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The Communist Manifesto (Penguin Classics) | 
 enlarge | Authors: Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels
Creator: Gareth Stedman Jones
Publisher: Penguin Classics
Category: Book
List Price: $8.00
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Rating:  255 reviews
Sales Rank: 3189
Media: Paperback
Pages: 304
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 7.7 x 5 x 1
ISBN: 0140447571
Dewey Decimal Number: 335.422
EAN: 9780140447576
ASIN: 0140447571
Publication Date: August 27, 2002
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Amazon.com Review
"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.
Product 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.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 250 more reviews...
 Education and Insight January 5, 2009
Joe (Belize)
As other reviewers have noted, regardless of one's political views this is an important work. Beyond its historical significance, reading it provides a glimpse into what made it so popular for so long: the authors' new world view, their amazing foresight (and false predictions!), their rallying cry to radicals everywhere.
This edition provides excellent insight into the background, influences and setting of its writing. The introduction is great history and education, but even if one reads only the actual Manifesto, the end notes add so much! And while the end notes are almost as long as the work itself, don't neglect them: they add so much insight into the environment (and, as one reviewer here mentions, Marx's grudges) in which it was written.
I'm glad I finally read this - and I'm glad I picked up this edition; I've now a much better understanding of its adherents' tenets and philosophy.
An important work of historical significance January 4, 2009
Charles E. Stevens
Beloved by many, reviled by many more, from a literary standpoint it is amazing that a book 150+ years old probably evokes stronger emotions now than when it was first published. Of course, reading the Manifesto now, it is nearly impossible to separate this small ideological work from the historical events before, during, and after the Cold War that indelibly etched people's impressions of "Communism" into their minds. Adherents of Communism protest that the regimes in the USSR and China under Stalin and Mao were not truly "communist" (and they are likely correct in their protestation), but the reality is that for most people born and raised on this side of the Iron Curtain, the communist ideology of Marx and Engels became inseparable from the communism-in-practice of self-identified communists like Mao, Kim, Castro, and Stalin. All became the "face" of Commumism for many, whether rightfully or not.
Today, the Manifesto is still a shocking document. Full of pessimism about the old order and hope for a new one, the reader cannot help but be absorbed by the text from the first mention of the "spectre of Communism" haunting Europe to the final cry for the working man to cast off his chains and unite. There is passion, youthfulness, and idealism behind the words; an urgency captured by an appeal more to the heart than to the mind. After all, this is an intendedly propagandist piece for mobilizing the working class: Marx and Engels probably figured, what proletarian has time to read and digest the vast tome of Das Kapital?
Put into its historical context, however, perhaps it should not be so shocking that a work like the Manifesto emerged given the circumstances. A series of revolutions and restorations marked the violent death throes of feudalism, which did not go quietly into the night. Seeing the end of a political, economic, and social order that had reigned supreme over Europe for centuries, it should not be surprising that Marx did not place much faith in the permanence of the status quo, nor did he underestimate the power of insurrection. It should not be all that surprising that class struggle and the oppression of the working class should capture Marx's attention either, for we only need to read the works of history or the fiction of his contemporaries to know that the gap between the "haves" and have-nots" in the beginning of the industrial age was quite extreme. This is clear, whether one is reading the Manifesto or Oliver Twist. Social issues of poverty, illiteracy, poor health care, etc. makes the plight of the exploited understandably dire and immediate. It is no wonder that Marx expected capitalism as he knew it to sow the seeds of its own ruin.
But what happened was not the collapse of capitalism, but its evolution. The fact that modern readers are as horrified by the conditions described by Dickens as Marx was speaks to the fact that capitalism and social progress are not mutually exclusive phenomena. The reality is that just as "pure" Communism has never been practiced, neither has "pure" Capitalism. Remembering that Adam Smith was as much moral philosopher as (political) economist, this is not so surprising. Indeed, it is interesting that of the ten policies clearly articulated by Marx in the Manifesto, a number of them (progressive taxation, strong central banks, free education, etc.) are in practice in capitalist societies around the world today. Some have argued that this simply represents the adoption of Marxist ideas into capitalism, but let's remember that Adam Smith advocated a progressive tax long before Karl Marx did. What's more important is the fact that disparate theories can apparently support strikingly similar policies. For me, I think it's important to recognize that all systems of social organization have their warts, and that all systems can learn something from the others: no single ideology has a monopoly on good ideas.
My intent is not to get into a discussion of the relative merits of capitalism versus communism, because others have already done so much more elegantly and persuasively than I. My final point to make is that I believe the Communist Manifesto is a book that should be read, regardless of where you stand on the political and economic spectrum. It is a book of importance given its immense influence on subsequent historical events. It is also a valuable reminder that the economic, political, and social spheres are very much interrelated in their evolution. A diversity of opinions can only serve to improve the status quo, and it is my hope that readers can approach the Manifesto with an objective mind for critical analysis of its merits and its flaws.
 Working-Class Guide December 30, 2008
Eric Boxtel (Providence, RI USA)
Written by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels at the request of the 2nd Congress of the Communist League, the Communist Manifesto was the first document expounding the basic ideas of scientific socialism. The Manifesto's basic premise is that in bourgeois society, two main and antagonistic classes, the bourgeoisie and the proletariat, are engaged in an irreconcilable struggle. Having become the economically dominant class, the bourgeoisie seized state power and has used it to defend its selfish class interests and to suppress the toilers.
For the first time in the social sciences, Marx and Engels defined the place of capitalism in human society. They show its progressive character compared to preceding systems and also the inevitability of its downfall. They demonstrate that the entire history of society has been the history of the struggle of classes with the exception of the primitive communal system.
Marx and Engels reveal the irreconcilable contradictions in bourgeois society. Capitalist relations of production become an obstacle to further progress. The contradiction between the social nature of production and private forms of appropriation causes economic crises, during which finished goods and productive forces are continuously destroyed.
The Manifesto proves the role of the proletariat as the gravedigger of capitalist society and the builder of communism. It is the working class that will liberate society from oppression by replacing capitalism with a form of public ownership. Marx and Engels declare that the working class could fulfill this task through a struggle against the bourgeoisie, through socialist revolution.
The Manifesto emphasizes that the destruction of capitalism and the abolition of exploitation of man by man will end oppression and international enmity. Marx and Engels note that one of the basic principles of the revolutionary activity of Communists in different countries is their mutual aid and support in the struggle against social oppression and exploitation, arising from their common goals. Explaining the great and humane goals of Communism, Marx and Engels show the unsoundness of bourgeois ideologists' attacks on Communists. They expose the class limitations and self-interested nature of bourgeois ideas, such as those of property, ethics, marriage, and homeland.
The Communist Manifesto opened the way to a new era in the history of mankind and initiated the great revolutionary movement for the socialist transformation of the world. As Lenin wrote, this little booklet is worth whole volumes. To this day its spirit inspires and guides the entire organized working class of the world.
Raising Cain November 20, 2008
Seth Davidson (Los Angeles)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This brilliantly written book neatly explains communism in brief, cogent, powerful language. All societies except for primitive tribal ones are built on class struggle. The struggle involves the few exploiting the many for their labor. The social phases of society are scientifically determined and unvarying: first tribal, then feudal, then bourgeois, then proletarian.
The feudal society, ruled by kings and aristocrats, exploits the masses as slaves, serfs, and craftsmen. The bourgeois society overthrows the aristocracy and continues the exploitation of the masses, who are now workers rather than slaves. The workers finally revolt against their bourgeois masters, abolish private property, and put the means of production into the hands of the state.
Marx's simple theory is compelling, sustained by countless historical examples and by his analysis of the relationship between capital and labor. He drives home the point by analyzing the pernicious effects of capital when work becomes a commodity that drives workers into subsistence existence. The world is filled with sweatshops and factories every bit as horrific as the ones Marx described in early 19th Century England, and the common denominator certainly seems to be the limitless desire to concentrate capital in the hands of those individuals and shareholders who control the means of production.
The Kindle introduction to this book points out that it's unfair and impossible to criticize Marx since no society has ever truly implemented his vision of communism. On the other hand, Marx's argument that the proletarian revolution and abolition of private property is inexorable in the developed bourgeois state has not been borne out.
The Communist Manifesto is a quick and compelling read, and a masterful exposition of the principles of communism. It's a shame I waited this long to finally read it.
Barak Obamas favourite Book October 22, 2008
shmujew
3 out of 26 found this review helpful
Barak Obama is a muslim and this is his way of taking over america with communism .....slavery is commensurate with islam and this book is his means to the end of moving ever faster towards an american islamic caliphate
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