Conflict Theory, Karl Marx, and the Communist Manifesto Essay

Conflict Theory, Karl Marx, and The Communist Manifesto In order to understand Marx a few terms need to be defined. The first is Bourgeoisie; these are the Capitalists and they are the employers of wage laborers, and the owners of the means of production. The means of production includes the physical instruments of production such as the machines, and tools, as well as the methods of working (skills, division of labor). The Proletariat is the class of wage-laborers, they do not have their own means of production, and therefore they must sell their own labor in order to survive. There are six elements to Marx’s view of class struggle; the first is that classes are authority relationships based on property ownership. The second is a†¦show more content†¦With the modern development of industry however the proletariat increased in number and became stronger thereby eventually destroying their bourgeois oppressors. As Marx says, â€Å"What the bourgeoisie, therefore produces, above all, is its own grave-diggers. Its fal l and the victory of the proletariat are equally inevitable† (Marx Engels, 19). Proletarians and Communists The Manifesto then discusses the relationship of the Communists and the proletarians. â€Å"The immediate aim of the Communists is the same as that of all the other proletarian parties: formation of the proletariat into a class, overthrow of the bourgeois supremacy, conquest of political power by the proletariat† (Marx Engels, 20). The primary goal of the Communist and the proletarian is the abolition of private property. Marx also addresses objections to Communism. The first being the proposal to abolish the family, in which Marx replies that yes they do want to abolish the family in order to stop the exploitation children by their parents. The Communist is also criticized for their desire to abolish country and nationality, for which Marx replies, â€Å"workingmen have no country, and we can’t take from then what they don’t have† (Marx Engels, 25). Socialist and Communist Literature In this section, Marx presents three subsets of Socialist and Communist literature. The first subset is Reactionary Socialism. ReactionaryShow MoreRelatedThe Communist Manifesto And Das Kapital1507 Words   |  7 PagesKarl Marx A German philosopher, economist, journalist and revolutionary scientist, Marx was best known for his work in economics. He laid the foundations for today s theories of labor and capital. The Communist Manifesto and Das Kapital were among the most famous of his published works. Born to a middle-class family in Trier, Prussia in 1818, his parents were Jewish, but converted to Christianity in 1816 due to strict anti- Jewish laws. 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