Marxists criticise the functionalist view of role allocation and "sifting and sorting" arguing that the appearance of meritocracy is nothing but ideology. They argue that the proletariat are persuaded to believe that the rich and powerful reached their positions through their hard work and natural ability rather than because of their privileged birth because this led them to accept inequality as fair. They argue instead that class inequalities and reproduced in the next generation and that the education system plays a key role in this. As such they argue that the myth of meritocracy plays an important part in developing a false class consciousness.