noun
- members of the working class, especially industrial workers who own no property and must sell their labor to survive
Usage: political/economic term; often used in Marxist theory
Examples
- Marx wrote extensively about the struggles of proletarians in industrial society.
- The revolution was led by proletarians demanding better working conditions.
- Factory proletarians organized strikes to protest low wages.
- The political party claimed to represent the interests of proletarians.
- Many proletarians lived in crowded tenements near the factories.
- The economist studied how proletarians were affected by automation.