Communist Manifesto : Understanding Today 's World

The Industrial Revolution brought about communist ideas that influenced people's perceptions on capitalism and events that helped recognize the faults in societal hierarchy. Karl Marx, a socialist, spoke to a wider audience in addressing the faults within class systems. His stance on the bourgeois was that class struggles did not cease and new forms of oppression and hardship replaced the old ones. Through the exposure of inequality in societal hierarchy, he theorized about a more equal government which appealed to the working class audience. (Doc 4)

While the bourgeoisie had originally served the nobility/monarchy, but they eventually dominated Europe. With this political empowerment came the destruction of the social principles on which previous societies were based.

Communism is a political and economic system that became one of the most powerful forces in the world. The Communist Manifesto was a pamphlet that Karl Marx wrote along with Friedrich Engels, in which Marx expressed his basic ideas. Marx believed the only way to ensure a happy, harmonious society was to put the working class in control. Communist had a long-range goal, which was to create a society that provides equality and economic protection to all. Industrialization is the period of social and economic change that transforms an agrarian society into an industrial society.

Throughout The Communist Manifesto, Marx expresses the political, economic and social turmoil that were present in their society. During this time period, agriculture production was the main occupation. This resulted in a class struggle between the landowners and the serfs who labored the land. A new, manufacturing class emerged from this conflict called the bourgeoisie. Bourgeoisie changed the focus from agriculture to industrialization and commerce. Having “less dexterity and strength [that] is required in manual labor, [helps] modern industry develop” and prosper throughout society (Marx 131). This more proficient way to produce commodities helped the bourgeoisie control global and domestic trade. They eventually reached a point where they were inhibited by the feudal government and could not progress at the original rate they were going. Resulting from this, the French Revolution occurred and the bourgeoisie demolished the aristocracy that was originally present during this primitive time. Unfortunately, this did not resolve the primary

Marx's ideas on labor value are very much alive for many organizations working for social change. In addition, it is apparent that the gap between the rich and poor is widening on a consistent basis. According to Marx, the course of human history takes a very specific form which is class struggle. The engine of change in history is class opposition. Historical epochs are defined by the relationship between different classes at different points in time. It is this model that Marx fleshes out in his account of feudalism's passing in favor of bourgeois capitalism and his prognostication of bourgeois capitalism's passing in favor of proletarian rule. These changes are not the reliant results of random social, economic, and political events; each follows the other in predictable succession. Marx responds to a lot of criticism from an imagined bourgeois interlocutor. He considers the charge that by wishing to abolish private property, the communist is destroying the "ground work of all personal freedom, activity, and independence". Marx responds by saying that wage labor does not properly create any property for the laborer. It only creates capital, a property which works only to augment the exploitation of the worker. This property, this capital, is based on class antagonism. Having linked private property to class hostility, Marx

The Communist Manifesto, originally drafted as, “Manifesto of the Communist Party”, is a pamphlet written by Karl Marx, that in essence reflects an attempt to explain the goals and objectives of Communism, while also explaining the concrete theories about the nature of society in relation to the political ideology. The Communist Manifesto breaks down the relationship of socio-economic classes and specifically identifies the friction between those classes. Karl Marx essentially presents a well analyzed understanding of class struggles and the issues concerning capitalism, the means and modes of production and how those means affect the classes as a whole.

The creation of communism caused horrible outbursts in communities, partings and strong impacts on people. However, people cannot understand the complexities of communism state of government without understanding the basics of what their goals are first. The simple understanding of Communism is that it is leading to a society in which all property is owned publically and each person works and is paid equally with no social classes. “Communism is a distinct political philosophy that will use violent means to capture it’s goal of a classless society.” “Communism is a branch of socialism.

As the bourgeois advanced financially, they also gained political influence. They progressed from a once oppressed class to an independent urban republic. As their political influence increased, certain changes became clear. The bourgeois had “torn away from the family its sentimental veil, and has reduced the family relation to a mere money relation (Marx).” This force eventually grew to the point that it was able to force other nations to conform to its values and methods or suffer extinction. As the bourgeois became richer, the proletarians began to suffer more. The balance of property began to shift even more rapidly than before leaving property “concentrated…in a few hands (Marx).” Eventually, the super-efficient production of the manufacturing economy began to take its toll on the bourgeois as well as the proletarians. More goods were produced due to the cheaper costs and ease of manufacture leading to an over-production of goods (Marxism). Over-production became a serious problem, resulting with widespread unemployment of the proletarians, and threats of a revolution on the horizons.

Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels explains the good parts of the communist system and how it should still apply to the future. They also predicted how the Communist Manifesto can stabilize the class structure without conflict. They talks about how especially through the increase in productivity, the power of the bourgeois class increases. They argues that the social class struggle is the reason for historical developments and if there are no more classes then there is no reason to worry about class antagonism. Karl Marx wrote this to warn about the dangers in capitalism. Through the idea of communism, Marx says that the society would not have to be divided into social classes. Marx is saying that society is split up

In disassociating themselves from dictatorial Russian Communism, many of the democratic socialist parties also moved slowly away from Marxist theory. Communists, however, regarded Marxism as their official doctrine, and it is chiefly under their protection that it spread through the world, although its concepts of class struggle and exploitation have helped to determine other policies of welfare and development in many nations besides those sticking to Communism.[iv]

The Communist Manifesto is a political pamphlet outlining the primary principles and goals of communism along with a comprehensive critique of capitalism. Primary to their argument is the proposition that class struggles and exploitation ultimately fuel

This essay discusses and further investigates three main ideas from the Communist Manifesto. It focuses on how class struggle has shaped history, the revolutionary role of the bourgeoisie and the wealth that is produced by Capitalism.

But not only has the bourgeoisie forged the weapons that bring death to itself; it has called into existence the men who are to wield those weapons—the modern working-class—the proletarians.”2 Marx has introduced the solution to creating his equal society. He believes that the proletarians are capable of overthrowing the bourgeois because of their large population.

The bourgeoisie used politics, new technological developments, and religion to manipulate the economics and to insure their control sustaining their status. In doing this they kept the proletariats salves to the rich helpless against their control. Capital is a social product and only exists in the social systems. It is not personal but a social power and the lower class becomes dependant on the elite for his survival.

Europe was becoming overcrowded and resources were becoming scarce. As a result, the working class grew to become the mass population while the middle and upper classes shrank in size. However, the economic and politic power still rested on the bourgeoisie, not in the proletariats. Because the bourgeoisie had the power, they established a new social order based on the old feudal system. In The Communist Manifesto written by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, it is stated "The modern bourgeoisie society that has sprouted from the ruins of feudal society, has not done away with class antagonisms. It has but established new classes, new conditions of oppression, new forms of struggle in place of the old ones." (Communist Manifesto pg. 244) This means that the bourgeoisie class has imposed a new order of social ranking class like the feudal system, but this time they are the kings and land lords. In this new order, the proletariat class is the feudal, the feudal; the poor; the lower class.