The Battle Of Notions: A Heated Conversation Between The Ideas Of Karl Marx And Adam Smith

THE BATTLE OF NOTIONS: IDEAS OF MARX AND SMITH
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THE BATTLE OF NOTIONS: IDEAS OF MARX AND SMITH
Among the twentieth century controversial figures is Karl Marx and his theories have remained to such a controversy. He is the father of communism and fundamental revolutionary in the society and is the renowned political philosopher. On the other hand Adam Smith is one of the original minds behind ‘economics as a science.’ His thoughts were included in the ‘classical economics’. His thoughts were about how man is supposed to live in the society. The modern capitalist economic society was shaped by his thoughts on market forces and what role the state plays in economics. Both philosophers have been classified in the school of classical economics due to the similarities that are present in their thoughts. Both men differed greatly in their political ideologies. This essay intends to identify some of the strengths and faults in their thoughts by studying their ideologies. Finally, the essay will conclude by explaining why the world is going down the capitalism path and whether it is possible to switch to Marxism.
Both men lived to criticize each other’s work. However, both believed that production was crucial in the growth of an economy. It is with common sense that consumption cannot exist without production. All the things that are man-made do not just pop up out of thin air. There is a process in which the materials are assembled and they are created through machines and people. After the products have been created, then those who want them can go and buy them from where they are available. In general, the economy is broken into two parts; production and consumption. This translates that without production, there is nothing to be consumed in the economy. This is what we are experiencing in our daily lives, there is nothing to be eaten if one cannot acquire and prepare food. There will not be houses if they are not constructed. There will not be products in stores for sale if they are not produced and supplied according to Adam Smith.[Twigg Lauren, “Karl Marx versus Adam Smith” http://rebirthofreason.com/Articles/twigg/Karl_Marx_versus_Adam_Smith.shtml] [Spencer, Pack, "Capitalism as a moral system." Books (1991).]
The production part is where both philosophers differed. According to Marx, production presented trouble in the Capitalism society. According to Marx, in the Capitalism society, production is only meant to benefit those who owns the factors of production. In other words, production was meant to enrich the rich and exploit the poor. In his thoughts, Marx held that in a socialism society, production will occur among the people and it will be aimed at meeting the needs of the individuals. According to Marx, “In production, men not only act on nature but also on one another. They produce only by cooperating in a certain way and exchanging their activities. In order to produce, they into definite connections and relations to one another and only within these social connections and relations does their action on nature take place.” This is where Marx said that production is related to consumption since consumption is the end product of production. These battle revolved around how production was to occur in the society.
In Smith’s proposal on the free market where the producers have the freedom of choosing what to produce and what to charge for it, it will lead to a more efficient and desirable economic outcome for both players in the economy. Both players are supposed to maximize their own benefits. The consumers are supposed to pay for the value they think they will get from the product and producers are supposed to charge more or less what they used to produce the product. According to Smith, this will create equilibrium in the market and there will be limited interventions from the government. In contrast, Marx argued that, workers were to be exploited in this form of economy since it presents more advantages for the rich and disadvantages to the already disadvantaged ones. The rich will continue getting richer and poor poorer. He argued that, the workers are not well positioned to negotiate for better wages and salaries in the capitalist society. This was explained by his ‘labor theory of value’ where he argues that the value of a product has a direct connection to the amount of labor used in producing it.[Patricia, Werhane. "Adam Smith and his legacy for modern capitalism." (1995).] [Gerald, Cohen, "The labor theory of value and the concept of exploitation."Philosophy & Public Affairs (1979): 338-360.]
On their thoughts, two classes emerge, the bourgeoisie and proletariat. According to Marx, Capitalism presented a nature where these two classes were to remain stuck forever in their respective classes. The bourgeoisie class owns the factors of production that dominates the schools, government, bureaucracy, media hence their status in the society will remain unchangeable. On the other hand, the proletariat class does not have any means to compensate for their labor. To solve this problem in the society, Marx suggested that the classes to revolt and create a new social order that removes the differences among the classes. In his proposal, Marx said this will create a collective ownership of the factors of production and will ensure equity in wealth...