was willing to compromise to a certain extent with the people of the Confederacy. The Wade-Davis bill, on the other hand, can be seen as a stricter version of the proclamation as the tone of it seems to be more towards an authoritative stance. It is a more direct ultimatum directed towards the South than the proclamation was. A second noticeable difference between the two documents can be seen in the willingness to compromise. In the Proclamation of Amnesty, Lincoln set fourth his plan on reuniting the South, and soon put forth the idea that only ten percent of a states voter’s were needed to allow it to reenter the Union. Then in the Wade-Davis bill, that number was raised to a staggering five times the amount previously needed and the willingness to compromise goes drastically down in the Wade-Davis bill as it becomes more of an ultimatum than before. Despite all of these differences and similarities between the two documents, both can be seen as the stepping stone between the civil war and the beginning of reconstruction of the South and admittance back into the Union. With many glaring similarities between the two documents it can easily be understood that they both were trying to get the South onboard with reconstruction without being too harsh on them. Both of the documents also had evident differences, despite being written at about the same time with the same goals in mind. Both of the documents were eventually successful in achieving their goals, despite not being to the fullest extent they wanted, but, none the less, both of these documents proved crucial in the early stages of reconstruction.

What About Gloria Steinem free essay sample

II Early Life a. Her father, Leo Steinem, was a traveling antique dealer and her mother, Ruth Steinem, was a reporter for a newspaper called the â€Å"Toledo Blade†, their hometown newspaper. b. Some of her influences were her parents, a few feminists, and her trip to India. c. Her and her sister Susanne moved around a lot and couldn’t go to regular school, so their mother gave them daily lessons. d. She sold her ideas and articles to many magazines and was slowly getting a reputation as a free-lance reporter. e. She was hired by Show magazine to work as a playboy bunny undercover at Hugh Hefner’s Playboy Club. III Qualities and Description of Person a. She is an independent , hardworking, dedicated person, who didn’t get married till the age 63 because she didn’t want to give her independence to a man b. Because of her independence she became one of the leading voices for women’s rights because she wanted equal pay in the work place. We will write a custom essay sample on What About Gloria Steinem or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page c. It was her expose on the playboy bunny club, which was later turned into a movie called â€Å"A Bunny’s Tale†, which added to her fame. IV Contribution to Society a. She is a famous woman’s rights activist because she wanted the same equal rights as men. b. She thought that a way to make society better for women was, as I said before, she wanted the same equal rights as men. c. She helped shaped women’s rights by not stopping till we had the same rights as men. V Conclusion a. I learned because of her, we now have equal pay in the work place and when we get married we don’t have to give our land to our husband, like we had to when Gloria was a kid. b. I want everybody to remember that because of people like her this world, we live in wouldn’t be like it is if she wasn’t born. Report Gloria Marie Steinem was born on March 25, 1934 in Toledo, Ohio. She was a feminist leader, writer, American journalist, and the very first editor of Ms. Magazine. She is currently 76 and is still traveling, writing, and lecturing as much as and like she did 34 years ago. In 1977 she was awarded a Woodrow Wilson Scholarship to study feminism. She also received a Penney-Missouri Journalism award, the Front page and Clarion awards and many more. Gloria’s father, Leo Steinem, was a traveling antique dealer and her mother, Ruth Steinem, was a reporter for a newspaper called the Toledo Blade, their hometown paper. Years later, Ruth suffered from mental illness because she felt lonely when her husband traveled and from the disappointment of having to give up her job. It was too much for Leo, he got divorced and moved to California but still sent a meager pay to Gloria and her mom. Gloria made all the meals, went grocery shopping, and kept the house in shape with little or no help from her mom. A few influences of hers are her parents, other feminist, and her trip to India. Since her and her family moved and lived in a dome-topped trailer and couldn’t go to regular school, she and her sister, Susanne, were given daily lessons by their mother. She sold her ideas and articles to many magazines and was slowly getting a reputation as a free lance reporter. She was hired by Show magazine to work as a playboy bunny undercover at Hugh Hefner’s Playboy Club. She is an independent, hardworking, dedicating person, who didn’t get married till the age 63 because she didn’t want to give her independence to a man. Because of her independence she became one of the leading voices in woman’s rights. It was her expose on the playboy bunny club, which was later turned into a movie called the â€Å"Bunny’s Tale†, which added to her fame. She is a famous women’s rights activist for two reasons: She wanted equal pay and she didn’t want to have to give her property to her husband, basically the same equal rights as men. She thought a way to make society better for women, like I said before, was having the same equal rights as men. She helped society by not stopping or giving up till we had the same rights as men.