Bourgeoisie And Capitalism In The Communist Manifesto By Karl Marx

In this essay I will discuss what the economic theorist, political theorist and social scientist Karl Marx (and to a minor degree Friedrich Engels) outline and explain in the Communist Manifesto in regards to the Bourgeoisie being responsible for the creation of their own grave-diggers and the pattern of class struggle that Marx sees developing under the Capitalist system. I will do this by first looking at how Marx views history previous to Modern Bourgeois society and the development of the Bourgeoisie and the flaws in his viewpoint, secondly looking at how the Capitalist system only appeared exploitative and was actually in its early stages when the Communist Manifesto was written and thirdly discuss Marx's theory that the Bourgeoisie will …show more content…
And with the development of the Bourgeoisie and Capitalism came the Proletariat. According to Marx, Proletarians live only as long as they can find work. And they can only do this as long as their labor increases capital. Marx writes of how Proletarians are a commodity who are vulnerable to all the fluctuations of the market. Due to the development of machines and the division of labor the Proletarians are viewed only as an appendage to a machine. Age and sex become less important as all people are viewed simply as instruments of labor. They are exploited by the Bourgeoisie and the capitalist system. The wage which the proletarian gets is also exploited by other Bourgeoisie. Such as property owners like landlords seeking rent. Marx continues to argue that without sufficient capital, and the coming of new technology that makes specialized skills no longer useful, other classes of society, such as trade people, sink into the lower strata of society. Into the …show more content…
In order for a class to be able to be oppressed its slavish existence must be sustainable. In contrast, laborers in modern industrial society are continually suffering a deterioration of their status. And in this industrial society they become poorer and poorer. The bourgeoisie are become unfit to rule due to the fact that they cannot guarantee "an existence to its slave within its slavery." Marx also declares that the Proletariat are connected by improved communication, and by the existence they share in common in which they are exploited. They are also in the majority in society, and their numbers continually increase. The most significant trait of the Proletariat according to Marx is that they have nothing to lose. They have no power or privileges they must defend. Instead, in order to help themselves they must destroy the entire Bourgeoisie system. Due to this, when the revolution of the Proletariat occurs they will destroy the entire system of class exploitation. This stage of history that Marx is describing is the last stage. Thus, with the development of Modern Industry, the Bourgeoisie produces "its own grave-diggers. Its fall and the victory of the proletariat are equally inevitable.". Another concept developed by Prof. Schumpeter argued that capitalism, by fostering change and innovation, was a self-destructive, self-replacing, system. This was due to the fact that the market economy