Understanding Historical Change: A Deep Dive into Marx's Theories

This essay provides an in-depth analysis of Karl Marx's theory of history, focusing on his understanding of societal development and the role of economic factors. It explores Marx's concepts of social class, the relations of production, and the impact of capitalism on historical change. The essay examines how Marx viewed historical change as a result of conflicts and contradictions within society, particularly those arising from the mode of production. It discusses the importance of psychology and economics in shaping social history and highlights Marx's stages of historical development, from primitive communism to feudalism and the rise of capitalism. The conclusion emphasizes the significance of Marx's theories in understanding social perspectives related to history and the transformations that societies undergo.

Running head: APPLIED THEORIES
Applied Theories
Name of the Student
Name of the university
Author Note

1APPLIED THEORIES
Introduction
The discussion for the following essay is the Marx’s account of history. Karl Marx has
been one of the greatest political figures and reformers and philosophers who through his works
have revolutionized the Russian and world history at the same time. At the Karl Marx, the world
needed a world of history and he knew he had to provide it because he understood the problems
within the world and the revolutionaries (Samuel 2016). In this context, Karl Marx had brought
out his new theory of History in his preface to A Contribution to the Critique of Political
Economy in the year 1859.
New theory of history
The topics Marx had chosen to deal with were related to the social class and the relation
with the people by means of production. He described that men had to enter into social relations
which are definite. These relations are created in relation to the social production. The economic
structure of the society is built around the totality of the relations of production. These things are
very much relevant when one discusses about the social relations and its connectivity with
history (Resnick and Richard 2013). The production that the material life gives is in close
relation with the social, political and intellectual lives of the human beings. Marx had also
asserted the fact of the importance of psychological consciousness in the lives of the human
beings. The people can understand about these things in the context of the social class only
(Resnick and Richard 2013).
Marx has discussed that historical change in the society can only occur in the context of
the conflict and contradiction among the social people and their relations (Ritzer and Jeffrey
2017). Marx had depicted in his description that at a certain time of the development, the

2APPLIED THEORIES
material production forces meet with conflicts and contradictions with the society on the basis of
the current relations regarding to the productions. The era of the social revolution begins at a
time when the relations with the productive forces of the society turn to their fetters (Ritzer and
Jeffrey 2017)
Importance of psychology and economics
There is a huge importance of psychology and economics in the context of the social
history and its change (Rabin 2013). Marx has described that when one studies about the social
and moral transformations, one should always keep in mind the distinction between the material
transformations of the economic conditions of production. There are several parameters that can
identify these economic conditions like legal, political, religious, artistic and philosophic
regimes. The social change becomes clear when the people become conscious of those conflicts
and they fight to establish their own viewpoints. These economic changes gradually lead to the
overall transformation of the overall infrastructure of the society (Rabin 2013).
Marx has said time and again that the economics should not be neglected in these issues
because he has spent a large time of his life in the British Library while collecting the economic
data about the social changes that influence the historical changes as well. He exclaimed that any
of the social orders cannot be destroyed if the productive sources in the society have been
properly developed (Bloch 2013). He said that new superior relations could be developed in the
social changes in the historical contexts. However, the older relations regarding to production
cannot be replaced by the newer ones in terms of production. The nature of the mankind is to set
such tasks that can be done only. It has b3en found in this context that the problems can be arisen
only when the material solutions for the problematic condition will be present (Bloch 2013).

3APPLIED THEORIES
The rise of Capitalism
It has been argued by Marx that the capitalism can do much harm to the society while it
can bring in new changes as well (Acemoglu and James 2015). He has considered that after
socialism, the capitalism is at the advent of emerging as the new controlling system in the society
and has the ability of influencing the society at a larger level. The revolutionary transformation
into socialism is at the horizon with the advent of capitalism (Acemoglu and James 2015). Karl
Marx has also asserted the fact that the several ideologies like Asiatic, ancient, feudal and the
modern bourgeois classes have shown several ways to amend the social conditions by a huge rate
and pushing the economic development of the society. He described the mode the bourgeois
class followed over the years for production in the social context was an antagonistic one. This
antagonistic view is not the kind of individual antagonism but it is the one that rises from the
individual social condition existence of the human beings. The contradictory part in this is that
the fact that productive forces that are developed within the bourgeois society also sets up the
material conditions for the solution of antagonism (Debord 2012).
Stages of history
In his writings, Karl Marx has shown the several things in the depiction of history in the
context of social revolution. He had exclaimed at the beginning of the each stage a new class
would be born in the society and this would bring a downfall for the society (Berlin 2013).
However, this downfall cannot be depicted as something negative but it should gain the mankind
a huge share of benefit in the progress of it. These things or especially the changes would bring
in class conflicts among the people (Berlin 2013). In the first stage (primitive communism) there
are three aspects such as shared property, hunting and gathering and proto-democracy. In the

4APPLIED THEORIES
second stage (slave society) the social production aspects are related to class, statism, agriculture,
democracy and authoritarianism and private property. The third stage is called the feudalism
where the most important aspects are aristocracy, theocracy, hereditary classes and nation-state
(Berlin 2013).
Conclusion
This essay can be concluded by saying that Karl Marx has depicted several social
perspectives related to history and he has showcased the initial stages of change of the social
history. The social history is very much subject to change and the different stages are there
through which the transformations take place. These various aspects are very much important to
connect the changes in social history so the theory of history of Karl Marx is extremely
important in this regard as well.

5APPLIED THEORIES
References
Acemoglu, Daron, and James A. Robinson. 2015 "The rise and decline of general laws of
capitalism." The Journal of Economic Perspectives 29, no. 1 (2015): 3-28.
Berlin, Isaiah. 2013 Karl Marx. Princeton University Press.
Bloch, Maurice. 2013. Marxism and anthropology: the history of a relationship. Routledge.
Debord, Guy. 2012. Society of the Spectacle. Bread and Circuses Publishing.
Rabin, Matthew. 2013 "An approach to incorporating psychology into economics." The
American Economic Review 103, no. 3 (2013): 617-622.
Resnick, Stephen A., and Richard D. Wolff. 2013. Class theory and history: Capitalism and
communism in the USSR. Routledge.
Ritzer, George, and Jeffrey Stepnisky. 2017 Modern sociological theory. SAGE Publications.
Samuel, Raphael, 2016 ed. People's History and Socialist Theory (Routledge Revivals).
Routledge.