Marx had a very unique way of describing religion as “an opiate of the people” and I can see some truth within this statement. Opium is somewhat of a double edged sword, to some people it is an important drug that can help aid them or even save their lives, and to others it can be a detrimental and addictive drug with negative effects. I think that religion also correlates with the different uses of opium because some people look to some aspects of their religion for help like they do with this medicine, therefore it can be very beneficial. But when one depends on their religion too much it can cause them to depend too much on their beliefs to the point where they may start to feel insecure without it and become too dependent. This leads me to my next point about Marx’s second statement “man makes religion, religion does not make man.”
I both agree and disagree with this statement because I think that it can do both but it depends a lot on the person. I think that back in prehistoric years when religion was first developed man in fact made religion, because they did not have the means to explain certain situations in their lives and did not have anything to believe in. And also a natural part of their lifestyle morphed into different kinds of religions and helped feed into new ones. But I believe at some point religion can make man. Religion does not literally make a person but it can help mold them into the person they are. When one finds a religion that coincides with their lifestyle, they explore it and start to incorporate it into their daily life. This sometimes new lifestyle can help them or they may decide to explore a different set of beliefs. I thought that Marx made some great points, but I believe that they can be interpreted differently based on how a particular person views religion or how large of a role religion plays in their own lives.
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You explained well on the double sides of Marx' opinions! I agree with you about Marx's idea that religion as opium brings negative affect to people because they get addicted to it and religion could eventually mislead people's mind. However, Marx failed to explain further about the positive side of religion that somehow had brought calmness and stability to people and the society.
ReplyDeleteAs the statement of relationship between man and religion, I thought that man does not make religion. In my opinion, religion is more developed than being made. The "made" word is frustrating for me because I feel when he said "man makes religion," it sounds like humans make up some nonsense ideas to persuade themselves, while in fact the ideas through religion usually have some proofs archeologically.
Overall, I like how you described the two of the big ideas in this Marx article. :)
I really like the way you explained both sides of the "opium" argument. I had never thought about how opium could be beneficial.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I disagree with your argument that the person makes the religion. If this truly was the case I think that no two people would practice the same religion because no two people interpret and observe any religion the same way.
I thought your perspective was really interesting overall!
Vivian,
ReplyDeleteYou do a good job of expressing what Marx doesn't quite come out and say; he does think religion is a bunch of made-up nonsense that modern man has outgrown. That's one of the stances that makes him so controversial.