Karl Marx and Communism - Free Essay Example

At one point in time most of us have probably heard the phrase, sharing is caring! Well, one man, by the name of Karl Marx, took that too far and created the governmental system known today as Communism. Communism has many disadvantages like creating dictators, taking motivation away from the people, and making the rich richer with no way to change that. Because of all those reasons, Communism is not a viable political/economic system when compared to capitalism because it creates super inefficient economies. In order to understand how Communism creates inefficient economies, it is important to know its origins as well as how it works. Communism is based on the writings of two German economists, Karl Marx, and Fredrich Engels. The two of them partnered up and wrote the book, The Communist Manifesto which explains, What is Communism? According to Marx and Engels, the many problems in society are due to the unequal distribution of wealth. They believe that in order to create a prosperous and happy society the distinctions between the rich and the poor must be eliminated. Considering that the rich will never voluntarily give up their power/money, the working class, proletariat, must overthrow the capitalist owners, the bourgeoisie. Communism is willing to use violence in order to attain its goals of a classless society. However in order to transition from capitalism, it would take time, and that phase in between is known as socialism. Socialism is where you try to even the distribution of wealth with the endpoint being communism. The means of production which are raw materials, factories, and machines are all socially owned. Communism is the easiest economic system to sell to poor people. The poor can enjoy free meals given to them by the regime, but in exchange, the poor have to slave away for the state, 12 hours a day. Those who were more capable worked in blue collar jobs, but there are no salaries. With no incentives like bonuses, promotions, or overtime pay, nobody is motivated to do their work and efficiency drops. Because of this, there is no reason two work more than what the state tells you to do, life becomes boring and routine. One can not break out of this routine as there is no opportunity to rise in a Communist society because everyone is equal. All Communism does is provide for mans basic needs and doesnt offer a chance to go beyond that to mans wants. All of this leads to the peoples yearning of Capitalism. Many countries have overthrown their Capitalist leaders in an effort to better their country. One such example of this would be in Romania and what happened with Nicolae Ceauescu, the former leader. The people of Romania were sick of communism and his rule so they publically dragged him out and executed him on December 25th, 1989. Today, there are only five Communist countries which are the Peoples Republic of China, Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea, Socialist Republic of Vietnam, Lao Peoples Democratic Republic, and the Republic of Cuba. The fact that there are only five Communist countries can also be used as proof that Communism is not viable. Now that we know about Communism it is important that we understand what Capitalism is and how it works. Capitalism is defined as, an economic and political system in which a countrys trade and industry are controlled by private owners for profit, rather than by the state.Capitalism has its origins in the 16th century when merchants began to trade with foreign countries (mercantilism), and the demand for their products grew so high that it began shaping the market and pricing. Another contributing factor to the rise of capitalism w ould be Europes supply of precious metals increasing. In the 18th Century, England had become a fully industrialized nation which is when Capitalism took full effect. Capitalism is dominated by the free market rather than by the government. Capitalism, in essence, states that Greed is good. In Capitalism owners control the means of production, and it is valued on profit, while in Communism it is valued on its usefulness to the people. In Capitalism, people derive their income from their ownership rather than the government. Because you get your income from ownership, you are motivated to work harder to get more money. Because you work harder there are new innovations and product developments in the market. Capitalism is based on the concept of supply and demand which states that when demand increases the price also increases. Because of this companies make more of the product that is in demand, and since multiple companies are making the product the competition keeps the price affordable and the production efficient. This leads to greater economic growth. The government should only intervene to keep the power in the market balanced, like preventing things like monopolies or oligarchies. Opposition to Capitalism states t hat by nature it is exploitative, and leads to a heavily divided society. It is the complete opposite of Communism which seeks to become a classless society where everyone is equal. Some disadvantages of Capitalism would be that it doesnt provide for those who cant compete, like the elderly, disabled people, and children. Another disadvantage of capitalism is that it ignores environmental issues like pollution and climate change because it makes goods cheaper and more affordable in the short run. This, however, is very damaging to the environment and makes the quality of living very bad. When comparing Communism and Capitalism, it is evident that Capitalism leads to more efficient economies and more innovation in the marketplace. Communism is bound to fail with no motivation to work harder, and no way to climb the ranks and satisfy your own greed. That is why Capitalism is better than Communism.