PYQ Vault · Paper 1 · Marx, Gramsci & Arendt
Discuss Karl Marx’s concept of class.
How the answer moves
The flow snapshot — the routes in, the body, the counter-view and the routes out.
Flow snapshot — how the answer moves
Intro routes
R1 class = Marx’s central social category ~ not rank /status but relation to means of production R2 class as a production-relationship → “fixed place in the process of production” → basis of history and revolution
Body flow
relation to means of production ~ bourgeoisie / proletariat ~ three classes in Capital (wages / profit / rent), tied to surplus — class “in itself” (shared position) > class “for itself’ via consciousness ~ organised political force > “history of all… class struggle” > capitalism sharpens haves vs have-nots ~ proletariat abolishes itself + class antagonism
Counter-view
Weber: two-class too simple, layered structure ~ Ambedkar: class insufficient for India, caste shapes relations
Conclusion routes
R1 class = relationship of production that drives history and grounds emancipation routes,:: r; z rR2 Marx's lasting achievement → class as the bridge from economic structure to historical change
Model answer
Handwritten, in the form it would be written in the examination hall.
