Karl Marx (1818-1883) was
one of the most influential political philosophers who propounded the ideology
and theory of communism. His radical ideas on class struggle and historical
materialism have changed and guided many revolutions. His ideologies of
communism and Marxism have inspired the foundation of many communist regimes.
Karl Marx was born in Trier
in 1818 in Germany and his parents were of Jewish ancestry. But due to
contemporary laws prohibiting Jews,his father a lawyer converted to Christianity.
Initially, Karl Marx was also a Christian but later he became an atheist. Marx
studied law in Bonn and Berlin and then he obtained his doctorate in Philosophy.
After completing his doctorate in 1841 Marx began looking for an academic job but
his radical ideas and views were not accepted. He turned to journalism and
rapidly involved himself in political and social issues. Karl Marx met
Friedrich Engels and it was at this point in time that Marx began to consider
communist theory.
Karl Marx wrote and
published many books like the Communist Manifesto, Das Kapital, and the German ideology.
The Communist Manifesto jointly written with Engels is his most widely read work.’ The
German ideology ‘also co-authored with Engels in 1845 is an outline of the
class struggle and his theory of history. The Das Kapital criticizes the
capitalist mode of production and offers views on historical materialism and the dictatorship
of the proletariat.
In the 19th
century a series of republican revolts had taken place in Italy, Germany,
France and the Austrian empire against the European monarchies. Marx’s ideas of
communism and his revolutionary ideas inspired these revolutions. Due to his
radical political beliefs and his association with these revolutions, Marx was
exiled and he went to London. Marx believed in the ideology of the working
classes i.e. The proletariat who will one day rise up against the bourgeoisie (capitalist
class) and overthrow the capitalist system and replace it with communism.
After this supposed
revolution which Marx assumed, in the beginning, a violent phase known as the
dictatorship of the proletariat would start in which the working classes would
own the means of production and all modes of production such as land, bank, and
factories would be collectively owned. Marx was deeply disturbed by the concentration
of wealth in the hands of the capitalist class. Marx saw capitalism as playing a
dominant role in eliminating feudalism which was the social system in medieval
Europe.
In history, Marx advocated
the theory of historical materialism in which he argues history has been shaped
by material conditions rather than ideals. Historical materialism asserts that
the modes of production of the material conditions of a society are the main
indicator by which a society is organized. Marx was of the view that from the
beginning of human civilization history has been determined by class struggles
and that the economic modes of production which include primitive
communism, slave society, feudalism, and capitalism were based on the relationship
between the ruling class and a class of
slaves. For example, feudalism was based on the relation between nobles and serfs. In religion, Marx was of
the view that religion is the opium of the masses and the sigh of the oppressed.It
means that oppressed people turn to religion and that all modern religions are
the product of exploitation by the bourgeoisie class(capitalists). Karl Marx did
not believe in any religion and identified himself as an atheist.
The Marxist ideology of
communism gave inspiration to the Russian revolution of 1917 in which the
Bolsheviks under Vladimir Lenin overthrew the autocratic Tsarist regime and replaced
it with the Soviet Union. Karl Marx’s principles
of communism have also guided the People’s Republic of China which is a
communist nation. Mao Zedong in particular believed in the ideology of the working
classes and he was deeply influenced by Karl Marx.
Today Karl Marx remains
the most prominent of all political thinkers and his criticism of capitalism
and its eventual replacement with communism has become the focal point of most
political discussions. His views on class struggle and revolution of the
working classes have inspired many revolutions.
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