‘Marx: A Very Short Introduction’ by Peter Singer is a philosophical introduction to and commentary on a German philosopher, sociologist, economist and revolutionary socialist Karl Marx.
Digests of each chapters are below.
Chapter 1 – A brief biography of Marx.
Chapter 2 – Marx was deeply influenced by philosophy of the Hegelian system. During his student days in Berlin he was a young hegelian. In ‘the Phenomenology of Mind’ Hegel described the entire development of Mind overcomes contradiction or opposition. Mind is ‘alienated’ from itself and it becomes the same great whole in its developments. This universal mind finally achieves self-knowledge and freedom. Young Hegelians rejected Hegel’s idealism, and they think religions and authority of states are illusion. It impossible for human beings to regard themselves as ‘the highest divinity’.
Chapter 3 – Left Hegelian theologian Ludwig Feuerbach insisted philosophy begin with the material world. He considered existence precedes thought. Further more Marx stated money, neither religion nor philosophy, is the obstruction to human freedom.
Chapter 4 – Marx placed the proletariat within the framework of Hegelian philosophy. Philosophical theory need to be actualized by practical force, and that force is provided by proletariat. Proletariat possessing nothing can liberate themselves only by liberating all humanity.
Chapter 5 – The alienation from their own nature is that also they are alienated from each other. By Marx’s view, economic life is ultimately real rather than mind or consciousness. So the true total solution to alienated labour, private property, class division and any other problems of capitalism is communism.
Chapter 6 – Marx’s economic theory based on his historical materialism which is a combination of German idealism and the materialist conception of history ‘dialectical materialism’. Marx’s theory of history is a consideration of a human state of alienation. According to him, practical activities solve theoretical problems. To solve philosophical problems, we must change the world. So revolutionary activity is the matter. In modern societies the social power is the productive force of individuals. Thus the production under communism would abolish the alienation between men and their products.
Chapter 7 – Marx divided society into two spheres, the ‘economic base’ and the ‘superstructure’. And the economic base construct the superstructure. Thus society starts with power of production, or ‘productive forces’. The productive forces give rise to relations of production, and these relations constitute the economic structure of society. Law, politics, religions, ethics and moral are superstructure in a society. Marx’s idea of the goal of world history was the liberation of real human beings. By the development of human productive forces, human beings free themselves from the tyranny of nature and their own government of the world.
Chapter 8 – On this chapter, author comments theory of Marxist economics. He applied Marxist key concepts such as use-value, exchange-value, commodity, objectified labour, living labour, surplus value, alienation and necessary labour. Capitalists extend surplus value by the labour-power of proletarians, and pay only the exchange-value of labour as commodity in the labour market. Human relationship in the capitalism societies appears as the shape of the value of a commodity.
Chapter 9 – Marx wished replace capitalism with communism as social system. Communism is the final form of society and the answer to all problems. In communism society, Marx thought, universal interest of its people matches universal content or products. And communism solves the conflicts in previous society between man and nature, between man and man, between freedom and right, and between class and class. But later in life Marx abandoned the Utopian view of communism and necessity of revolution. Communism should be realized by social reforms.
Chapter 10 – Marx achieved scientific discoveries about economics and society? Whether Marx’s theory is scientifically correct or not, we should reconsider it as philosophy or systematic study to solve the problems of the modern society. Socialism societies in the twentieth century are collapsed by tracing to Marx’s misconception of the flexibility of human nature.
This book is a today’s usual balanced neutral introduction to philosophy, economics and thought of Marx. Comparatively Singer concentrate on philosophical problems of human liberty and human nature in society treated by Marx. Also author introduces the essence of ‘Marxist economic theory’ sufficiently. Author don’t conclude whether Marx’s theory is correct or not. Author raises a question of how we think about true liberty and proper society by reconsidering of Marx. Important matters are human nature in production, alienation from labour and commodities, labour theory of value, relation between individual and collective interests, and political domination in capitalism society.
Thus Marx’s optimistic view to flexibility of human nature is disfunction in actual socialism societies in the twenties century. But even today, Marxist theory is valuable to rethink and reform present free capitalism nations. We should applicate achievements of Marx. So I recommend this little good introduction to beginners who start to study Marxist theory.
Marx (Very Short Introductions)
Peter Singer
Oxford University Press, Oxford, 12 Oct 2000
128 pages, £7.99 $11.95
ISBN: 978-0192854056
Contents:
Preface
Abbreviations
List of Illustrations
1. A Life and its Impact
2.The Young Hegelian
3. From God to Money
4. Enter the Proletariat
5. The First Marxism
6. Alienation as a Theory of History
7. The Goal of History
8. Economics
9. Communism
10. An Assessment
Note on Sources
Further Reading
Index
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