NATIONAL TEACHERS INSTITUTE

POST GRADUATE DIPLOMA IN EDUCATION

DEPARTMENT OF MATHEMATICS

PRESENTATION ON CONFLICT PERSPECTIVE

SUBMITTED TO:
MRS. GAMDE

APRIL, 2024
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 GROUP MEMBERS

S/N NAME SIGN SCORE

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INTRODUCTION:

The conflict theory, suggested by Karl Marx, claims society is in a state of perpetual
conflict because of competition for limited resources. It holds that social order is
maintained by domination and power, rather than consensus and conformity. According
to conflict theory, those with wealth and power try to hold on to it by any means
possible, chiefly by suppressing the poor and powerless. A basic premise of conflict
theory is that individuals and groups within society will work to maximize their own
benefits. Although Karl Marx is mostly known for founding what became known as
socialism, his work was prevalent in numerous fields of economy, philosophy, and even
history. Conflict theory is one such area in which Marx developed, and one in which his
ideas are still influential to this day.

Conflict theory states that tensions and conflicts arise when resources, status, and
power are unevenly distributed between groups in society and that these conflicts
become the engine for social change. In this context, power can be understood as
control of material resources and accumulated wealth, control of politics and the
institutions that make up society, and one's social status relative to others (determined
not just by class but by race, gender, sexuality, culture, and religion, among other
things).

The conflict theory has been used to explain a wide range of social phenomena,
including wars and revolutions, wealth and poverty, discrimination and domestic
violence. It ascribes most of the fundamental developments in human history, such as
democracy and civil rights, to capitalistic attempts to control the masses rather than to a
desire for social order. The theory revolves around concepts of social inequality in the
division of resources and focuses on the conflicts that exist between classes.

Many types of conflicts can be described using conflict theory. Some theorists, including
Marx, believe that inherent societal conflict drives change and development in society.

CLASSES OF CONFLICTS

Marx’s conflict theory focused on the conflict between two primary classes. Each class
consists of a group of people bound by mutual interests and a degree of property
ownership, often supported by the state. The bourgeoisie represents the members of
society who hold the majority of the wealth and means. The proletariat includes those
considered working class or poor. With the rise of capitalism, Marx theorized that the
bourgeoisie, a minority within the population, would use their influence to oppress the
proletariat, the majority class. This way of thinking is tied to a common image
associated with conflict theory-based models of society; adherents to this philosophy
tend to believe in a "pyramid" arrangement in which a small group of elites dictates
terms and conditions to the larger portion of society, as a result of outsized control over
resources and power.

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Uneven distribution within society was predicted to be maintained through ideological
coercion where the bourgeoisie would force acceptance of the current conditions by the
proletariat. The thinking goes that the elite would set up systems of laws, traditions and
other societal structures in order to further support their own dominance while
preventing others from joining their ranks. Marx further believed that as the working
class and poor were subjected to worsening conditions, a collective consciousness
would bring inequality to light and potentially result in revolt. If conditions were
subsequently adjusted to address the concerns of the proletariat, the conflict circle
would eventually repeat.

CONFLICT THEORY ASSUMPTIONS

In current conflict theory, there are four primary assumptions which are helpful to
understand: competition, revolution, structural inequality, and war.

Competition

Conflict theorists believe that competition is a constant and, at times, overwhelming

factor in nearly every human relationship and interaction. Competition exists as a result
of the scarcity of resources, including material resources like money, property,
commodities, and more. Beyond material resources, individuals and groups within a
society also compete for intangible resources as well. These can include leisure time,
dominance, social status, sexual partners, and many other factors as well. Conflict
theorists assume that competition is the default, rather than cooperation.

Revolution

Given conflict theorists' assumption that conflict occurs between social classes, one
outcome of this conflict is a revolution. The idea is that change in a power dynamic
between groups does not happen as the result of adaptation. Rather, it comes about as
the effect of conflict between these groups. In this way, changes to a power dynamic are
often abrupt and large in scale, rather than gradual and evolutionary.

Structural Inequality

An important assumption of conflict theory is that human relationships and social

structures all experience inequalities of power. In this way, some individuals and groups
inherently develop more power and reward than others. Following this, those
individuals and groups that benefit from a particular structure of society tend to work
to maintain those structures so as to retain and enhance their power.

War

Conflict theorists tend to see war as either a unifier or as a cleanser of societies. In

conflict theory, war is the result of a cumulative and growing conflict between
individuals and groups and between whole societies. In the context of war, a society

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may become unified in some ways, but conflict still remains between multiple societies.
On the other hand, war may also result in the wholesale end of society.

MARX’S VIEWS ON CAPITALISM

Marx viewed capitalism as part of the historical progress of economic systems and
believed that it was rooted in commodities, meaning things that are purchased and sold.
For example, he believed that labor is a type of commodity. Because laborers have little
control or power in the economic system (because they don’t own factories or
materials), their worth can be devalued over time. This can create an imbalance
between business owners and their workers, which can lead to social conflicts. He
believed these problems would eventually be fixed through a social and economic
revolution.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

 Conflict theory focuses on the competition between groups within society over
limited resources.
 Conflict theory views social and economic institutions as tools of the struggle
between groups or classes, used to maintain inequality and the dominance of the
ruling class.
 Marxist conflict theory sees society as divided along lines of economic class
between the proletarian working class and the bourgeois ruling class.
 Later versions of conflict theory look at other dimensions of conflict among
capitalist factions and between various social, religious, and other types of
groups.

ORIGIN

“The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles. Freeman and
slave, patrician and plebeian, lord and serf, guild-master and journeyman, in a word,
oppressor and oppressed, stood in constant opposition to one another, carried on an
uninterrupted, now hidden, now open fight, a fight that each time ended, either in a
revolutionary re-constitution of society at large, or in the common ruin of the
contending classes.” Karl Marx & Friedrich Engels in The Communist Manifesto, 1848.

The classical phrase above says a lot about how Marx viewed the world. Take away
some old words and replace them with their modern versions, and you end up with a
vision that’s still shared by many people. You don’t need to look farther than the Occupy
movement which protested against the richest 1%, or the anti-austerity movements
prevalent in many parts of Europe. But the origins of these ideas go back a long time.

Protests during the Occupy movement led to massive friction between different social
classes.

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Conflict theory originated in the work of Karl Marx, who focused on the causes and
consequences of class conflict between what was then called the bourgeoisie (the
owners of the means of production and the capitalists — basically the rich people) and
the proletariat (the working class and the poor).

Focusing on the economic, social, and political implications of the rise of capitalism in
Europe, Marx theorized that this system, premised on the existence of a powerful
minority class (the bourgeoisie) and an oppressed majority class (the proletariat),
created class conflict because the interests of the two were at odds and resources were
unjustly distributed among them.

Within this system, an unequal social order was maintained through ideological
coercion which created consensus and acceptance of the values, expectations, and
conditions as determined by the bourgeoisie. In other words, the rich tricked the poor
into accepting a deal that was bad for them, using ideological tricks.

Marx theorized that the work of producing consensus was done in the “superstructure”
of society, which is composed of social institutions, political structures, and culture, and
what it produced a consensus for was the “base,” the economic relations of production.

Conflict theory states that tensions and conflicts arise when resources, status, and
power are unevenly distributed between groups in society and that these conflicts
become the engine for social change. In this context, power can be understood as
control of material resources and accumulated wealth, control of politics and the
institutions that make up society, and one's social status relative to others (determined
not just by class but by race, gender, sexuality, culture, and religion, among other
things).

EVOLUTION OF CONFLICT THEORY

Many social theorists have built on Marx's conflict theory to bolster it, grow it, and
refine it over the years. Explaining why Marx's theory of revolution did not manifest in
his lifetime, Italian scholar and activist Antonio Gramsci argued that the power of
ideology was stronger than Marx had realized and that more work needed to be done to
overcome cultural hegemony, or rule through common sense. Max Horkheimer and
Theodor Adorno, critical theorists who were part of The Frankfurt School, focused their
work on how the rise of mass culture--mass produced art, music, and media--
contributed to the maintenance of cultural hegemony. More recently, C. Wright Mills
drew on conflict theory to describe the rise of a tiny "power elite" composed of military,
economic, and political figures who have ruled America from the mid-twentieth century.

Many others have drawn on conflict theory to develop other types of theory within the
social sciences, including feminist theory, critical race theory, postmodern and
postcolonial theory, queer theory, post-structural theory, and theories of globalization
and world systems. So, while initially conflict theory described class conflicts

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specifically, it has lent itself over the years to studies of how other kinds of conflicts, like
those premised on race, gender, sexuality, religion, culture, and nationality, among
others, are a part of contemporary social structures, and how they affect our lives.

MARX'S CONFLICT THEORY

Conflict theory originated in the work of Karl Marx, who focused on the causes and
consequences of class conflict between the bourgeoisie (the owners of the means of
production and the capitalists) and the proletariat (the working class and the poor).
Focusing on the economic, social, and political implications of the rise of capitalism in
Europe, Marx theorized that this system, premised on the existence of a powerful
minority class (the bourgeoisie) and an oppressed majority class (the proletariat),
created class conflict because the interests of the two were at odds, and resources were
unjustly distributed among them.

Within this system an unequal social order was maintained through ideological coercion
which created consensus-- and acceptance of the values, expectations, and conditions as
determined by the bourgeoisie. Marx theorized that the work of producing consensus
was done in the "superstructure" of society, which is composed of social institutions,
political structures, and culture, and what it produced consensus for was the "base," the
economic relations of production.

Marx reasoned that as the socio-economic conditions worsened for the proletariat, they
would develop a class consciousness that revealed their exploitation at the hands of the
wealthy capitalist class of bourgeoisie, and then they would revolt, demanding changes
to smooth the conflict. According to Marx, if the changes made to appease conflict
maintained a capitalist system, then the cycle of conflict would repeat. However, if the
changes made created a new system, like socialism, then peace and stability would be
achieved.

Main assumptions

Conflict theorists believe that competition is a constant and, at times, an overwhelming

factor in nearly every human relationship and interaction. Competition exists as a result
of the scarcity of resources, including material resources like money, property,
commodities, and more. Whenever there is an imbalance, a shift of power, or something
that disrupts the fragile equilibrium between different social classes, a crisis can
emerge.

Larger entities such as governments or companies seek to prevent or manage conflict

by reallocating resources and distributing goods. Progressive taxes, minimum wages,
social assistance — in conflict theory, these are all done not for the welfare of the
people, but rather to reduce conflict.

Beyond material resources, individuals and groups within a society also compete for
intangible resources as well. These can include leisure time, dominance, social status,

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sexual partners, and many other factors. Conflict theorists assume that competition is
the default, rather than cooperation.

Given conflict theorists’ assumption that conflict occurs between social classes, one
outcome of this conflict is a revolution. The idea is that change in a power dynamic
between groups does not happen as the result of adaptation. Rather, it comes about as
the effect of conflict between these groups. In this way, changes to a power dynamic are
often abrupt and large in scale, rather than gradual and evolutionary.

An important assumption of conflict theory is that human relationships and social

structures all experience inequalities of power.

In this way, some individuals and groups inherently develop more power and reward
than others. Following this, those

individuals and groups that benefit from a particular structure of society tend to work
to maintain those structures so as to retain and enhance their power.

Conflict theorists tend to see war as either a unifier or as a cleanser of societies. In

conflict theory, war is the result of a cumulative and growing conflict between
individuals and groups and between whole societies. In the context of war, a society
may become unified in some ways, but conflict still remains between multiple societies.

On the other hand, war may also result in the wholesale end of society.

GLOSSARY

1. Conflict theory: a theory that examines society as a competition for limited

resources
2. Bourgeoisie: those who owned the means of production (i.e. factory owners in
the Industrial Revolution)
3. Proletariat: those who labor in the means of production (workers) and who do
not possess or control capital, as the bourgeoisie does
4. Class consciousness: awareness that one is a proletarian, a worker, and has an
understanding of solidarity in a class struggle against the bourgeoisie false
consciousness: proletarians are unable to identify and understand their own
class position and exploitation
5. Double consciousness: a term used to describe an individual whose identity is
divided into several facets
6. Power elite: the dominant individuals and groups within the military, business
world, governments, and other institutions who are at the top of the power
hierarchy

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 REFERENCES

1. Dahrendorf, Ralph. (1959). Class and Class Conflict in Industrial Society. Stanford:
Stanford University Press.
2. Foucault, Michel. (1975). Discipline and Punish. London: Allen Lane. Giddens,
Anthony. (1976). New Rules of Sociological Method. Cambridge: Polity Press.
3. Giddens, Anthony. (1979). Central Problems in Social Theory, London: MacMillan.
4. Lenski, Gerhard. (1966) (Reprint 1984). Power and Privilege: A Theory of Social
Stratification. North Carolina: University of North Carolina Press.
5. Mills, C Wright. (1956). The Power Elite. New York: Oxford University Press. Pareto,
6. Vilfred. (1916) (Reprint 1963). A Treatise on General Sociology. New York: Dover.
Poulantzas. (1975). Classes in Contemporary Capitalism. London: New Left Books.
7. Ritzer, George (ed.). (1990). Frontiers of Social Theory: The New Synthesis. New
York: Columbia University Press. Scott, John. (2001). Power. Cambridge: Polity
Press.