The Communist Manifesto
Karl Marx and Fredrich Engels
A Book Review
The Communist Manifesto, as the name quite clearly states is the book that defines the bounds, aims and the model of how the communists see the world. The book includes a portion dedicated to describing and explaining the foundation of multiple classes. The manifesto also extends to point out how the world is entangled in, what he calls, a ‘class struggle’
The manifesto opens by openly dividing the population into two broad categories. The ‘Proletariats’ and the ‘Bourgeoisie’. By bourgeoisie he broadly means the industrialists or those whose position puts them at an advantage with the industrial development. The second, the proletariats is the working class. Now the working class is not be confused with farmers or any other section of the society which has a bad economic situation. The proletariats are exclusively limited to the workers of the Industry.
Marx explains how the ever-expanding industry forces the working class or skilled middle class who gradually finds it hard to find other jobs (owing to the industrialization) is being forced to join in with the proletariats. He further goes on to state how the proletariats are being poorly managed and points out their poor living standards and their exploitation by the bourgeoisie in general.
Marx states very clearly that he finds the concept of the State to be nothing more then a, ‘tool of class oppression’ and he finds history to be nothing more than, ‘continues struggle of the different classes’. Marx is also very critical in terms of the normative values of the 19th century Europe and introduces the concepts like, ‘the bourgeoisie concept of family’ which he finds rather disgusting and hopes to abolish in the new system and replace it with the natural concept of family.
He talks about centralized economy to be the epicenter of the whole communist ideology, quoting Marx, ‘abolition of the private ownership’. Marx states that the only way the change will come is through a revolution.
The book also discusses how the Bourgeoisie class came into being from its precursor the feudal class. Marx himself, however, does not find feudalism to be as bad as the bourgeoisie as he sees it as something that is closer to the state of nature. He explains how the industrialization process has forced the feudal class to transform itself into the bourgeoisie or be left out eventually being wiped as a power.
In this book Marx also explains the multiple kinds of Communist Socialist literature that exists in response the multiple types of conditions that exist. He thus explains; Reactionary Socialism, Conservative or Bourgeoisie Socialism and the Critical Utopian Socialism.
Reactionary socialism being the kind of socialism that eventually forms as a response to the continuous exploitation of the proletariat. The revolutionary spirit rises as the result of collectivity of the multiple workers unions that strengthen the proletariat, forcing the bourgeoisie to yield.
Conservative or bourgeoisie Socialism refers to the phenomenon in which some of the members of the bourgeoisie jump into the proletariat struggle deserting their institutions but ultimately gaining a higher rank in the proletariat movement.
The third kind of Communism is the ideal model that is based on the concepts of Saint Simon, Fourier, Owen etc. which introduce the concepts like ‘home colonies’, ‘little Icaria’ or ‘phalansteries’. Marx believed this idea to be far fetched but thought it was something positive to look up to.
The book as a whole is an important document and has been massively influential particularly in shaping the world dynamics after world war II or during the cold war era. The communist manifesto does have its flaws, for instance, while attempting to respond to a genuine argument against socialism quote, ‘It has been objected that upon the abolition of private property, all work will cease, and universal laziness will overtake us’. Responding; Marx declares this a mere, ‘tautology’ and criticizes that if this were true the bourgeoisie system ought to have gone to the dogs.
Thus, not a lot of questions about how the system will actually come to be are answered. However, this document was important in addressing the concerns of a segment of society which had been oppressed by the industrial development. And it is upon its ideology that the revolutions such as those in Russia, China, Cuba and numerous other countries stirred up.
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Submitted by;
Momina Qamar
BS-psychology semester 3rd
Quaid e Azam university Islamabad
