Definition

Noun: 1. The working class; the class of wage-earners in an industrial society: The proletariat refers to the social class of people who earn their living primarily through selling their labor for wages, typically in manual or industrial work, and who do not own the means of production (such as factories, land, or capital). 2. (In Marxist theory) The class of industrial workers who are exploited by the bourgeoisie (capitalist class): In this specific context, the proletariat is the class whose labor produces wealth but who must sell their labor to survive, seen as the revolutionary agent for social change.

Usage and Examples

• General Usage:

  • The industrial revolution created a vast proletariat in the cities.
  • Policies aimed at improving the living conditions of the proletariat were introduced.

• Marxist/Sociological Context:

  • Marx believed the proletariat would eventually overthrow the bourgeoisie.
  • The book analyzes the consciousness of the modern proletariat.

Advanced Usage

• "The dictatorship of the proletariat": A Marxist concept referring to a transitional state in which the working class holds political power, supposedly to suppress the former ruling class and create a classless society.
  • The theory of the dictatorship of the proletariat was a central tenet of Leninism.

Variants and Related Words

• Proletarian (adj): Of or relating to the proletariat.
  • proletarian revolution
• Proletarian (n): A member of the proletariat.
  • He was a true proletarian, working in the factory since he was sixteen.
• Proletarianize (verb): To turn (a person or group) into proletarians.
  • The process of industrialization served to proletarianize the peasantry.

Synonyms

• Working class: The class of people employed for wages, especially in manual or industrial work.
• Labor force: The body of people available for work.
• Wage-earners: People who work for wages.

Antonyms

• Bourgeoisie: (In Marxist contexts) The capitalist class who own most of society's wealth and means of production.
• Elite: A select group that is superior in terms of ability, wealth, or social status.

Related Idioms and Phrases

• (To be) a member of the proletariat: To belong to the working class.
  • Despite his education, he considered himself a member of the proletariat.
• Proletarian internationalism: The concept that workers of all countries should unite in common cause.
  • The slogan promoted the idea of proletarian internationalism.

Noun

1. a social class comprising those who do manual labor or work for wages
   • there is a shortage of skilled labor in this field