Introduction
The term alienation in its broader sense means separating or disassociating a person from his attachments in unfriendly manner. In social perspective, it means eliminating the harmony that a person has with his social being. Alienation according to Karl Marx’s theory means separating the man from his social or human nature brought about by the capitalist nature of labor (Wood. 1987). It is a more political as well as economic and social approach that describes the challenges of man in losing control of his life through capitalism. On religious perspective, Karl Marx describes alienation as God’s seizure of human life such that man has no control of himself, yet man seeks to find happiness from religion which is just illusionary and incapable of solving human suffering.
Discussion
Contemporary sociologists have expressed alienation as the loss of control in life of the individual, making him becomes powerless, socially isolated and self estranged. In labor context, the person losses control of his work, see his work as meaningless and he fails to understand himself well as a worker. This means that the social aspect of the human nature is violated making an individual view his work as meaningless.
Marx’s theory of alienation tends to express division of labor as problem that usurps man control of his human nature. Under this division of labor, Marx notes exploitation of man by the capitalists and identifies four elements that encompass economic alienation namely; alienation of man from product of his labor, alienation of man from production, alienation of man from the species human, and alienation of man from other men (wood, 1987).
In alienation of man from product of his labor, the case of objectification comes in with the objects being produced by man being taken away from him by the capitalist, sold and the benefit goes to the capitalist. Thus man has no control on what he produces or application of his labor, which is viewed as a commodity. Alienation of man from production process means that man denounces himself and immerses his whole self into production activity with no fulfillment of his human creativity. In other words, man just works to eke a living and he only feels being himself when not working.
The alienation of man from species-being according to wood (1987), is the basis of all other forms of alienation as production of objects/commodities through a production process and in association with other human being proves the man’s human potential. Deprivation of this species-being leaves man working in a robotic form as the only way he can be viewed important by the capitalist and his human nature is ignored. Alienation from other men means that the relationship of man with other social beings is only related to the work but social human part of it is taken away by the capitalist.
Conclusion
The solution to this problem according to Karl Marx is communism. He suggests removal of the private property ownership and stresses the creation of universal freedom. in this communism, social planning should be enforced whereby all individuals have jointly participate in planning and decision making about production and distribution of products with a more community oriented perspective. He argues that communism brings about humanism, and negation of private property ensures human emancipation and rehabilitation leading to a human society (Lowy, 2003). However, on religion alienation, Karl Marx calls for atheism as a humanism solution that allows man to have more control of his life.
References
Lowy, M. (2003). The theory of revolution in the young Marx. Bolton: Brill.
Wood, J. C. (1987). Karl Marx’s economics: critical assessments. New York: Routledge.