classconscious

Classconscious, often written class-conscious, refers to the condition or state of being aware of one's own social class and its implications within a capitalist society. It encompasses recognizing shared interests with others who occupy the same class position and the potential for collective political action to advance those interests. In Marxist theory, class consciousness is linked to the transition from seeing oneself as an individual worker to understanding one's relationship to the means of production and the wider class structure.

The concept originated with Karl Marx and was developed by Friedrich Engels. Marx distinguished between a class-in-itself (a class defined by objective relations) and a class-for-itself (a class that acts in concert for common interests). Classconsciousness, in this framework, arises through social experience, organization, and struggle, and it is often reinforced by labor unions, political parties, and education. The idea is contrasted with false consciousness, whereby dominant ideologies obscure exploitation and prevent collective action.

In practice, classconsciousness is contested. Critics, including Weber and later cultural theorists, argue that class cannot be understood solely through economic position, and that status, culture, and habitus shape life chances. Some contemporary analyses emphasize intersecting identities, globalization, and precarious work as factors that complicate or diffuse class awareness.

Today, discussions of classconscious persist in labor movements, democratic socialist thought, and critical theory, where it is used to analyze solidarity, political strategy, and social change. See also class struggle, class-for-itself, false consciousness, proletariat.