Karl Marx, in his conflict theory, identifies society as made up of individuals from different social classes who must compete for resources such as employment, food, and housing. The unequal social structure is maintained by social institutions such as the government and religion who reflect this competition in their unequal structures. In part five his book, Gun Baby Gun: A Bloody Journey into the World of the Gun, Overton describes how guns and conflicts relate to various parties. These are the traders, smugglers, manufacturers, lobbyists, and the free. This part of the book gives an in-depth perspective of why the gun is so popular, and the role it plays in human conflict. In this essay, I attempt to relate Karl Marx’s conflict theory with the experiences of Overton.

Karl Marx divides society into two structures. The base is its economy while the superstructure consists of the government, culture, family, religion and other social structures. Conflict, according to Marx, is the primary means of change in the society. From an economic perspective, conflict exists between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat. The bourgeoisie refers to the capitalist class who own the means of production while the proletariat refers to the working class. These conflicts existed throughout history and he referred to them as class antagonisms. They were as a result of one class dominating the other. At the end of feudalism, the bourgeoisie dominated the proletariat. Marx describes the bourgeoisie as revolutionary as they represented a radical change in the society.

In the advent of industrialization, the bourgeoisie became excessively exploitative towards the working class. This was particularly so in the steel mills which were nicknamed “satanic mills”. People working in these mills were exposed to long working hours, extreme temperature conditions, toxic chemicals and the use of child labor. Marx declared this as the dictatorship of the bourgeoisie or capitalism, a situation where the means of production are owned by individuals as opposed to the government. Previously, there existed some humanity despite the fact that one class dominating the other. There was a relationship between the worker and the product. Under the capitalist society, the only motivation for the worker was to earn wages. The worker’s relationship with his work was no longer human but artificial. Marx uses the word alienation to describe this society. Alienation is the condition where the worker is isolated from work, society and his sense of self. There are four types of alienation; alienation from the product of one’s labor, alienation from the process of one’s labor, alienation from oneself, and alienation from others. These types of alienation mean that the individual has no control over his life. Marx predicts that this would give rise to another revolution led by the working class, giving rise to a new society that is communist in nature hence the collapse of capitalism.

The gun represents a symbol of radical change in the society. As such, many people keep guns in their homes. Gun expos are among the most attended events in the world. The Las Vegas gun show is the largest in the world, occupying 635,00 square feet and 1,600 exhibitors (Overton,2015). In terms of economic might, $17.6 billion worth of military equipment was traded in 2012 out of which firearms consisted $157 million. Overton reports that there are over a billion guns in the world and twelve billion bullets are produced every year. People and countries purchase these weapons to protect themselves but the truth is that they need to protect themselves from change. One of the times when these weapons were used was during the cold war.

The cold war years were characterized by conflict between the capitalist and communist states. Overton describes his experience in Mozambique at the height of the cold war. The Portuguese were leaving the country after realizing the communist ideals had already spread in the country and they had to leave the country. They destroyed cars, poured down concrete walls, and left the country in anarchy. In so doing, they planted the seeds of a civil war that would erupt ten years later. South Africa and Rhodesia feared that Mozambique was becoming too much communist. To prevent this, they formed a guerrilla movement called Renamo comprised of mercenaries who were meant to destabilize Mozambique (Overton, 2015). They had no intention to govern but to destroy the country to the point that it became a failed state. The South African whites blew up roads and other infrastructure and committed atrocities on both children and adults. The peaceful country was now flooded with guns leaving over a million people dead. This is indeed a conflict between classes as Marx had earlier predicted. The South Africans represent the capitalists who were indeed afraid of the change brought about by the communist. To eliminate this threat required decisive action and in this case, destroying anything communist.

The conflict perspective by Karl Marx reflects how the world is in constant conflict. Guns are the symbol of modern-day conflict and Overton describes how these weapons have been used in various conflicts around the world. They were particularly used during the cold war era as communist and capitalist societies engaged in conflict.

References.

Overton, I (2015). Gun Baby Gun: A Bloody Journey into the World of the Gun. London: Harper Collins.