AP+Marxism



Audience (Sirtaj) When Karl Marx wrote the Communist Manifesto, he directed it towards the laborers of the world. He insists: “The proletarians have nothing to lose but their chains. They have a world to win. Working Men of All Countries Unite!” (Marx). Karl Marx is telling the working class that they “have nothing to lose”, but everything to gain. He may not talk to them directly at first, yet he later ends his famous document by talking to them directly. He tells them to “unite” and fight back against the bourgeoisie, the higher class. The audience is all of those people who have only their “chains” to lose. He preaches straight to them, telling them the possibilities through his message, and that is exactly what is still happening today. Marxism is directed towards the working class, the laborers. Yet that is not the only way he tried to spread his ideals. Karl Marx created an Association that had only one responsibility, to spread the word of Marxism to the proletarians. According to ABC – CLIO, “…Marx formed the International Working Men's Association, an organization dedicated to spreading the revolutionary message of communism to the workers of the world” (Karl Marx). This clearly showed that Marxism wanted the public to know about his ideals, yet he targeted certain people. By targeting the “workers of the world”, he knew there would be a better chance of getting his ideals accepted. They were all in a bad position at the time, where they could barely get by. The thought of not having to work as hard, and being able to live just as well as everybody else would be extremely appealing to them. So Marx targeted them, and even made a huge organization for it. The organization grew to hundreds of thousands of members, quickly spreading Marxism across Europe. Today, the ideals still apply to the same people; those who are being oppressed, or who are struggling to get by.

"Karl Marx." //World History: The Modern Era//. ABC-CLIO. 2011. Web. 26 Aug. 2011. Marx, Karl. "//Communist Manifesto// (1848)." //World History: The Modern Era//. ABC-CLIO. 2011. Web. 26 Aug. 2011



Marxism Will Cross Marxism was created as a response to the under-represented working class. It created a chance at equality among people that did not have the resources or contact to have very much sway in the given government. They have endured so much oppression from the higher class that Marxism appealed greatly to them. Marxism also target small corporations and competition. David L Prychitko, a writer for the library of economics and liberty, states “Specifically, Marx claimed that capitalism has ruptured into a war between two classes: the bourgeoisie (the capitalist class that owns the means of production) and the proletariat (the working class, which is at the mercy of the capitalists)” (Prychitko, Marxism). With this idea he explains that Marxism brings people into the light about how capitalism has been created to give power to the people who own ways to produce things to support themselves.

The influence Marxism had on economics is very profound. It changed the way that economist saw the exchange of goods and services. Its main economic characteristic is the valuing of a good or service based on the number of labor hours that went into producing or accomplishing anything. This was a very promising prospect for small companies. Marxism was a way of providing equalities across many different people and social standards. Stated in the web site “What is Marxism”, “An economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and distribution of goods, characterized by a free competitive market and motivation by profit” ( http://www.allaboutphilosophy.org/what-is-marxism-faq.htm). The explanation provides an insight as to why the idea was created and whom it targets. The opportunity for small businesses to thrive without competing for customers with larger corporations.

David L. Prychitko, "Marxism." //__The Concise Encyclopedia of Economics.__// 2008. Library of Economics and Liberty. 25 August 2011. 

"Marxists Internet Archive Library, Complete Index of Writers." //Marxists Internet Archive//. Web. 25 Aug. 2011. .

"What Is Marxism." //Philosophy - AllAboutPhilosophy.org//. 25 August 2011. .

"Working-Class Attitudes: Stoicism and Acceptance." //The Victorian Web: An Overview//. Web. 25 Aug. 2011. .

History of Marxism Dylan Mercier

Ever since the idea of capitalism has the basic idea of Marxism existed. The idea of workers coming together to be one, strong and equal force that can go against their masters. The first time Marxism was fully taken to heart was in the Russian Revolution where the Communist party fueled by the idea of Marxism took over the Russian government and created the U.S.S.R. from their old monarch government system “O n October 24-25 the Bolshevik party led Russian workers and peasants to revolution” (Marxist Internet Archive). Marxism is so powerful among these people like the “workers and peasants” because these are the groups of people who feel more oppressed by their richer brothers and the idea of an equal place where everyone makes the same amount of many is a very appealing idea. After this people everywhere would spread with Marxism under the promise of an equal standing in society. Marxism would then meet a halt because as the spread of Marxism happened so did the movement for more capitalism. Soon the world would be in a struggle between capitalist and Marxist nations. Marxism would feel the first hit when the system within the U.S.S.R broke. Although Marxism still exists today it is much lessened in comparison to what it used to be. Many of the ideas of Marxism were adopted into the Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx. Karl Marx believed that “ The worker is alienated because he has no control over the labor or product which he produces” ( Philosophy - AllAboutPhilosophy.org). The Communist Manifesto appeals to the labor force and it is adopted for the reason that the working class wants to be on the same level as the rich.



"History Archive." //Marxists Internet Archive//. Web. 26 Aug. 2011. "What Is Marxism." //Philosophy - AllAboutPhilosophy.org//. Web. 26 Aug. 2011. "Documents on the Russian Revolution." //Marxists Internet Archive//. Web. 26 Aug. 2011.

__Culture__ Denison Spencer

Marxism founder Karl Marx believed that society operated at its best when, in each social class, there existed a knowledge of one’s place. This made each class into a sort of unit, with the ultimate goal being a more cohesive society than capitalism allows for. Marx stated in his 1858 manuscript //Grundrisse//, "Society does not consist of individuals, but expresses the sum of interrelations, the relations within which these individuals stand." As Marx intended, this ideal appealed especially to the working class. Numerous countries with stronger lower classes, such as China, Vietnam, North Korea, and various Eastern European countries at some point adopted government systems based around Marxism. Widespread acceptance of the ideals of Marxism led to the foundation of similar political ideologies, including Socialism, Communism, Leninism and Maoism.

The main goal of these ideologies was to create a society with increased quality of living. Leninism founder Vladimir Lenin stated, “This conversion [capitalism to socialism] will directly result in an immense increase in productivity of labour, […] and the replacement of the remnants, the ruins of small-scale, primitive, disunited production by collective and improvedlabour.” This evolution of Marxism into narrower ideologies led to the adoption of their principles. Many countries’ governments have aspects of, or are even centered around, these ideals. For example, China is a Communist country, while Germany has an effective labor force, an ideal of Socialism. Different interpretation of Marx’s ideology has led to the creation of many of the world’s powerful nations.

Service, Robert (2008) (in English), //Comrades: Communism: A World History//, Pan MacMillan

“Marxism and the National Order” (in English). //Marxist Internet Archive.// 26 August 2011.