Karl Marx's Core Economic and Historical Theories

Marx's Economic Study Plan

Marx explains his plan to study the system of bourgeois economy. His initial focus was on commodities and money, reserving a comprehensive exposition of the system for his major work, Capital. According to Marx, bourgeois society is traditionally divided into three classes: the bourgeoisie (owners of capital), landowners, and the proletariat (employees). However, he argues that bourgeois society can effectively be reduced to two primary classes: the capitalist and the proletarian.

From Philosophy to Political Economy

Marx details his transition from Hegelian influence and theoretical questions of law and philosophy to economics, a field that would definitively shape the rest of his work. This shift was driven by his journalistic investigations, which provided an impetus for close observation of the social and political realities surrounding him.

Critique of Hegel's Philosophy of Law

With his Critique of Hegel's Philosophy of Law and On the Jewish Question, published in the Franco-German Yearbooks, Marx squarely addressed political theory. His critique of Hegel's philosophy of law primarily focused on issues such as the state's loss of independence and the intertwining of politics and economics.

Historical Materialism and Productive Forces

Marx concludes that economic factors are decisive in explaining historical developments. He describes the relationships between various elements, which constitute an internal dynamism driving history. The materialist conception of human social life necessitates distinguishing between productive forces and relations of production. Humans require food, drink, and shelter to live. The satisfaction of these fundamental needs drives human action, which inherently possesses a social character, as stable human relationships, beginning with the family, are essential. Social relationships emerge from the cooperation among individuals, who are compelled to produce their means of life and do so in a specific manner. Marx posits that humans are beings who are part of nature, yet, unlike animals, possess the unique capacity for productive activity, including the ability to create tools. The very nature of humanity, its history, and its thoughts are fundamentally shaped by "the material conditions of its production."

Evolution of Social Formations

A specific social formation persists until its productive forces are fully developed. Only when these forces become inadequate to meet new societal needs do new forms of production emerge, leading to the rise of a new social formation. Manufacturing facilitated the rise of an industrial middle class, while older forms of labor organization were superseded. The advent of great modern industry, driven by steam and machinery, arose from an ever-increasing demand that manufacturing alone could no longer satisfy. Consequently, the industrial middle class gave way to the modern bourgeoisie. The utility of iron, for instance, is not inherent; it becomes a goal only when humanity develops the necessary design parameters and productive capacity.