In
Marxist theory,
human society consists of two parts: the
base (or
substructure) and
superstructure; the base comprises the
forces and
relations of production—employer–employee work conditions, the technical
division of labour, and property relations—into which people enter to produce the necessities and amenities of life. These relations determine society’s other relationships and ideas, which are described as its superstructure. The superstructure of a society includes its
culture,
institutions, political
power structures,
roles,
rituals, and
state. The base
determines (conditions) the superstructure, yet their relation is
not strictly causal, because the superstructure often influences the base; the influence of the base, however, predominates. In
Orthodox Marxism, the base determines the superstructure in a one-way relationship.