A helpful insight into the mind of a Communist/Marxist
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Although only 40 pages long, you get an insight into the way that both Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels felt about the world they lived in and how it could change for the greater good (in their opinion anyway). I do encourage anyone with even a minor interest in European politics, to give this book a try.
Even though I was fascinated by the two authors ideology (Ultimately, the hope that a Proletariat will rise to conquer the all-oppressing Bourgeoise, in every country) I do feel that they did not make clear any kind of policies that they would enforce after they took power. All it seems is that they want to get the oppressers out, but after that they don't seem to know what they want to do (despite destroying any kind of private property and attempting to establish an equalised economy, which is mentioned countless times within the Manifesto). This failure to think of anything else may be one of the reasons why Communism failed so miserably in Europe.
Don't get me wrong, I feel that the theory of Communism is the greatest piece of political thought. It's just that when it is put not practive, it all goes horribly wrong. Communists (including Marx and Engels) seem to feel that everyone will just see that their ideology is the best, agree with them and allow them to do whatever they like. Marx and Engels fail to comprehend that not all humans think and feel about the world like they do, when people reach the top, they are corrupted by power and then their greed is all they care about (take Joseph Stalin as an example). It does seem that the authors are hoping for a bit much. I also found it funny near the end when they spoke of the "imminent" Proletariat uprising in Germany and that Communists should mainly focus on that country so that it could be taken from the Bourgeoise, when not even 100 years later we all know who was in charge of Germany. Definately not a friend of the Proletariat.
Overall, I found it to be a fascinating read, and credit to the well thought out introduction, which gave more imformation on the origins of Communism and the backgrounds of Marx and Engels. I recommend this book to everyone.
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The introduction alone is worth your money
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I will leave others to debate the relative merits of the actual Manifesto and say a couple of words about the introduction because the product distinction - criminally - doesn't seem to mention it. Gareth Stedman-Jones' introduction is a book in itself, longer than the Manifesto and an excellent and absolutely compelling introduction to the intellectual and historical context. By framing the intellectual debates of the Young Hegelians and others in a rich historical narrative Stedman-Jones makes them positively fascinating! He tells the story of the life of the young Karl Marx and describes his interactions with the intellectuals of the time, showing that Marx borrowed pretty much every element of his early (more philsophical) work from those around him but that his particular genius was to combine them all in such original formations. He even throws in a bit of completely original research about why Marx shied away from making his call for socialism a moral imperative (it was radical egoist Stirner's influence apparently). Its a hell of a lot of knowledge crammed into a very small space in a fascinating and readable manner and will double your appreciation and understanding of the Manifesto itself. All in all: if your trying to work out which edition to buy - get this one for the intro!
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The Communist Manifesto - still relevent
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After the Berlin wall fell, the so-called "communism" that "Marx envisioned" fell with it. Or so we are told. In actuality the class struggle that Marx wrote about in this booklet is still alive and kicking. The proletariat is still, according to Mr. Marx, destined to overthrow the bourgeoisie, fulfilling its' historical role. But we are told "No"; capitalism is the answer to all our problems now, it offers us democracy and freedom. Nothing could be father from the truth. In fact, capitalism doesn't work at all for the majority of the world's people: it is a grotesque caricature of freedom that Marx understood exactly. The victory of the individual comes with the destruction, the mass overthrow of capitalism. Do not let the likes of Firedman and others fool you. Serfdom already exists; the Soviet Union and others were just as fake as capitalism, and, as Marx pointed out "The emancipation of the working class must be an act of the working class".
This is not a manifesto like the Labour Part has a manifesto. It is a philosophical document that is invaluable to the labout movement and to working people worldwide.
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Future prospects
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Read this in context and as of its time. It's a Manifesto, just as Labour or the Conservarives or George Bush put out party manifestos at each election (or at least they did when they at least pretended to have policies and an idiology that went beyong simply making the world safe for the rich to get richer).
It's an election leaflet, party rallying call and outline of policies all in one. And what is the message? You poor take courage, you rich take heed...the World Turned Upside Down (where the rich and powerful become equal to the rest of us) is dawning. As a Socialist Party member that is this reviewers life work.
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This edition has the greatest literary introduction ever
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Greatest explanatory introduction ever, in fact could be as important or good as the book itself, really does Engels justice.
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