Much quoting of Smith, Ricardo and Say, but then seems to re-arrange them into his own outlook that ignores the fundamental unit of decision making: the human individual. Later, we see he believes this is oK, because each individual within the species does not, by themselves, matter. It is clear to see how the shift of the times toward mechanization made the human labor seem almost worthless. (But, in retrospect, we know it is possible for individuals to create their own value-add to their own human capital.) The last third discusses Hegel's abstraction of logic involving spirit and state. This relates to Marx's doctrine of communism and atheism, both being the ultimate of human realization. This work explains the basis of communism, ties it to other economic ideas, and shows how the times produced an ideology as much as the converse. A final part that I must refute -- Marx blames the capitalist marketers for keeping the labor class poor by continually expanding the range of products and thus their range of "need." He assumes that (a) they are unable to save instead and that (b) everything produced becomes a legitimate necessity. ( )

One of the most important works in Western thought. ( )