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"A spectre is haunting Europe," Karl Marx and Frederic Engels wrote in 1848, "the spectre of Communism." This new edition of The Communist Manifesto, commemorating the 150th anniversary of its publication, includes an introduction by renowned historian Eric Hobsbawm which reminds us of the document's continued relevance. Marx and Engels's critique of capitalism and its deleterious effect on all aspects of life, from the increasing rift between the classes to the destruction of the nuclear family, has proven remarkably prescient. Their spectre, manifested in the Manifesto's vivid prose, continues to haunt the capitalist world, lingering as a ghostly apparition even after the collapse of those governments which claimed to be enacting its principles.Book Description
Originally published on the eve of the 1848 European revolutions, The Communist Manifesto is a condensed and incisive account of the worldview Marx and Engels developed during their hectic intellectual and political collaboration. Formulating the principles of dialectical materialism, they believed that labor creates wealth, hence capitalism is exploitive and antithetical to freedom.

This new edition includes an extensive introduction by Gareth Stedman Jones, Britain's leading expert on Marx and Marxism, providing a complete course for students of The Communist Manifesto, and demonstrating not only the historical importance of the text, but also its place in the world today.Download Description
Still relevant today both as a historical document and as a stirring call for social democracy, this New Albion edition includes Engel's extensive footnotes from the various editions, plus the changing Prefaces written first by Marx and Engels, and later by Engels alone, plus notes on the Manifesto and the various translations of it. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (250)

Marx, communist manifesto
With this review I hope to cover some areas others have not. I would have the reader to read more than just my review of this product.

Karl Marx: The Communist Manifesto, A Norton critical edition
Edited by Frederic L Bender.

The Communist Manifesto is by all means one of the most (if not the most) controversial documents of non-religious origin. This Norton Critical Editiondoes this work justice in many ways: It gives a bullet point historical outline of events leading up to the manifesto,provides a brief history leading up to the writing of the manifesto (a must read in my opinion), provides the manifesto itself, and then gives the reader commentary from various writers concerning the manifesto's historical impact and interpretation. All this in just over 200 pages.Those looking only for a brief description of the product need read no further.


The rest of this review is my impression of the manifesto andthe historical context in this volume. Events leading up to the writing of "The Communist Manifesto" saw many Europeans in poverty. Marx himself lost three of his own children; to quotea note in Oxford's version of Marx's "Capital" stated, "Poverty was partly responsible for the death of three of his six children."At any rate Pauperism was the norm in European society, and Marx attempts to paint a grotesque picture for the reader: The Bourgeois (capitalists, the have's, the rich) vs. the Proletarians (impoverished).Background of the text sees the artisans (middle class) vanishing (loss of the middle class) , and an increase in number of the Proletarians. This helps the reader grasp a clear visual of European society prior to the writing of the manifesto (it is interesting to note that Germany was in ruins prior to the rise of Hitler).Let us now look at Marx himself.

What I found most interesting about Marx's writing is thathereally saw no other alternative but to call for removal of all Bourgeois power, andabolition of owning property. To quote Marx, "The communists disdain to conceal their views and aims. They openly declare that their ends can be attained only be the forcible overthrow of all existing social conditions. Let the ruling classes tremble at a Communistic revolution. The proletarians have nothing to lose but their chains. They have a world to win. WORKING MEN OF ALL COUNTRIES, UNITE!"Marx also openly criticized what he considered other forms of socialism that did not call for "forcible overthrow" and referred to one of them as "Utopian."

Marx states further, "There are, besides, eternal truths, such as Freedom, Justice, etc.; that are common to all states of society. But Communism abolishes eternal truths, it abolishes all religion, and all morality, instead of constituting them on a new basis; it therefore acts in contradiction to all past historical experience."This is one of the most shocking comments (to me personally) made by Marx in his manifesto. There are individuals that don't understand thatunder Marxist communism freedom of religion doesn't exist. There is a side note from another writing of Marx(supplied cleverly by Frederic L Bender the editor of this version ) where Marx is very critical of Christianity. To quote Marx,

"The social principles of Christianity preach cowardice, self -contempt, abasement, submissiveness and humbleness, in short all the qualities of the rabble, and the proletariat, which will not permit itself to be treated as rabble, needs its courage, its self-confidence, its pride and its sense of independence even more than its bread.The social principles of Christianity are sneaking and hypocritical, and the proletariat is revolutionary." (Marx, The Communism of the Rheinische Beobachter, Marx, Engels Collected works).

It is at this moment that I would like to divert momentarily into the difference between Christian thought and Marx. Marx writings are indignant toward Christianity in general, and call on the state to assume control over all aspects of life: religion, property, and all business. The Christianity of the Bible was never a political system. Peter told Ananias in Acts 5:3-4 that the property that Ananias sold was his own, and that "after it was sold was it not in thine own power?" Ananias could have chosen to not sell the property, or to keep a portion of the money for himself without lying about it. The record itself shows a spiritual decision that took Ananias outside God's protection. However, the important context is that the decision belonged to Ananias. No one forced him to sell his property. After all Peter stated, "Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? And after it was sold , was it not in thine own power?" Christian doctrine did NOT involve the FORCED take over of property, nor did it impose a belief system on those who chose not to commit to Christian doctrine. Now what men have done in the name of God over the centuries is a much different story, and would not be prudent to indulge in at this time.
In closing, I would like to point out that Marx was a free trade advocate. The editor of this text points this out on numerous occasions that sited other works of Marx. Marx himself saw free trade as a vehicle to unite socialism. The reader needs to be aware that Marx vision was to see the rise of Capitalism as a necessity means to the bourgeois coming to power and a proletariat revolt.Unfortunately after deep consideration I can see these forces at work in the U.S.A.!!! The almost certain death of the middle class and the rise of huge corporations. Politicians who succumb to help the few at the expense of many. We are in fact becoming more of a have and have not society ourselves. The one great principle we as Americans have is the ability to start our own business. Small business is still the key to wealth in this country. Employers will never give an individual financial freedom. It is only the rightwe still hold by a thread to start our own business and make our own wealth that really keeps capitalism alive and thriving. Without it, you are left with a have and have not society, and with it will come the rise of another Marx.I pray that our country turns from this form of soft socialism that has been imposed upon us, and thatwe never have to witness those horridwords spring forth from another's pen, " WORKING MEN OF ALL COUNTRIES UNITE!"
That is the biggest lesson I took away from this.

Great Publication
While it is likely that you (like myself) might not agree with many of Marx's and Engels ideas, this book is essential for understanding much of modern history. A few good reasons to purchase this publication is that this publication is quite small, light and cheap. It contains a good number of prefaces written by both Marx and Engels so if you are interested its worth the money.

Greatest and most important political work of all-time.
Although it at first had little or no impact on the widespread and varied revolutionary movements of the mid-19th century Europe, the Communist Manifesto was to become one of the most widely read and discussed documents of the 20th century. Marx sought to differentiate his brand of socialism from others by insisting that it was scientifically based in the objective study of history, which he saw as being a continuous process of change and transformation. Just as feudalism had naturally evolved into mercantilism and then capitalism, so capitalism would inevitably give way to its logical successor, socialism (a term which in Marx's usage includes its most advanced form, communism) as the necessary result of class struggle. Marx's insistence that tough-minded realism should replace the utopian idealism of earlier socialists had profound consequences: it enabled revolutionaries like Lenin to be put it into action, but it also tended to encourage its followers to accept ruthless means to justify what they believed were historically necessary ends. Radical politics were being much more widely discussed than the small number of radicals justified; but Marx uses this fact to his advantage by proclaiming that any ideology so feared must be important and worth explaining clearly.

The Hobo Philosopher
Well, if you are a student of Philosophy or economics you must make this a part of your reading whether you want to or not. It is not long. It is not difficult. It is quite explicit. And after you read it you should have a better understanding of where you personally stand politically. I am not going to comment on what it says or advocates. Read it and find out for yourself. You won't need an interpreter.

Must have for any wannabe idealist
Well, obviously I havent read this fascinating piece of litrerature, but thats because a read book just looks so scruffy on my beautiful capitalist shelves.
This book makes me look a lot more sympathetic to all those wannabe commies, so why not dish out on a copy too?
Nah just joking, just read it and decide for yourself.
... Read more

Book Description
A compelling, wide-ranging collection of Karl Marx’s journalism—available only from Penguin Classics

Karl Marx is arguably the most famous political philosopher of all time, but he was also one of the great foreign correspondents of the nineteenth century. Drawing on his eleven-year tenure at the New York Tribune (which began in 1852), this completely new collection presents Marx’s writings on an abundance of topics, from issues of class and state to world affairs. Particularly moving pieces highlight social inequality and starvation in Britain, while others explore his groundbreaking views on the slave and opium trades. Throughout, Marx’s fresh perspective on nineteenth-century events reveals a social consciousness that remains inspiring to this day. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A fascinating collection
These articles, on a huge range of subjects, were written and published between 1852 and 1861. The Tribune's circulation at the time was 200,000, the world's largest.

There are nine articles on China, covering the British state's Opium Wars and its atrocities there. The British state produced opium in India, forced it on China by unprovoked attacks, and then turned round and accused the Chinese of attacking Britain, with "the flimsy pretence that English life and property are endangered by the aggressive acts of the Chinese."

Marx also produced nine articles on wars, revolutions and counter-revolutions in Europe, particularly Greece, Italy, Prussia and Spain.

Nine articles examined events in India, mainly the 1857 revolt in India and changes in imperial finances. Marx wrote that capitalist progress "will neither emancipate nor materially mend the social condition of the mass of the people, depending not only on the development of the productive powers, but on their appropriation by the people." He showed how vicious imperial rule was, citing Lord Dalhousie, India's governor general from 1848 to 1856, "torture in one shape or other is practised by the lower subordinates in every British province."

In eight articles, Marx analysed the struggles in the USA, the British government's role in the slave trade, the mill owners' and The Times' support for the slaveholding South in the American civil war. The mill workers, by contrast, supported the North and abolition, at great cost to themselves. Marx showed how the slave trade was integral to capitalism.

He also produced 14 articles on British politics and society, several elections, `a venal and reckless press', starvation and the Highland clearances, and 11 on poverty, riches and inequality, against global free trade and its promises of peace and prosperity, the financial panic of 1857 with its failing dodgy banks, and the condition of the working class.
... Read more

Book Description
This second edition of McLellan's comprehensive selection of Marx's writings includes carefully selected extracts from the whole range of Marx's political, philosophical and economic thought. Each section of the book deals with a different period of Marx's life with the sections arranged in chronological order, thus allowing the reader to trace the development of Marx's thought, from his early years as a student and political journalist in Germany right through to his final letters of the early 1880s. The inclusion of extracts from some of Marx's less well-known works alongside selections from classic texts such as The Communist Manifesto and Capital provides the reader with an unparalleled overview of Marx's thinking, whilst Professor McLellan's fully updated and revised introduction and bibliographical notes accompanying each extract put Marx's writings into biographical and historical context. This edition also includes a general bibliography and a full indexof names and ideas as well as a new general introduction for each section of the book by Professor McLellan. As with the first edition,this comprehensive and clearly structured selection of Marx's writings will be essential reading for all those interested in the political thought of this perennially important figure in Western political philosophy. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

An excellent collection
This is a brilliant collection of some of the very best writings of Karl Marx. A must read for anyone with interest in Marx's early writings (non-Marxist period), letters, essays, his Doctoral thesis, and then later on his political writings forming the `theory of historical materialism', commonly referred to as Marxism. Personally, his `Economic and Philosophical Manuscripts 1844' is really a very nice reading because it renders a very attractive insight into Marx's early intellectual and psychological fight against Hegel's Phenomenology to form the basis of his theory later on. Also included is: Critique of Hegel's works and A Poverty of Philosophy (critique of Proudhon) which are excellent readings. Recommended to everyone; quintessentially to anyone trying to get an insight into one of the greatest intellectual minds of all time.

Subhasish Ghosh

St. Cross College
University of Oxford

Wonderful Anthology Of Marx's Theories and Ideas
When one considers the incredible influence that Marxism has had in the unfolding history of the later nineteenth and twentieth century, the beginning student of the combined writings of both Marx and Engels will find this collection of the essential works of these two pioneering socialists absolutely essential reading. Its list of included works covers the waterfront of all that is required to gain a fruitful first look at the wealth of their philosophical musings, and the nature of their revolutionary canon, as well. Reading this material is essential if one is to understand the depth of Marx's understanding and the detail of his genius, however discredited he may be in current estimations. Indeed, with the rise of international corporatism is so close to his prognostications regarding the final phases of capitalism that it is hard to deny his continuing relevance.

Included here is everything from the Communist Manifesto all the way to Volume One of Das Capital. One can gain a better appreciation for his ideas regarding the way in which the antagonism between the oppressed and the oppressors provides the motive force for history, and how all history is the history of such class struggles between the owners of the means of production, on the one hand, and the workers, who have nothing to barter with but their considerable capacity to accomplish labor. If one want to gain a better appreciation for the nuances regarding how alienation is created buy the organization of work, or the origin of property, or even the ways in which all of the aspects of a particualr society's culture are manifestations of the values of the ruling class, then a careful reading of the material found here will serve you well. I highly recommend this book. Enjoy!

A Great Anthology
This is the best Marx anthology available.Aside from selections takenfrom all of Marx's major works, it contains lesser-known selections on avariety of topics.The whole presents a steady stream of selectionsthrough Marx's life.Consequently, it gives the length and breadth ofMarx's writing without burying you in a life-time of reading.Shortexplanatory introductions help place the selections in Marx's developmentand in broader history.

A good follow up is Main Currents of Marxism byLeszek Kolakowski (3 volumes).Unfortunately those books are out of printin America, but they can still be found in good libraries and in theused-book market.

Excellent Selection of Marx's Writings.
This is an excellent selection of the writings of Karl Marx.This includes many writings which do not make it into the usual Marx/Engels Readers;Writings including Marx's Letters, his criticism of Bakunin, morewritings on economics than in the usual Reader, and so on.One flaw of it,though, is that it does not contain the later writings of Engels writenafter Marx's death.I suppose this is to be expected;It is after all*Marx's* writings, not Engels.However, the loss does not affect it much,and the book is still one of the most valuable tomes of Marxism I'vebought.I'd recommend anyone interested in the thought of Karl Marx to getthis book;If one is interested in both the writings of Marx and Engels,I'd recommend they get this book and the Marx/Engels Reader to supplementit.I have both, and both are fascinating. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

let take a walk through social revolution
Karl Marx is absolutely brilliant concerning his approach to peasant revolution.Such examples of his brilliance is China, Russia, Southeast Asia, and Cuba.Marx understood the importance of the proletarian's existence in the social order and food chain.In these selected writings, Marx discusses the manipulation of the proletarian by the bourgeois social class, the importance of a collectivist society, the failures of capitalism, the advantages of socialism, etc...Ultimately, Marx states that, with the exception of China, capitalism will evolve into perfect communism.He also states on page 175 10 characteristic of a capitalistic society evolving into communism: 1)abolition of land property and rent, 2)a progressive income tax, 3)abolition of all inheritance, 4)confiscation of property, 5)centralization of credit into the state, 6)centralization of communication, 7)state-owned businesses, 8)equal liability to all labor, 9)abolition of difference between town and country, and 10)free education in public schools.This book is an excellent edition to any student of political philosophy.

Excellent
I'm taking anthropology in College, and Marx has been a big influence in the studies. One of the required textbooks was this one. It was great. It goes deep into socilogical culture analysis, communism, and religion.

iwould recommend this book to anyone! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Fine Introduction
There is little question that Marx was the most important economic/political theorist of the modern era. The question then, is how to present an overview of his thought in a single volume.

This collection includes sections from Marx's earlier more philosophical period as a gradute student. It includes his dissertation on democritus and Epicurus as well as the famous essay 'On the Jewish Question.'

Additionally, there is the great 'German Ideology,' 'Gundrisse,' and the Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte (one of the most important works on political revolution in the entire literature. Of course you will also find the Manifesto, and selections from Capital (though far from comprehensive) as well as the Economic-Philosophical Manuscripts of 1844.

I was also pleased with the editor's inclusion of several letters of Marx between him and friends and family, mostly Engels. Also, there are report cards from the young Marx while he was in school, a fun extra.

The Portable Marx is a good way to begin to immerse yourself in Marx, though only a thorough reading of Capital will really allow you to appreciate the depth and range of his genius.

good intro to Marx's thought
In addition to Marx's writings, this book consists of introductions to various sections of Marx's writings by Prof Kamenka, a chronology of events in Marx's life, letters and other documents by and about him and a glossary of Marxian terms. The writings can be tedious, windy full of run-on sentences, sometimes unreadable. I skipped some of them, including his speech "Value, price and profit," which Kamenka claims was a good laymen's introduction to the ideas of "Capital," but I gave it up after a few pages.The first section of writings is from before 1844. In the tradition of the enlightenment, he discusses the concept of "alienation," how human nature is based on the need to maximize one's creative potential.Yet under capitalism, the worker is turned into a machine; the product he makes, or help makes under the division of labor, does not give him any value, but the wealth from it goes to his boss. The workers intellectual capabilities and self-esteem are stunted. Thus, a truly just society would give the worker the freedom to pursue his dreams, not having to worry about renting himself out to capitalists to survive.Workers, those who actually produce wealth, would directly manage businesses (not state bureaucrats).

As we progress along the years with Marx, he begins to develop his redoubtable historical materialist conception of history. This is a "scientific" thesis that all societies pass through slavery, feudalism, and capitalism and then capitalism starts to break down because of its own "contradictions." In unrestrained capitalism, capitalists try to maximize profit anyway they can. They build up excess capacity of factories and other facilities to try to compete but unfortunately in unregulated competition, all but a select few are destroyed. The petit bourgeoisie i.e. peasants and small business owners are also wiped out by big business. The capitalists in order to keep up their rate of profit, increase the hoursof their slaves and try to reduce their wages and getting out of doing anything for them to make their conditions better. The capitalist system will eventually collapse from all of this and the urban wage slaves, the proletariat will take over the means of production, eventually instituting democratic workers control over these means. As Prof. Kamenka notes later, it is rather vague if Marx conceived of various measures to forestall capitalism's, destabilization. ...

His writings from the Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte are certainly interesting, though his efforts to apply his theories to the situation in France somewhat take away from his analysis of the events. He conceives the France under Louis Philippe (1830-48) to be under the control one of section of the bourgeoisie, basically stock market swindlers. The rest of the proprietered classes revolted against this one faction in 1848. The ruling classes promised the proletariat radical democratic reforms to get their support for the overthrow but once they had consolidated their power, they massacred them into submission. The peasants were the majority of France at that time, and they, of course, valued stability above all else to maintain their meager property. The Bourgeois republic that was consolidated in 1848 could not provide the requisite stablity for capitalist operations, so up rose Louis Bonaparte, nephew of Napoleon to establish a dictatorship.

In his article,"The Indian revolt" from 1857 he breaks free from the vague theorizing and comes out with first rate journalism pure and simple. He reminds his readers that with all the hocus pocus of holy horror in England of the atrocities of the Indian sepoys , British troops were raping and burning down villages in China not that long ago. He quotes the proud numerous proud accounts from British soldiers of routine racist massacre and torture. Such as "not a day passes but we string up ten to fifteen of them(noncombatants)" and "every nigger we meet we either string up or shoot."

Another first rate piece of journalism, is his inagural address to the international working of 1864. Again, no tedious theorizing but a straightforward report on the condition of the British working classes. This was in a period, he notes, which the Chancellor of the Excheqeur slobbered over as a period of unprecedented expansion of wealth for all Britons. He contrasts this with a quote from William Gladstone that this increase in wealth was actually exclusvely confined to the property-owning minority. He quotes extensively from house of lords reports that worry about the severe malnourishment among agricultural laborers and which also noteed that the worst conditions of these laborers was better than the average amongst urban laborers.

The best writing by far is his stuff on the Paris commune of 1871, after France's defeat by Bismark's Prussia. Prussia and the French elite combined to crush these communes. These communes were set up as local, regional and national bodies. However, the local communes had the predominant power. Each body selected delegates to the higher bodies. Each body had reprehensive from the working class paid at workingperson's wages. Any government official could be removed from power at anytime by a recall type action. This is clearly what Marx had in mind as a system to govern the "transition to communism," instead of the dictatorship over the proletariat that was set up in the so-called "communist states" under his name.

The Critique of the Gotha program for 1875 consists of Marx attacking the German workers party somewhat pedantically but it consists of interesting comments. He denounces the party for its advocacy of state power to achieve its ends. He even denounces them for calling for government control of the schools.

A rich, accessible introduction to Karl Marx
"The Portable Karl Marx" is a splendid anthology of Marx'writings, political, philosophical and economic. The book also features aselection of Marx' personal letters, his university records and variousprivate documents, including his birth certificate, all which help toilluminate the character of one of the prophets of the modern age. Thecompendium of extracts traces Marx' intellectual trajectory, from his earlydiscipleship to the critical idealism of Hegel, onto his maturity, by whichtime he had established himself as a luminary of political thought. Thechief doctrines of his mature philosophy are expounded here, such ashistorical materialism, surplus value and the class struggle, which wouldbe generated by the contradictions and tensions of capitalism itself,leading to the growth of an educated proletariat which would freethemselves from their yoke and revolt to usher in the era of communism.Karl Marx is, along with Freud and Nietzsche, one of the focal points ofthe culture of the twentieth century. Contemporary debates on politicalphilosophy cannot do without having recourse to, or at least coming toterms with, his shattering insights and path-making formulations.

Students of philosophy, unite and buy this book!
This book is an outstanding overview of the life and thoughts of Karl Marx. The editor masterfully weaves together Marx's published works and private letters into a rich tapestry of history and ideas.

In addition towhat you might expect to find in a collection like this (the text of TheCommunist Manifesto, selections from Das Kapital...), there are alsotidbits from Marx's hand that help you truly understand the man and thehistory of his ideology, from his predictions on the fates of France andRussia, even down to his favorite color (red, of course) and his old reportcards.

No serious student of economic and political philosophy should bewithout an understanding of Karl Marx. This book provides it like no other. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (11)

a pleasure to read
This book was used in one of the classes I took as an undergraduate. It seems to be a thorough and well chosen collection of the writings of Marx and Engels, with some insightful commentary by the editor, Robert Tucker. I'm not a scholar of the work of these two men, but reading through this again I'm struck with the notion that their ideas are still very much alive and relevant today. Marx is much maligned in the United States, but in many ways he was a humanitarian who wanted to change the world into a better place. And, as he argued, capitalism (including how it is practiced today) is deeply flawed in many ways.Author of Adjust Your Brain: A Practical Theory for Maximizing Mental Health.

A classic compendium of Marxist thought
Whether or not one is a Marxist, knowledge of Marx' work is important in understanding the variety of political philosophizing over the millennia.Marx' political thought is sometimes difficult (think the "Economic and Philosophical Manuscripts of 1844") and sometimes transparent (e.g., "The Manifesto of the Communist Party," more popularly referred to as the "Communist Manifesto").

This edited work is one of the best introductions to the works of Marx (and Engels).The volume begins with the early Marx, which includes the "Economic and Philosophical Manuscripts of 1844," excerpts from "The Holy Family" (in which he attacks some of the other socialists of the era), "Theses on Feuerbach," and the first of the truly classic works that Marx and Engels co-authored, "The German Ideology." It is interesting to note that "The German Ideology" covers much the same territory as "The Holy Family," with the major exception that Marx now addresses the intriguing and offbeat work by Max Stirner, "The Ego and His Own."In the process of addressing Stirner, Marx and Engels take the philosophical edifice to a more powerful level, creating a new perspective with a move away from idealism and toward materialism.

Other major works included are excerpts from "Das Kapital" (fairly turgid reading, I fear), the "Manifesto of the Community Party" (which ends with the famous phrase [page 500]) "The proletarians have nothing to lose but their chains."), the "Critique of the Gotha Program," and "The 18th Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte" (with its great introductory phrase [page 594] "Hegel remarks somewhere that all great, world-historical facts and personages occur, as it were, twice.He has forgotten to add: the first time as tragedy, the second as farce.").

The final section of the work features the work of Engels, including "Socialism: Utopian and Scientific," "Anti-Duhring," "The Origin of the Family, Private Property, and the State."

If one be interested in learning more about Marx (and Engels), this is an accessible edited work that provides some of the key works.

Essential Marx, all in one volume
If you're looking for a single volume collection of Marx (and a little Engels), this is the one you want. The other reviewers list some of the selections, but the bottom line is: if you've heard of it, it's here.This is the book I keep on my shelf for those (decreasingly common) moments when I want to look up something in Marx.

The only problem lies in the production values - - the pages are thin and light weight, and the font a bit small, in order to cram it all in.If you highlight with a yellow pen, you'll be frustrated because it will bleed through worse than usual.Use a ballpoint pen or a pencil.My eyesight is still good, but if it weren't, I suspect the font size would be another frustration.

Still, if you're browsing this page, you're in the market for Marx.This is the book you want.

Essential Works Of Marxs & Engels For the Beginner!
Given the impact of Marxism on the unfolding history of the later nineteenth and twentieth century, the beginning student of the combined writings of both Marx and Engels will find this collection of the essential works of these two pioneering socialists absolutely essential reading. Its list of included works covers the waterfront of all that is required to gain a fruitful first look at the wealth of their philosophical musings, and the nature of their revolutionary canon, as well. Reading this material is essential if one is to understand the depth of Marx's understanding and the detail of his genius, however discredited he may be in current estimations. Indeed, with the rise of international corporatism is so close to his prognostications regarding the final phases of capitalism that it is hard to deny his continuing relevance.

Included here is everything from the Communist Manifesto all the way to Volume One of Das Capital. One can gain a better appreciation for his ideas regarding the way in which the antagonism between the oppressed and the oppressors provides the motive force for history, and how all history is the history of such class struggles between the owners of the means of production, on the one hand, and the workers, who have nothing to barter with but their considerable capacity to accomplish labor. If one want to gain a better appreciation for the nuances regarding how alienation is created buy the organization of work, or the origin of property, or even the ways in which all of the aspects of a particualr society's culture are manifestations of the values of the ruling class, then a careful reading of the material found here will serve you well.I highly recommend this book. Enjoy!

The best collection we have
"The Marx-Engels Reader" is the best single collection of Marx's thought.What makes it doubly important, is that it is one of the few texts which contain an index.This sounds unremarkable, but believe me, it makes the text extremely more useful.This book transcends the state of being a mere anthology, and is an indespensible reference work.

Make sure you get the second edition. ... Read more

Book Description
A classic of early modernism, Capital combines vivid historical detail with economic analysis to produce a bitter denunciation of mid-Victorian capitalist society.It has also proved to be the most influential work in social science in the twentieth century; Marx did for social science what Darwin had done for biology.Millions of readers this century have treated Capital as a sacred text, subjecting it to as many different interpretations as the bible itself.No mere work of dry economics, Marx's great work depicts the unfolding of industrial capitalism as a tragic drama - with a message which has lost none of its relevance today. This is the only abridged edition to take account of the whole of Capital.It offers virtually all of Volume 1, which Marx himself published in 1867, excerpts from a new translation of `The Result of the Immediate Process of Production', and a selection of key chapters from Volume 3, which Engels published in 1895. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Fascinating and frightening
The book is fascinating because it has exerted so much influence. It is frightening because very few that acted on the theories presented in the book can have properly understood them. When they had understood them they would have found them to be useless. In order to arrive at this conclusion I have read the book thoroughly, which is hard work. The influence of the book derives from the dramatic but accurate description of the way capitalism functioned at the time Marx lived. Apart from a few responsible capitalists such as the Quakers, capitalists were only chasing profit without any consideration of the health of their employees and their families. Acts of parliament to reduce labour hours from 15 hours during six days as well as the extensive use of child labour were fiercely opposed by the capitalists referring to their certain ruin if these laws were passed. Marx writes: "capital never becomes reconciled to such changes". Marx does not point out that the exploitation of farm labourers was just as bad or even worse. Exploitation is as old as civilisation. That is however not a justification for the absence of moral standards.
The economic theory is presented as if it is scientific and that the laws will lead to a replacement of the capitalist system by a superior one. Unfortunately there is no science and the description of the superior system is extremely limited.
What Marx refers to, as laws are hypotheses and effects that are the result of the hypotheses. All examples are based on the idea that a worker works for six hours for a capitalist to earn enough to pay for his subsistence and works another six hours without being paid for by he capitalist. A typical example of a "law" derived from this hypothesis is that when the labour costs of a product declines profits decline. This strange idea is based on the idea that if the total cost of raw materials and machinery depreciation and labour costs are 100 and the labour cost thereof declines from 40 to 20 that the profit also declines from 40 to 20 as paid labour time is equal to unpaid labour time. This leads to the next "law".As the profit declines with increasing investment in equipment the capitalist increases sales more rapidly than the profit percentage declines so that his absolute profit increases. It is obvious that if the volume increases more in percentage than the price declines as a percentage that the absolute profit increases. Marx devotes many pages to explaining this "law". The sentences are however very cumbersome and loaded with emotions that make it very hard work to discover that the laws are mathematical necessities. Marx does not recognise any work having value other than that of manual labour, " only the labourer is productive". He does not consider selling, product development, accounting, figuring out in what to invest, analysing risk taking as work. He therefore considers that all "profit" made is theft from the worker. Marx specifically excludes competition from his theories "actual movement of competition belongs beyond our scope".He nevertheless makes some negative comments like referring to it as " capitalism begets by its anarchical system of competition, the most outrageous squandering of labour power".
As far as the new superior system Marx only writes: "But capitalist production begets, with the inexorability of a law of Nature, its own negation". "This does not re-establish private property for the worker but will be based on co-operation and the possession in common of land and of the means of production".
The conclusion "Marxist" countries logically drew from Marxists theories were, (1) the only owner of the means of production can be the state (2) there is no needs for marketing and sales (3) profit can never be justified (4) there is something wrong with competition and that can be avoided by central state planning and (5) our success is assured as our actions are based on scientific laws. In that way they did accept his hypothesis with disastrous effect.
Some examples of emotional language, that makes the book fascinating to read. "Capital pumps the surplus-labour (unpaid working hours) directly out of the labourers", on supervision, " The place of the slave-driver's lash is taken by the overlooker's book of penalties, on profit "the profit made in selling depends on cheating, deceit and inside knowledge" and finally "If money comes into the world with a congenital blood-stain on one cheek, capital comes dripping from head to foot, from every pore, with blood and dirt".

It is fascinating that a book that describes real problems with powerful emotional language can make many intelligent people with good intentions believers without critically analysing the proposed theories. It is frightening that many powerful political leaders applied these theories (with or without good intentions). ... Read more

Book Description
In Left of Karl Marx, Carole Boyce Davies assesses the activism, writing, and legacy of Claudia Jones (1915–1964), a pioneering Afro-Caribbean radical intellectual, dedicated communist, and feminist. Jones is buried in London’s Highgate Cemetary, to the left of Karl Marx—a location that Boyce Davies finds fitting. Jones expanded on Marxism-Leninism, incorporating gender and race into her political critique and activism.

Claudia Cumberbatch Jones was born in Trinidad. In 1924, she moved to New York, where she lived for the next thirty years. She was active in the Communist Party from her early twenties onward. A talented writer and speaker, she traveled throughout the United States lecturing and organizing. In the early 1950s, she wrote a well-known column, “Half the World,” for the Daily Worker. As the U.S. government intensified its efforts to prosecute communists, Jones was arrested several times. She served nearly a year in a U.S. prison before being deported and given asylum by Great Britain in 1955. There she founded The West Indian Gazette and Afro-Asian Caribbean News and the Caribbean Carnival, an annual London festival that continues today as the Notting Hill Carnival. Boyce Davies examines Jones’s thought and journalism, her political and community organizing, and poetry that the activist wrote while she was imprisoned. Looking at the contents of the FBI file on Jones, Boyce Davies contrasts Jones’s own narration of her life with the federal government’s. Left of Karl Marx establishes Jones as a significant figure within Caribbean intellectual traditions, black U.S. feminism, and the history of communism. ... Read more

Book Description
Since its first publication in 1981, Karl Marx has become one of the most respected books on Marx's philosophical thought. Allen Wood explains Marx's views from a philosophical standpoint and defends Marx against common misunderstandings and criticisms of his views. All the major philosophical topics in Marx's work are considered: alienation, historical materialism, morality, philosophical materialism, and the dialectical method.

The second edition has been revised to include a new chapter on capitalist exploitation and new suggestions for further reading. Wood has also added a substantial new preface which looks at the fall of the Soviet Union and ambivalence towards capitalism, and explores Marx's relevance and place in the twenty-first century. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Not for the faint hearted!
Wood delves deep into Marxist thought in an effort to find the truth of Marx's thought. Marx is defended by Wood from many common, and more commonly erroneous, interpretations of Marxist thought that has surfaced in the many years since Marx's thoughts became influential.
"Karl Marx" is a very well structured book, with the structure revolving around five major topics of Marx's work; alienation, historical materialism, Marx's thought on morality, philosophical materialism and the dialectical method.
As one of the most respected works on Marx's philosophical thought, you expect an in-depth, concise and authoritative book, and this is exactly what you get.
This book is very heavy in the philosophical content, if you haven't read much of Marx, then you will probably get bogged down in this advanced work, so there are probably easier-to-follow books out there to start on.

Overall this is a remarkable book, advanced and authoritative, it should be a prerequisite for anyone interested in a proper understanding of Marx.

Philosopher or Not
Wood's review of Marx's theories is best summed up by the question of whether the German philosopher was just that. Certainly he obtained a doctorate in the field, but Wood contends that Marx was a commentator on the settings of the society in which he lived. Though the text is verbose at times, it is a good review of Marx's material in light of this unusual thesis. It examines in detail the early theory of alienation, though it considers the idea too vague to be of much use as it was originally composed. Commenting on Marx's other theories, Wood introduces once again his idea that Marx had no moral compuncture, contrary to commonly-held opinion. The difference between moral and non-moral lies in its ability to be quantified, nothing else. Ideas such as these pervade the text, cauing the reader to address his own perceptions of Marx. Not for the unitiated or shallow of mind. ... Read more

Book Description
Capital, one of Marx's major and most influential works, was the product of thirty years close study of the capitalist mode of production in England, the most advanced industrial society of his day. This new translation of Volume One, the only volume to be completed and edited by Marx himself, avoids some of the mistakes that have marred earlier versions and seeks to do justice to the literary qualities of the work. The introduction is by Ernest Mandel, author of Late Capitalism, one of the only comprehensive attempts to develop the theoretical legacy of Capital. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (42)

Essential
I think one of the great misconceptions about Capital is that it is dry and difficult. Many people seem to think that reading it would be a chore. Not true. If you were to read it on your own or in a study group, you'd find it funny, engaging and not all that hard. It assumes perhaps a small amount of understanding of classical political economy (Malthus, Smith, Ricardo, etc) but not much. I'd say if you're going to read it, read it in a group, because some of the ideas need to be worked out, but four friends of average intelligence can understand this book with a minimal level of effort.

That said, is it worth it for you to take the time? I'd say so. While I may think a number of Marx's ideas are just plain wrong and the ideas of many ofthose who followed in his footsteps to be even more misguided and destructive, I still think this is worth the time. Besides being a book by the man who has influenced world events more than anyone else in the last two hundred years, it is also just very well written and a goddamn good, and important, read.

A friend of mine once described Capital by saying ,"this is literature". It definitely is, with all the complications that come with that classification. This book does not explain the workings of a capitalist economy. It is not a science textbook. It is a brilliant work that is part flawed history, part political theory and part a discussion of classical political economy. Everyone should read it, but no one should take it all at face value.

Doors of Perception
If :
- Your mum has taught you lots of valuable things (eat your vegetables, be nice to old people and little dogs, don't be late to school, keep a clean nose) but she was never really able to explain why you had to WORK for a living - instead of, you know, just living;
- Your teachers packed your head full with all kinds of useful knowledge (about prepositions and adverbs, mineralogy and astrophysics, the reproductive organs of plants, x+2-y=0) but they never told you how exactly PROFITS are made - and why anybody would want to make them anyway;
- Your friends and lovers can spend hours yakking about various interesting topics (the latest music machine, videogames, designer shoes, imitation leather sofas, blockbuster movies, pink underwear and cherry flavoured bubble-gum) but they call you a bore and a nitpick whenever you wonder why you're all surrounded by so many COMMODITIES and publicity ads promising you bigger, better and faster useless things.
- You often have the impression that some greater truth is lacking in your life (and you've tried all the legal/illegal drugs, exciting TV shows, gurus and psychoanalysts, help-yourself books and bestsellers about kid sorcerers)...

...Then the time may have come to have a long talk with good old Uncle Karl - the black sheep of the social sciences, the guy nobody likes to mention at social occasions (except in the form of a joke: "have you heard the one about Karl Marx in Las Vegas?"), the most misquoted and misinterpreted modern thinker.
In "Capital", he kindly invites you to break on through to the other side (that's how countercultural he was) and check out what's really happening behind the glitzy appearances of everyday life. You don't even have to be a genius to understand him (it will be enough if you can count to ten without choking). And you might be surprised about how obvious some things will seem after he explains to you about the cage you're sitting in.

Of course, mum will probably be broken-hearted and fear that you'll join the next anarcho-pinko-terrorist organization down the block. Your teachers might refer to a vast list of successful anti-Marx books and charity organizations. And your friends and lovers will find you an even greater bore than before.

Fascinating, Intelligent, and Obsolete.
"When Volume 1 of Capital was first published, capitalist industry, though predominant in a few Western European countries, still appeared as an isolated island circled by a sea of independent farmers and handicraftsmen which covered the whole world, including the greater part even of Europe," writes Ernest Mandel in his introduction to 'Capital'.

How did we advance to the present day?

An *economic* text, this book is considerably distinct from much of Marx's preceding output. Capital stands a work of theoretical economics similar to the output of David Ricardo in many ways -- calls for action, the nature of the state, and philosophical concepts are given little treatment throughout the 2,500 pages. Marx *did* write about ideas like commodity production, use-values and exchange-values, theories of surplus-value, crisis theory, organic and technical compositions of capital, the transformation problem, changes in the rates of profit, and much more. It is an analysis of *capital*, and hence, *capitalism.* There is little information about the mechanics of a post-capitalist society. After investing the time to read it, readers will be baffled when critics argue "50 bujillion people DIED as a result of 'Capital!!!'" (Marx died in 1883) -- "therefore Marx is wrong!" To be objective, a thinker can imagine the absurdity of blaming World War One, slavery in America, and imperialism on 'The Wealth of Nations'.

The volumes of this massive economic text were published successively in 1867, 1885, and 1894. Most economists feel marginalism has rendered it obsolete. At the end of the 19th century, Bohm-Bawerk argued since production occurs in a roundabout way, part of the product Marx attributed to workers needs to be employed to finance the roundaboutness. Workers would obtain the whole of what the produced only if production was instantaneous; as a result, interest must be paid no matter who owned the capital.

This is a brilliant work. The tough part is understanding the meaning of Marx's terms, which was especially difficult for me, learning the neo-classical viewpoint first. The first chapters took a few days to understand with confidence. After that, the sheer length of the text is formidable, though rewarding and absolutely fascinating.

please read the book before reviewing it!
Reading the "reviews" of Capital here on Amazon.com, a person who has read the book can see that most "reviewers" have not even troubled themselves read the book! Instead of taking the time and energy to plow through this work, many would rather get on a soap box and ramble on about their own views thereby "reviewing" the work.
I read the entire book from cover to cover. Not an easy task. It took me more than a year with persistence! But I did it.
Socialism is not mentioned once the the actual work itself. (Of course it is mentioned in the 87 page Introduction which some of the "reviewers" might have bothered to skim through!)
What is the name of the book? Capital! Not Communism or Socialism! One who has bothered to read this long book knows that the book has nothing to do with Communism. The book was supposed to form a scientific explanation of what the Capitalist mode of production was and how it formed and its' inner workings. Marx felt that after writing the pamphlet Manifesto of 1848, he owed it to the world tho explain what Capitalism was. It is a microscopic examination of the capitalist mode of production in mid-nineteenth century England. Granted that things have changed since 1850 England, the basic core of Capitalism hasn't changed.
The man was brilliant, he obviously spent a lot of time formulating an understanding of what Capitalism is. It was an eye opener for me into what Capitalism really is. It was stimulating to see how Marx in the work slowly but surely synthesizes his successive points one by one thereby building a model of the Capitalist mode of production for one to examine.
My only complaint was that it was too long. He could have said what he had to say in 200 pages rather than 800.

Seeing in the Fifth Dimension
I think it was the poor French philosopher Althusser who claimed that Marx had discovered a new continent of thought called "history" equivalent to the continents of thought discovered by Pythagoras (geometry) and Aristotle (science). I would use a different metaphor. It is as if Marx invented a pair of x-ray glasses that allows you the viewer to see the exploitation hidden in every commodity, no matter how beautifully it is packaged. I guess the only book it is really comparable to would be the Bible, edited and created in the year 207 by the North African Roman citizen Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus. On the narrative level the books are quite opposite. The one starts with a single savior who comes to save the world, but ends up being exploited, abused and killed, thus needing saving, the other starts with a class that is exploited, abused and killed, but ends up saving the world. Of the two, Marx is definitely the more optimistic view. But if we could resurrect Marx as we resurrected Jesus, would he still have his optimism? ... Read more

Book Description
In this selection of the political writings of Karl Marx that predate the Communist Manifesto, excerpts from the "Critique of Hegel's Philosophy of Right," "Points on the State and Bourgeois Society" and other writings are newly translated and arranged in a sequence that illuminates the development of his thought, while the introduction discusses the intellectual context of his theories. This volume will be an invaluable guide to the formation of one of the most influential doctrines in the history of political thought. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

Marx's Manuscripts
Marx's Philosophic Manuscripts are just that. Dont think you'll get a nice package of arguments. I'd like to think of this as Marx "in the raw" so be ready to follow Marx as he organizes his own thoughts.

The Blueprint for Economic Democracy
Many people have sounded the Death Knell of Marx with the fall of the Eastern Bloc in the 80's and 90's. Many who have been interested in Marx read 'The Communist Manifesto' an admitedly dated work and never go beyond it. It must be remembered the Manifesto was a simplified form of practical ideas printed to drive the working class to action.

Marx was a student of Hegel, a notoriously difficult and deep philosopher to understand, but it shaped Marx to a degree that few understand. Marx was more than an economic philoshpher, he was an astute observer of psychology, sociology and anthropology. All of his philosophy shines in clarity in the Economic and Philosophical Manuscripts of 1844.

Of all of Marx's works we see most the thesis and theory devised from his understanding of the human condition through historical analysis. This work is the most accessable, easily understood work by this great thinker. If you have the desire to truly understand a major influence for the framework of many socialized democracies of modern Europe, the drives for nationhood and equality that rocked Europe in revolt in 1848 or desire to truly understand the whole theory of Marx this small book is an absolute must.

Marx was a both a materialist and process theorist in philosophical terms. His later socio-econmic works were a sort of working blueprint based upon the historical, psyhcological, sociolgoical, economic and anthropologic theories laid down in this work.

Dialetical Materialism taking form
I derived great amusement from the book's cover being that atrocious shade of hot pink. Perhaps red was too provocative for them?
Moving on to the contents itself, this books shows Marx's interesting interpretation of economics and its histroy. For such a dry topic, I found Marx's prose entertaining. He's not a skillful writer, such as Nietzsche or Wittgenstein, some of his sentences are long and torturous. But when his prose is overheated it is quite amusing. "Money is the pimp and whore of all nations."
His idea of alienation is not perhaps fully accurate psychologically, but it is a profound insight into our modern condition. Looking at the entertainment and advertising super-structure of Western society, you cannot help but be sickened by the objectification of man.
Class struggle is also interesting. That often seems to be true. The point is illustrated when higher tax breaks are given to the rich apposed to the poor.
I find it doubtful that all of history is subservient to an abstract economic movement though. This reduces man to a wholly material being as much as the machinery of capitalism does. Not that his cry to change the structure of society should go unheard. The most disturbing aspect is the way that Marx's ideas were implemented. The fact that the people in power are corrupt and pervert ideas to their own end says nothing about the idea itself. A highly readable introduction to Marx.

Essential Marxism
With the crumbling of the Berlin Wall--symbolizing for many the end of the relevance of Marx's political theory--and the veering toward a "third way" (read, neo-liberal way) in various Western European countries by formerly avowed socialist parties, Marxism, and its brand of socialism, is now universally assumed to be an historical artifact, and maybe neither a very interesting nor productive one at that.

"The Economic and Philosophical Manuscripts of 1844" offers a point of rebuttal to those neo-liberals and their quick-handed assumptions that the totality of Marx's theory can be gleaned from The Communist Manifesto, a work written with the intention of motivating political action.

The "Manuscripts" is an essential read for those seeking Marx's revlevancy in the 21st century.

The Marxian question
The Paris manuscripts go back to a young and idealist Marx - perhaps one which few would bother to read, as today the concentration (and much contempt of Marxian theory) is based on his contributons to the understandings of a communist state. All that can be said is that Marx was trying not only to understand man as "homo economicus" (as seen clearly in Capital) but also as "homo sociologicus"...a fact which students of sociology should not forget. ... Read more

Book Description
Ever since the discovery of Marx's Early Writings, most of the literature concerned with Marx's intellectual development has centred around the so-called gap between the 'young' Marx, who was considered to be a humanist thinker, and the 'older' Marx, who was held to be a determinist with little concern for anything outside his narrow theory of historical materialism. Dr Avineri claims that such a gap between the 'young' and 'older' Marx did not exist. He supports his claim by a detailed study of the whole corpus of Marx's writing on social and political thought. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

From Hegel to Marx
There are endless perspetives and their commentaries on Marx, but the extraordinary fact is that Marx is a moving target very difficult to understand. This classic text, also a handy companion and continuation to the author's work on Hegel, claims to rescue Marx from his friends and enemies, and is brave attempt at that, whatever a more radical view of the result might be. The author's doubloon of books, tracing the Hegelian sources of Marx, one on Hegel's theory of the modern state, and Marx's dialectical continuation, makes a useful exercise in reorienting one thinking on this forever important emergent critique of political economy and the basic 'crisis of 1848', which has never gone away. ... Read more

Book Description
Translated and edited by T. B. Bottomore. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Marxism distilled
Tom Bottomore's collection is the best place to start to understand Marxist thought. This book was put together in light of the publication in the `60s of many of Marx's early works which had been previously unavailable. They outline the roots of Marx's mature philosophy from a perspective that's more libertarian and romantic than his later writings indicate. Taking on the mature Marx is a daunting task and so it helps to be aware of how his thought was formed. A person can get caught up in his arcane discussions of the formation of commodities while missing the essential points, or caught up with thinking about value and the labor theory of value without getting why they're important in the first place, so leaving much of that out is no great loss for the beginner. The most important aspect of this book, though, has to be that it shatters the notion that Marxism is a closed, hermeneutic, system which only makes self-referential sense. If you think that Marx only makes sense if you already believe in Marxism read this book to be disabused of you're notions.

Selected Writings
As the back of the book states, this book is a good way to become acquainted with the thoughts of Karl Marx.It provides insight into his thoughts on the economic theory of human development, and the effect ofhistory as well.It also deals with the social classes, revolution, andthe future.A good way to become familiar with the social philosophy ofMarx. ... Read more

Book Description

Book Description
A more comprehensible version of Marx's most famous work for the modern student of Socialist and Communist thought. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (23)

boring refunded
this book is boring. the language is too philosophical while some underlying points are arguably wrong. there are many inputs into production of a commodity, not just labor, how can we value two commodities which consume the same labour time the same? or am i missing something?

Horrible edition
The Gateway Edition of Capital is a great example right-wing capitalist economists distorting Marx for their own purposes.The introduction has a pro-capitalist bias, and substantial portions of the work have been cut out from this edition.

If you want to read Capital, Volume I, get the Penguin or Vintage edition, which is unabridged and has extensive footnotes.

Where Marxist Economics meets Realpolitik.
I gave this book five stars,because it shows outright, that Marx had a layman's understanding of everyday economics.When Marx's social political theories needed economic validation,he unleashed the monetary-literary behemoth,"Das Kapital".This book was a successful seller among Wall Street piscivorous investors,selling out thousands of copies the first week of publication.On the back cover,it stated,"This book will make you rich!".It didn't financially help the sucker-fish really,yet the book had tremendous 'psychic revenue' for them.This tome has no real sound economic basis and has been discredited by all leading specialists on monetary matters.Yet,it remains the best insight of the fallacies of "closed economic society".By closing the doors on trade,one destroys life,liberty and the pursuit of happiness.China has a vast ever-growing economy ,yet their personal economic choices are few.Marx's theory of labor-value has not stood the test of time.It was merely used as a 'short-term remedy' by the new Socialist committee,who overthrew the old oppressive militant regime or the vacillatory arrogant king.The English Luddites and the French Saboters were reared docile by their Christian blind instruction,and later agitated by being forced to adept to the new conditions of an advancing technological society,controlled largely by the jewish-class.I would read this economic magnum opus,only if you already had a vast knowledge of monetary axioms and political history .

Das Rubbish
This proves the cynics who say that Groucho was always the funny one to be correct. Not only did I fail to laugh once at his dismal attempt at humour, I also failed to understand what most of the words meant. Avoid.

BAH!Correction Please
"Karl Marx, years ago, gave a description of why this might be happening. He followed the most moral and meritocratic theory for wealth and value: an object is worth as much as the effort it takes to make."

NO IT'S NOT!!! An object's worth is based upon both the supply of an object and the demand for it arrising from consumers. To imply that it comes from the effort it takes to make implies that a milkshake that takes only a few minutes to make is worth far less than a vial of poison that took an hour to make or an atomic bomb that took months to make, which would mean that we should subsidize the military-industrial complex, since all those workers worked hard to create those deadly things.

"Petty-bourgeois' owners, i.e. the mom-and-pop stores and small business in general, of which my grandpa, a dentist, was a part of, are being driven under by corporate chain competition in retail."

This is either to the innefficiency in their store to meet consumer demands or to the massive regulations burdened upon them by the government. All regulations do nothing but add an increased burden on to competition and thus kills them out. There's a reason why the owner's of Wal-Mart recently said that the federal government should increase the minimum wage to over $8, as this would cause many smaller businesses to go bankrupt, lay off employees, and prevent future businesses from starting up to compete with Wal-Mart. Another problem is the subsidies that the smaller store pays to Wal-Mart (Wal-Mart collects millions in subsidies due to Marx's Labor Theory of Value once again) and of the use of emminent domain abuse (which can be justified on the grounds of the "greater good" as opposed to the individual good of your mom and pop stores).

"But no theory is ever flawless, and socialists should be able to correct their past flaws to account for human nature and "reality." There is no reason to believe that heavy social hierarchy and class division is a necessary evil; workers CAN manage their lives just fine through cooperatives."

Sure there is. Human beings are inherently unequal, differing in many skills, abilities, ambition, the choices that they make in life, how they apply their time, etc. etc. Of course, there is isn't any reason that individuals can't create wealth nonetheless, creating goods and services that help others out in exchange for some good or service itself. And cooperatives need to be voluntary first. Nor can cooperatives produce the bulk of wealth.There needs to be some Division of Labor, Trade and Commerce, etc. or else all cooperatives end up as hunter-gatherering tribes reduced to the real law of the jungle to survive.This can't happen if everything is collectively owned.

"Since workers are the sole producers of goods from scratch to end"

NO! Entreprenuers, innovators, etc. provide much of the creativity, design, direction for the purchase and use of capital goods, negotiation of deals, evaluation of threats, problems, and consumer requests, and other such things. It wasn't the workers at Microsoft who created cheap desktop computers, it was Bill Gates, the workers are merely a form of mass-production who help out, but ultimately mass produce a good or service in exchange for privately owned wages, caused by supply and demand.
... Read more