Socialism: Utopian and Scientific

Summary: Engels sought to make the case for what he termed "scientific socialism" in contrast to other forms of socialism and the capitalist world in which he thought he lived. With the introductory material, he gave special attention to the reception among the English who were resistant to the historical materialism which was a foundation of the socialist system. He sought to help them understand that the English were pioneers of materialism. He dismissed philosophical problems concerning "the one and the many" by affirming that empiricism works. In his view, if one can conceive of a purpose of a thing and sense experience confirms that conception, then one knows the thing in itself. Essentially, if sense confirms sense then real show more knowledge has been obtained. Engels then provided the English with a sketch of history that demonstrated progress towards socialism. He addressed utopian socialism (with critiques that could be easily applied to his own scientific socialism) and the social upheaval of the French Revolution. Though utopian socialism, especially that practiced by Robert Owen had value, it was flawed in its foundation. What was needed was the dialectic method. That would have revealed a proper materialistic view of history and Marx's own discovery of surplus-value. To Engels, it was inevitable that capitalism would collapse on itself. The capitalist would turn to machines which would reduce the laborer to irrelevance. Eventually, society through the state would intervene and confiscate the means of production. With the proletariat in control of the means of production, all class distinctions will then be abolished, for there will no longer be an exploiting or exploited class. The state itself will also cease to exist in time, for it will no longer be necessary. As he says, "the government of persons is replaced by the administration of things."

Cons: Engels as a philosopher is sloppy. His answer to Kant's critique is almost embarrassing. That failure leaves his foundational tenet unsupported. Engels history is cherry-picked and flawed. His praise of the French Revolution does not address the bloodshed. He also overestimates the level of organization among the upper classes, presuming that they acted in unity and purpose rather than according to each of their own interests. His prophecies concerning the inevitable end of capitalism have proven to be wrong. He does not understand the nature and motivations of men. He assumes that in the economic sphere, gain in one place inevitably means loss in another. He cannot grasp that everyone can benefit even if not to the same degree.

Evaluation: Engels is clever but not grounded in reality. He cherry-picks evidence, ignores thorny issues, declares himself right on problems he does not fully understand, and makes up a narrative to package the whole thing. The time since the writing of this book serve not only to demonstrate that he was wrong but also that his ideas were destructive to mankind in a way that few other ideas have been. show less

This I feel is a good starting point for communist theory. It is very interesting to read the optimism here, it makes me wonder what Engels would think of society today and how the capitalists have mananged to stubbornly hold onto their illegitimate power.

The hardest 84 pages I've ever read. Not overly complicated, though. Probably requires multiple reads for full digestion. Conveyed a more full understanding of the contradictions of capitalism and the solutions of socialism.

Great ideas, miserable to read though

Translation:
انگلس است که از سوی برخی از دانشمندان از آن به عنوان مخترع مارکسیسم. کار او تبدیل به یکی از تاثیر گذار ترین جنبش های سیاسی از دوران مدرن. او ماتریالیسم dialectal و تاریخی -- فلسفه رسمی از تاریخ و علوم در کشورهای کمونیستی بسیاری نه تنها در توسعه است -- اما همچنین 1 مورخ مارکسیست ، انسان شناس ، فیلسوف و مفسر در تاریخ مارکس در اوایل. این کتاب آغاز می شود با حساب حرفه انگلس به عنوان یک روزنامه نگار افراطی در آلمان و show more انگلستان است. قبل از ملاقات کرد مارکس ، او خود را به عنوان منتقد صنعتی و تاثیر آن بر مردم کار ایجاد کرده است. با هم آنها پیوستند او در حال حاضر تبدیل به علت کمونیستی. با هم آنها را ترویج نقطه متمایز نظر در فلسفه و سیاست ، خلاصه شده در "مانیفست کمونیست" ، که انگلس ساخته شده کمک قابل توجهی کردند. در سال بعد خود را توسعه انگلس تفسیر مادی خود را از تاریخ ، میراث فکری او رئیس ، که تا به حال اثر عمده ای بر هنر و علوم اجتماعی است. آثار نویسنده مبدأ آن و اثر آن بر توسعه نظریه مارکسیستی و عمل ، ارزیابی ابزار آن مورد بحث و مشکلاتی است که مارکسیست ها دارند enco This is the Amazon description in Farsi. show less

Includes an essay on "The Mark".

Esse livro traz marrxismo como nasce o materialismo dialetico e histórico a descoberta de marx e interprestação materialista da historia e teoris e o socialismo se torna uma cienciaE mostra que contradição principal do capistalismo existente entre caracter social da produção e apropriaço capistalista.