Which term refers to the owners of the means of production?

• A. Proletariat
• B. Capitalist class
• C. Bourgeoisie
• D. Peasantry

Answer: (B)

Ownership of the means of production identifies a social class—the capitalist class. In this framework, production is organized around capital—factories, land, machinery, and other resources—and those who own these assets hire workers to operate them. The defining dynamic is that the owners capture surplus value produced by labor, rather than earning it through labor themselves. That’s why the term “capitalist class” is used to describe them; it emphasizes ownership of capital and control over production. The related term “bourgeoisie” labels this same group in classic Marxist terms. The other groups, like the proletariat (workers) and the peasantry (smallholders), do not own the major means of production.