Changes

Dialectic was a principle created by German philosopher [[Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel]] which, although ferociously complex in his works, is based on the fairly  straightforward conception of action and reaction. A situation arises that is less than perfect ("thesis") which provokes a reaction ("antithesis"), eventually a settlement is reached ("synthesis") which, is still far from perfect and provokes its own antithesis. Hegel saw the driving force of changes being the "Geist", variously translated as "spirit" or "mind". Marx took the dialectic and replaced Geist with materialism, at root the metabolism of man. To put it bluntly: you've got to eat!. The difference between the ideal spirit and reality translates into Marx' view that man had become alienated from his true nature. Man had been created different from animals: he is creative, this is essential to his nature. However, in modern days, man is just automatically producing: he works to earn his wage, but has no tie to the product of his labour at all. This is the alienation from his true nature.

Dialectic was a principle created by German philosopher [[Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel]] which, although ferociously complex in his works, is based on the fairly  straightforward conception of action and reaction. A situation arises that is less than perfect ("thesis") which provokes a reaction ("antithesis"), eventually a settlement is reached ("synthesis") which, is still far from perfect and provokes its own antithesis. Hegel saw the driving force of changes being the "Geist", variously translated as "spirit" or "mind". Marx took the dialectic and replaced Geist with materialism, at root the metabolism of man. To put it bluntly: you've got to eat!. The difference between the ideal spirit and reality translates into Marx' view that man had become alienated from his true nature. Man had been created different from animals: he is creative, this is essential to his nature. However, in modern days, man is just automatically producing: he works to earn his wage, but has no tie to the product of his labour at all. This is the alienation from his true nature.

The necessity for material sustenance gives rise to an imperfect means of production, which changes as the internal contradictions of thesis and antithesis work themselves out. A key feature of Marx's sociology was that the competition for resources splits society into mutually antagonistic classes ("The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles.") whilst the operation of the dialectic serves to continually reduce the numbers of classes until, in the industrial age, society was almost wholly split between "bourgeoisie" and "proletariat". Captialism, according to Marx, is just one system in a long series of economic systems in the world. He held that capitalist society had strong internal inherent tensions. In the development of capitalism, capital (money) would be increasingly concentrated in the hands of a few people. The difference in income between the poorest and richest would always increase. Through economic crisis, the poor laborers would start to realize that the system would always be disadvantageous to them.

The necessity for material sustenance gives rise to an imperfect means of production, which changes as the internal contradictions of thesis and antithesis work themselves out. A key feature of Marx's sociology was that the competition for resources splits society into mutually antagonistic classes ("The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles.") whilst the operation of the dialectic serves to continually reduce the numbers of classes until, in the industrial age, society was almost wholly split between "bourgeoisie" and "proletariat". Captialism, according to Marx, is just one system in a long series of economic systems in the world. He held that capitalist society had strong internal inherent tensions. In the development of capitalism, capital (money) would be increasingly concentrated in the hands of a few people. The difference in income between the poorest and richest would always increase. Through economic crises, the poor laborers would start to realize that the system would always be disadvantageous to them.

"''Das Kapital''" ("''Capital''") seeks to demonstrate that the bourgeoisie make profits by exploitation of the proletariat.  The exploitation arises where the value of the goods produced by workers is much more than the wages paid, and this "[[surplus value]]" is literally stolen from workers by owners. Marx sought to show that the competition amongst the bourgeoisie forced them to exploit their workers as much as possible. If an individual bourgeois refused to continue the exploitation he would soon be forced into bankruptcy or be taken over by someone who would.  The result is a relentless increase in the misery of the proletariat who, eventually, would rebel and replace the existing capitalist system with a socialist/communist system. However, in his major works, Marx himself could not tell if this would make an end to the capitalist system: he knew there are too many factors in history to make a prediction possible. He did not have a clear idea about what the next stage after capitalism would be either. The increasing concentration, he thought, would facilitate a communist system. In that system, however, man also would have to eliminate his alienation. One possibility, which Marx put forward, was complete mechanisation of production, so that any man could do any job<ref>Marx, K. Foundations of the Critique of Political Economy, Berlin</ref>.

"''Das Kapital''" ("''Capital''") seeks to demonstrate that the bourgeoisie make profits by exploitation of the proletariat.  The exploitation arises where the value of the goods produced by workers is much more than the wages paid, and this "[[surplus value]]" is literally stolen from workers by owners. Marx sought to show that the competition amongst the bourgeoisie forced them to exploit their workers as much as possible. If an individual bourgeois refused to continue the exploitation he would soon be forced into bankruptcy or be taken over by someone who would.  The result is a relentless increase in the misery of the proletariat who, eventually, would rebel and replace the existing capitalist system with a socialist/communist system. However, in his major works, Marx himself could not tell if this would make an end to the capitalist system: he knew there are too many factors in history to make a prediction possible. He did not have a clear idea about what the next stage after capitalism would be either. The increasing concentration, he thought, would facilitate a communist system. In that system, however, man also would have to eliminate his alienation. One possibility, which Marx put forward, was complete mechanisation of production, so that any man could do any job<ref>Marx, K. Foundations of the Critique of Political Economy, Berlin</ref>.

===Views on Religion===

===Views on Religion===

Marx is considered very controversial in religious circles for his statement, "Religion...is the opium of the masses."  This was written in his 1843 work "A Contribution to the  [http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1843/critique-hpr/intro.htm Critique of Hegel's Philosophy of Right]" and expresses Marx's belief that religion offers a false palliative to assuage the suffering of "the oppressed", which in his view essentially blames faith in God as the hindrance to carrying out the Marxist program.

Marx' view on religion is mostly based on [[Ludwig Feuerbach's]] ideas<ref>Feuerbach, L. ''The Essence of Christianity'', New York, 1957</ref>. Marx is considered very controversial in religious circles for his statement, "Religion...is the opium of the masses."  This was written in his 1843 work "A Contribution to the  [http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1843/critique-hpr/intro.htm Critique of Hegel's Philosophy of Right]" and expresses Marx's belief that religion offers a false palliative to assuage the suffering of "the oppressed", which in his view essentially blames faith in God as the hindrance to carrying out the Marxist program.

Karl Marx is often labeled an [[anti-semite]] or a self-hating Jew for his statements such as, "Money is the jealous god of Israel, in face of which no other god may exist", "The god of the Jews has become secularized and has become the god of the world. The bill of exchange is the real god of the Jew. His god is only an illusory bill of exchange", and "What is the worldly religion of the Jew? Huckstering. What is his worldly God? Money".

Karl Marx is often labeled an [[anti-semite]] or a self-hating Jew for his statements such as, "Money is the jealous god of Israel, in face of which no other god may exist", "The god of the Jews has become secularized and has become the god of the world. The bill of exchange is the real god of the Jew. His god is only an illusory bill of exchange", and "What is the worldly religion of the Jew? Huckstering. What is his worldly God? Money".