class conflict
Workers versus owners
Class conflict is tension or struggle between social classes with opposing economic interests—typically workers against owners, or the poor against the wealthy.
Marxist theory places class conflict at the center of historical change, viewing it as the engine driving societies from one economic system to another.
The term appears in political and sociological analysis: Class conflict intensified during the industrial revolution.
Also called class struggle or class warfare.
Dominant group's control
- dominanceSuperior influence over others
- subjugationForcing into submission
- exploitationSelfish use of others
- oppressionUnjust exercise of power
ruling elite · bourgeoisie · proletariat · landlord · tenant · employer · worker · master
Forceful impact or stoppage
- boycottOrganized economic protest
- protestPublic expression of disapproval
- demonstrationPublic display of opinion
- picketingOrganized protest outside workplace
barricades · resistance · riot · agitation · labor movement · trade union · solidarity · walkout
Division into distinct levels
- materialismPrioritizing goods over spirit
- ideologyStructured belief framework
- superstructureConstruction above the base
- baseSupporting bottom structure
alienation · false consciousness · antagonism · means of production · surplus value · capital · Gramsci · Weber
Class-based revolutionary philosophy
- LeninismVanguard-led revolutionary doctrine
- BolsheviksLenin's revolutionary party
- uprisingOrganized resistance to power
- insurrectionViolent uprising against authority
overthrow · guillotine · communism · socialism · anarchism · radicalism · czarism · feudalism
Economic inequality measure
- disparityMeasurable difference between things
- povertySevere lack of resources
- affluenceAbundance of money
- privilegeExclusive right or benefit
discrimination · exclusion · socioeconomic · underprivileged · stratification · caste · ghettoization · redlining
hegemony
Dominant group's control
- dominanceSuperior influence over others
- subjugationForcing into submission
- exploitationSelfish use of others
oppression · ruling elite · bourgeoisie · proletariat · landlord · tenant · employer · worker · master · servant
strike
Forceful impact or stoppage
- boycottOrganized economic protest
- protestPublic expression of disapproval
- demonstrationPublic display of opinion
picketing · barricades · resistance · riot · agitation · labor movement · trade union · solidarity · walkout · sit-in
stratification
Division into distinct levels
- materialismPrioritizing goods over spirit
- ideologyStructured belief framework
- superstructureConstruction above the base
base · alienation · false consciousness · antagonism · means of production · surplus value · capital · Gramsci · Weber · cultural capital
Marxism
Class-based revolutionary philosophy
- LeninismVanguard-led revolutionary doctrine
- BolsheviksLenin's revolutionary party
- uprisingOrganized resistance to power
insurrection · overthrow · guillotine · communism · socialism · anarchism · radicalism · czarism · feudalism · serfdom
wealth gap
Economic inequality measure
- disparityMeasurable difference between things
- povertySevere lack of resources
- affluenceAbundance of money
privilege · discrimination · exclusion · socioeconomic · underprivileged · stratification · caste · ghettoization · redlining · gentrification
- soap operassoap opera, telenovela, melodrama, cliffhanger, amnesia
- social classstratum, bourgeoisie, proletariat, elite, ranks
- social classesnobles, aristocrats, peasants, elite, elites
- communismMarx, Marxism, Leninism, Lenin, proletariat
- socialismMarxism, communism, proletariat, bourgeoisie, communal ownership
- sociologysocial structure, social institutions, social norms, social mobility, socialization
class conflictsocial harmony
Peaceful coexistence among people
social cohesion · corporatism · social compact · national unity · social integration
class conflictfunctionalism
Theory emphasizing purposes and roles
class, clash, conflict, classical, clashing, classified, classify, classroom, conflicting