How useful are Marx ideas to understanding the problems and struggles Essay

How useful are Marx ideas to understanding the problems and struggles of our 21st century - Essay Example According to Marx, the problem of society is rooted in equality between classes. Free trade had unmasked the true picture of society by giving us a clear image of â€Å"brutal exploitation† in the face of civilization. In the 21st century, the picture painted by Marx during his time can still be vividly seen and observed all over the world. If you take a closer look at the big establishments that ruled the industries nowadays, you will notice that these companies and are becoming like dynasties where the top ranking corporate executives lord the place and the lives of the employees. Although learned individuals may argue that employment is but a matter of choice, such choice is not easy to make nowadays for the lack of better opportunities available. This scenario is comparable to the time of landlords and serfs where the farmers don’t really have a choice but to toil in the face of unfair conditions for fear that he/she will lose the land and compromise the survival of his/her family. Much as we would like to view labor in our present time as a form of capital, it is still viewed as a form of commodity that people trade and is subject to market fluctuations of supply and demand thus the continuing antagonism between class of individuals such as the skilled and the unskilled labor. This phenomenon cause the prices of labor in other parts of the world to be cheaper than that in the United States and other developed countries.