KARL MARX AND MARXISM
“Workers of the world unite – you have nothing to
lose but your chains!”
Marxism
The key to history is economics
The key to economics is class conflict
All of history is the struggle between the
dominant economic class and the
exploited economic class
Superstructure
(everything we
see around us)
The dominant
economic class
The Means of
Production
Key point:
When the means of production
change then everything above
it changes as well!
For example: ancient world (Roman empire) to
feudalism (Middle Ages) to capitalism (Renaissance)
to industrialism (Modern)
The Modern World (circa 1848)
• Capitalism (c.1500)
• Industrial Revolution (c.1750)
Two Classes
• The Bourgeoisie/Middle
Class/Exploiters
• The Proletariat/Urban working
class/Exploited
The Final Stages of History
The Dictatorship
of the Proletariat
Re-education
True
Communism
• Violent overthrow of the Old Order
• One government with absolute power to
remold society
• “From each according to his abilities, to
each according to his needs.”
• How long? Maybe hundreds of years?
• Abolition of all private property
•
•
•
•
No classes
No conflict
No government
No exploitation
Problems with Marxism
Is it true that economics is the key to
history?
The conditions of workers in 1848 vs.
the early (and late!) 20th century
The test of World War One