The Communist Manifesto
by Karl Marx
'The Communist Manifesto' Summary
The Communist Manifesto is divided into a preamble and four sections, the last of these a short conclusion. The introduction begins: "A spectre is haunting Europe—the spectre of communism. All the powers of old Europe have entered into a holy alliance to exorcise this spectre." Pointing out that parties everywhere—including those in government and those in the opposition—have flung the "branding reproach of communism" at each other, the authors infer from this that the powers-that-be acknowledge communism to be a power in itself. Subsequently, the introduction exhorts Communists to openly publish their views and aims, to "meet this nursery tale of the spectre of communism with a manifesto of the party itself".
The first section of the Manifesto, "Bourgeois and Proletarians", elucidates the materialist conception of history, that "the history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles". Societies have always taken the form of an oppressed majority exploited under the yoke of an oppressive minority. In capitalism, the industrial working class, or proletariat, engage in class struggle against the owners of the means of production, the bourgeoisie. As before, this struggle will end in a revolution that restructures society, or the "common ruin of the contending classes". The bourgeoisie, through the "constant revolutionising of production [and] uninterrupted disturbance of all social conditions" have emerged as the supreme class in society, displacing all the old powers of feudalism. The bourgeoisie constantly exploits the proletariat for its labour power, creating profit for themselves and accumulating capital. However, in doing so the bourgeoisie serves as "its own grave-diggers"; the proletariat inevitably will become conscious of their own potential and rise to power through revolution, overthrowing the bourgeoisie.
"Proletarians and Communists", the second section, starts by stating the relationship of conscious communists to the rest of the working class. The communists' party will not oppose other working-class parties, but unlike them, it will express the general will and defend the common interests of the world's proletariat as a whole, independent of all nationalities. The section goes on to defend communism from various objections, including claims that it advocates communal prostitution or disincentivises people from working. The section ends by outlining a set of short-term demands—among them a progressive income tax; abolition of inheritances and private property; abolition of child labour; free public education; nationalisation of the means of transport and communication; centralisation of credit via a national bank; expansion of publicly owned land, etc.—the implementation of which would result in the precursor to a stateless and classless society.
The third section, "Socialist and Communist Literature", distinguishes communism from other socialist doctrines prevalent at the time—these being broadly categorised as Reactionary Socialism; Conservative or Bourgeois Socialism; and Critical-Utopian Socialism and Communism. While the degree of reproach toward rival perspectives varies, all are dismissed for advocating reformism and failing to recognise the pre-eminent revolutionary role of the working class.
"Position of the Communists in Relation to the Various Opposition Parties", the concluding section of the Manifesto, briefly discusses the communist position on struggles in specific countries in the mid-nineteenth century such as France, Switzerland, Poland and Germany, this last being "on the eve of a bourgeois revolution" and predicts that a world revolution will soon follow. It ends by declaring an alliance with the democratic socialists, boldly supporting other communist revolutions and calling for united international proletarian action—"Working Men of All Countries, Unite!".
Book Details
Language
EnglishOriginal Language
GermanPublished In
1848Author
Karl Marx
Prussia, Stateless
Karl Heinrich Marx was a German philosopher, economist, historian, sociologist, political theorist, journalist and socialist revolutionary. Due to his political publications, Marx became stateless an...
More on Karl MarxFriedrich Engels
Germany
Friedrich Engels sometimes anglicised as Frederick Engels (28 November 1820 – 5 August 1895), was a German philosopher, economist, historian, political theorist and revolutionary socialist. He w...
More on Friedrich EngelsDownload eBooks
Listen/Download Audiobook
- Select Speed
Related books
Sesame and Lilies by John Ruskin
In a world where men are consumed by wealth and women are confined to domesticity, Victorian social critic John Ruskin boldly challenges the status qu...
Animals' Rights Considered in Relation to Social Progress by Henry Salt
In a world where the rights of animals were often dismissed, one visionary thinker dared to challenge the status quo and paved the way for a more comp...
Sabotage by Elizabeth Gurley Flynn
Elizabeth Gurley Flynn was a leading American socialist and feminist. Her book "Sabotage, the conscious withdrawal of the workers' industrial efficien...
The Twilight of the Idols or How to Philosophise with the Hammer by Friedrich Nietzsche
Twilight of the Idols, or, How to Philosophize with a Hammer is a book by Friedrich Nietzsche, written in 1888, and published in 1889. Twilight of t...
Reviews for The Communist Manifesto
No reviews posted or approved, yet...