Paste your essay in here…The revolution of 1848 grew out of deep dissatisfaction with monarchical forms of governance and widespread demands for freedom and democratic rule throughout Europe. Political awareness increased rapidly in the middle of the century as press coverage and new non-traditional ideas disseminated. Various factors including economic crises and crop failures resulted in this widespread clamour for change, initially sparking a revolution in France in February of 1848 and then sweeping through the rest of Europe. Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, both German philosophers, aimed at understanding the socio-economic challenges pervading society. They called for revolutionary changes led by active individuals. They founded “Marxism,” a branch of political thought, that rejected the existing oppression of workers and a capitalist economic system. Marxist thinkers warranted social reform on the basis of communism, emphasizing shared wealth and unification. Commissioned by the Communist League in 1847, they published the Communist Manifesto in 1848 to explain communism’s objectives and philosophy. The 12,000 page pamphlet wholly opposes capitalism and its conventions by suggesting the division of society into classes generates inequality and one-sided exploitation. According to Marx and Engels, historical political and intellectual thought stem from these class struggles and the only way to overcome them is from the oppressed (the proletariat) to overthrow the oppressor (the bourgeoisie). The document covers a plethora of issues permeating Germany and nearly all of Europe’s governance at the time. These issues include control of production means, inheritance, and most importantly class distinctions. The manifesto’s main conclusions are that the working class must have more power in society, that the means of production and wealth should be shared amongst the community, evenly, and that society should be classless.
According to Marx and Engels, capitalism was fundamentally evil. In a capitalist economy, the worker is forced to work for a low wage and sell their products to the higher, more powerful division of society. He objected capitalism’s exploitative nature on the grounds that the exploitation of workers is what they depended on to survive. In this regard, the proletariat has no choice but to be dependent on the bourgeoisie and comply to their demands. The worker is demeaned to a mechanistic role in society that has no value other than the product he offers to society. Marx suggests that this abasement strips individuals of their humanity and individuality.
Although communism and capitalism contradict each other, Marx argues capitalism is communism’s necessary predecessor. Capitalism will inevitably lead to its own collapse, thus inevitably paving the way for communism. Historically, transitions from between economic and political systems occured due to external factors, whereas the disintegration of the bourgeoisie class would be directly caused by capitalistic alienation of the proletariat, and the proletariat’s collective struggle to be free. Thus capitalism’s weak points (in the functionalist sense) become strong points when viewing the system from a communist standpoint. Although counterintuitive, capitalism allows for the existence of communism
The differences between Marx and Engels are very subtle. They generally had the same beliefs about communism and worked together in creating the Marxist theory. However, the main difference between the two philosophers is their background. Marx’ father was a Jewish lawyer who later converted to Christianity. Engels’ was a wealthy textile factory owner, for whom he later worked. Engels became a part of the family business and began writing revolutionary texts exposing the below-average working conditions capitalists, like his father, imposed on workers. Engels background prepared him to revolt against capitalism because he himself was part of the system and saw its quandaries, first hand. In contrast, Marx received grew up and lived in rather poor conditions and his education in law and philosophy is what guided his radical preference for socialism.
Leninism is a political theory based on Vladimir Lenin’s ideas and Marxist communism. It grew out of Marxism but it differs in several ways. Marxism was primarily theoretical, whereas Lenin focused more on the practical application of communism. Firstly, Lenin did not believe the proletariat’s rebellion was inevitable. He surmised that the history of imperial expansion would prevent the working class from launching a revolt. The capital they were provided with was enough to keep them from having subversive ideas. Additionally, Leninism called for organized political parties, specifically a centralized communist party which would rule on the side of the proletariat, versus Marxism’s notion of rule by the working class. Overall, Leninism adopted many Marxist ideas and applied them to reality.