2.4: Conflict Theory

Quite different from Functionalism, Conflict is a perspective in which society is viewed as a system characterized by an unequal distribution of goods, resources, and services. Where Structural Functionalism attempts to identify the institutions that function in tandem with each other and highlight a somewhat optimistic view of society, Conflict focuses on how these very institutions create various disparities between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have-nots.’

The work of Karl Marx defines this perspective and introduced through these glasses is a view of the social world that is less just, fair, and equitable than most individuals are led to believe. As such, this view is rather pessimistic—a pessimism that is generated by a critique of Capitalism and its built-in embrace of private property. For Marx, the economic system of Capitalism is the engine behind so much inequality, as, he argues, inequality is such a necessary feature in the pursuit of profit, which in turn is construed as private ownership of otherwise public goods, resources, and services. To explain, Capitalism is designed to ‘capitalize’ on opportunities that will generate profit and wealth. The capitalist is, thus, always seeking to find ways to invest and reinvest capital, which comes at the expense of anyone and anything that can be exploited or taken advantage of in the pursuit of this profit.

To be sure, there is a human cost to these Capitalist pursuits. With such unbridled intentions to seek profitable yields, the ethical treatment of one another is situated in a compromised position, as human relations and the humane treatment of one another is perhaps only second to turning a profit. Rather than identifying ways in which goods, resources, and services can be shared in a more equitable fashion, Capitalism forces us to look out for our best interests first, and maybe only one another secondarily. For this reason, Capitalism as an economic system also permeates other institutions that may not appear to be associated with economics at all. Such institutions as family, marriage, religion, politics, etc., adopt a kind of transactional character that puts profits before people.

According to Marx, as Capitalism is so central to our social world, the type of inequality it generates does not simply operate as an economic system, but it’s actually introduced into all aspects of our lives. To use a technical term from Marx, the “mode of production,” or the way we labor to make items for consumption and purchase, is not just a model for production but also becomes a model for how we live. Along these lines, we encourage competition, winning, exploitation, and success over any experience that nurtures cooperation, accepts the outcome of losing, fosters the fair and just treatment of one another, or even embraces the virtues of failure and the lessons from which something life-enhancing may be learned.

As mentioned above in the explanation of Functionalism, the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade was a major example of how early Capitalism disregarded the lives, liberties, and freedoms of enslaved Africans, and prioritized their exploitation in order to turn a profit at all costs. In that instance, various institutions also fostered the complicity involved in sustaining this system, allowing for this tragedy to thrive—not simply a case of profits over people, but also greed over guilt, hate over compassion, irrational violence over reason, and the like. Today, the Conflict glasses through which we view the social world of race and ethnicity would provide a scene of vast inequality and inequity.