The Communist Manifesto

The Communist Manifesto is a political pamphlet written by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels in 1848. It is one of the most influential political texts in history and outlines the principles and goals of communism as a political and economic system. The Manifesto begins by explaining the historical development of class struggle arguing that throughout history society has been divided into classes based on ownership of the means of production. The Manifesto then argues that the capitalist system is inherently exploitative as it allows a small class of capitalists to profit from the labor of the working class. Marx and Engels go on to outline the principles of communism arguing that the means of production should be collectively owned by the workers and that society should be organized around the principle of from each according to his ability to each according to his needs. They also argue that the overthrow of capitalism and the establishment of communism is inevitable and that the working class should organize itself to bring about this revolution. The Manifesto concludes with a call to action for the working class urging them to unite and overthrow the capitalist system. It ends with the famous line Workers of the world unite! You have nothing to lose but your chains.