May 5, 1818 to Mar. 14, 1883
Founder of scientific socialismby Rit Nosotro First Published:: 2003
Karl Heinrich Marx was a German philosopher, economist, and the founder Marxism otherwise known as Scientific Socialism. He believed that social class distinctions should be abolished and that all personal possessions should be removed from individuals and given to the state for the good of society. He was a revolutionist whose ideas have lived on after his death and have been one of the greatest influences in history. Before the collapse of the USSR, over one third of the world followed his teachings through Communism, Socialism, and Marxism.
Karl Marx was born in Prussia (West Germany) on May 5, 1818. Both of his parents were of Jewish descent, but converted to Christianity. He had a lot of potential; he did well in school, went to a university, and even studied theology and his doctorate in philosophy. At one point he considered becoming a Lutheran preacher. But that was not his lot. He took a job as the editor of the Rheinische Zeitung, a newspaper based in Cologne. Karl posted so many of his own radical ideas that the paper was banned in Prussia altogether. In 1843 he married Jenny von Westphalen, a childhood friend. When his newspaper was banned, he decided that Paris would be a better place to live since it was more “hospitable to revolutionary ideas”. In 1843 he moved to Paris with his wife. Karl knew that the heart of Paris followed the teachings of Jean Jacques Rousseau, a man who said that the progression of science and arts was corrupting people. Rousseau was a main factor in the cause of the French Revolution. In Paris, Karl met Friedrich Engels. They immediately became close lifelong friends as they shared similar socialist ideas.
By 1845, Karl once again had to move. This time to Brussels. Marx and Engels were commissioned by the Communist league to express their ideas in the Communist Manifesto while living in Brussels. This document has had a major impact on the world. They finished the Manifesto at the perfect time, right before the February French Revolution. Due to the political upheaval in Germany at the time, Marx could finally go back to Cologne and start up the Neue Rheinische Zeitung. Only to be banned once again in 1849. He moved to London to try once again to spread his ideas everywhere. After all that he went through, people were just starting to be accepting of his ideas. The first group was called the International Workingmen’s Association, a group of Germans. In 1867, Marx wrote and published the first volume of Das Kapital. By 1871 his name was well known all over Europe. Some of his ideas include the abolition almost all personal ownership of anything, abolishing the right to inheritance, and having the government control communication and transportation.
He lived off of the charity of others, especially Engel and his wife’s family. His entire family lived in poverty for 11 years, while Karl was off at the British museum studying to refine his theories. His wife suffered breakdowns and she died in 1881. In 1883 his oldest daughter of seven children died, and Karl died shortly after.
Karl Marx was a man devoted to a cause without regard for the biblical truths that he had been taught as a child. He helped to start one of the worst political systems ever. His beliefs led to the removal of individual freedoms and opportunities for personal advancement through hard work. Although Karl Marx ideally based some of his beliefs on everyone working for the betterment of everyone else, he did not recognize the core human condition of selfishness that Adam Smith had acknowledged. Marxism led to an oppression of the people under government control of not only the means of production, but even religion, transportation and communication propaganda.