Question

Explain the views of the Socialists on private property with special emphasis on Karl Marx.

Answer 1

Instructions: Keep the focus on the teaching of Karl Marx. Focus on his ideas of communist society, capitalist owners, private property ownership.

Solution:
Karl Marx, a leading socialist argued that industrial society was capitalist in nature. As he pointed out:

• Capitalists owned the capital invested in factories, and the profit of capitalists was produced by workers, but the capitalist owners were only interested in profits.
• The conditions of workers could not improve as long as profit was the main agenda of the private capitalists.
• If Workers wanted to avoid exploitation they needed to overthrow capitalism and private property ownership.
• He was convinced that in a communist society workers would succeed in their struggle against capitalist owners. He also believed that communist society was the natural society of the future.