Karl Marx was a German philosopher who developed the theories of communism, socialism and Marxism. He believed that history is determined by class struggle and conflicts between social classes, and that under capitalism the bourgeoisie exploit the proletariat. Marx wrote influential works such as The Communist Manifesto and Das Kapital which formed the basis of Marxism and analyzed the capitalist mode of production. Marx saw communism as the final stage in history where private property is abolished and society is organized for the common good of all people.

2. Marx was a German philosopher, economist,
sociologist, historian, journalist, and
revolutionary socialist. Marx's work in
economics laid the basis for the current
understanding of labour and its relation to
capital, and has influenced much of subsequent
economic thought.

3. Marx born into a
wealthy middle-class
family in Trier, Marx
studied at the
University of Bonn
and the University of
Berlin where he
became interested in
the philosophical
ideas of the Young
Hegelians.

4. He moved to Paris in 1843, where he began writing for radical
newspapers and met Friedrich Engels, who would become his
lifelong friend and collaborator. In 1849 he was exiled and
moved to London together with his wife and children, where he
continued writing and formulating his theories about social and
economic activity.

5. was a German social
scientist, author,
political theorist,
philosopher, and father
of Marxist theory,
together with Karl
Marx.

6. In 1848 he co-authored The Communist Manifesto with
Karl Marx, and later he supported Marx financially to do
research and write Das Kapital. After Marx's death,
Engels edited the second and third volumes.
Additionally, Engels organized Marx's notes on the
"Theories of Surplus Value," which he later published as
the "fourth volume" of Capital.

7. The Communist Manifesto: one of
the most influential political
manuscripts published in 1848. It
presents an analytical approach to the
class struggle, the problems of
capitalism and the capitalist mode of
production.
The book contains Marx and Engels'
theories about the nature of society
and politics, that in their own words,
"The history of all hitherto existing
society is the history of class
struggles".

8. Capital: Critique of Political
Economy is a critical analysis of
political economy published in 1867
intended to reveal the economic laws
of the capitalist mode of production.
Karl Marx proposes that the
motivating force of capitalism is in
the exploitation of labor, whose
unpaid work is the ultimate source of
surplus value and then profit both of
which concepts have a specific
meaning for Marx.

9. Marxism
??????

11. Marxists believe that they and they
alone have an empirical, scientific
approach to human history and society

13. All societies are ddiivviiddeedd iinnttoo ttwwoo ggrroouuppss::

14. All of human history
can be explained and
predicted by the
competition between
antagonistic economic
classes. Or Marx said,
“The history of all
hitherto existing society
is the history of class
struggles.”

15. Owners eexxppllooiitt wwoorrkkeerrss aanndd lliivvee ooffff tthhee
mmoonneeyy wwhhiicchh tthhee wwoorrkkeerrss eeaarrnn..
WWoorrkkeerrss ppuutt uupp wwiitthh tthhiiss iinneeqquuaalliittyy bbeeccaauussee::
11..TThheeyy aarree oopppprreesssseedd wwaaggee ssllaavveess aanndd
ccaannnnoott ffiigghhtt tthhee ssyysstteemm..
22..TThheeyy aarree iinnddooccttrriinnaatteedd bbyy iiddeeoollooggyy aanndd
rreelliiggiioonn iinnttoo bbeelliieevviinngg wwhhaatt tthheeyy aarree ttoolldd bbyy
tthhee ppoowweerrffuull..

16.  Social classes are competing in essence for control
of the state.
 As Marxists would put it: the class that controls the
Mode of Production also controls the State.
 Marx did not spend much time examining the state
or political institutions. Political life is an illusion or
distortion of reality, so why study that distortion? It is
better to concentrate on the reality behind the veil of
politics: the economic structure of society.

17.  Power was held by a minority (the elite or
bourgeoisie) who had access to capital and could use
their money and power to generate more wealth.
 The majority of the population (the mass or
proletariat) had only their labor (strength and time) to
help them make a living.
 Industrialization had meant that the elite were the
only ones who had access to the means of production.

18. Without the ability to produce for
themselves, the mass were dependent on the
elite for survival.
 To maximize profits, the elite needed to
get as much labor from the mass for as little
cost as possible.
The elite needed the mass to accept their
position as powerless workers.

19. What is
communism?

20. Communism is a political philosophy
which argues that all men (and women)
should have equal rights to wealth.
Communism is a political philosophy
which argues that all men (and women)
should have equal rights to wealth.
A theoretical economic system
characterized by the collective ownership
of property and by the organization of labor
for the common advantage of all members.

21. Communist symbolism consists of a series of symbols
that represent (either literally or figuratively) a variety
of themes associated with communism. These themes
may include:
 Revolution
 The proletariat
 The peasantry
 Agriculture
 International solidarity.

22. The hammer stands for the
industrial working-class while
the sickle represents the
agricultural workers; together
the hammer and sickle
represent the unity of these
two groups.

23. The five-pointed red star: It sometimes
understood to represent the five fingers of
the worker's hand, as well as the five
continents. Or it represents the five social
groups that would lead Russia to
communism: the youth, the military, the
industrial laborers, the agricultural
workers or peasantry, and the
intelligentsia.

25. Capitalism is an economic system in which trade,
industry, and the means of production are largely
owned and operated for profit.
Capitalism generates inequalities of
income and wealth.

26. Disadvantages
Rich get richer, the poor get poorer.
It’s not accepted in most societies.
People in power limit diversity and
competition (weakens the system as a
whole).
The consumer holds power in the
economy.

27. Marx’s 6 stages of history
Marx thought all of Communism
history is a STRUGGLE
between haves and have
nots.
Primitive
Communis
m
Slave
society
Capitalism
Socialism
Feudalism

28. Primitive Communism: this is how humans first
lived together – in small tribes. Primitive means
‘not very advanced’ e.g. hunting and gathering.
Communism means that everything was shared
amongst the tribe – food, jobs, belongings. No-one
owned land.

29. Slave Societies = Greeks &
Romans, this is the beginning
of class struggle between
the haves and have nots.

30. The king becomes the ruler
over all the people. He gives
land and privileges to ‘nobles’
who rule the people for him.
The people are kept
uneducated and told that God
chose the king to rule. The
church helps the king this way.
As trade develops, some people
get richer. This leads to
Capitalism…..

31. The business owners or capitalists get
richer while the workers do all the hard
work. The capitalists get more power to
serve their own interests
Capitalism creates a huge
working-class of people who soon
get angry at the way they are
treated. They organize in unions
and demand changes. This will
lead to a revolution and
Socialism…

32. In the Socialist
revolution all
the rulers –
kings, churches,
capitalists are
got rid of.
The workers take control of
the country to produce
things for everyone. So
nothing is made for profit, all
people benefit from
education and health. These
ideas spread across the
world to create Communism….

33. Communism = No government
controls the means of
production…no classes in
society
Means of Production = All
of the expensive goods
that you need to be
wealthy in a capitalist
society.