Marx and
Nietzsche
Society is flawed. There are critical imbalances in it that
cause much of humanity to suffer. In, the most interesting work from this past
half-semester, The Communist Manifesto, Karl Marx is reacting to this fact by
describing his vision of a perfectly balanced society, a communist society.
Simply put, a communist society is one where all property is held in common. No
one person has more than the other, but rather everyone shares in the fruits of
their labors. Marx is writing of this society because, he believes it to be the
best form of society possible. He states that communism creates the correct
balance between the needs of the individual and the needs of society. And
furthermore thinks that sometimes violence is necessary to reach the state of
communism. This paper will reflect upon these two topics: the relationship of
the individual and society, and the issue of violence, as each is portrayed in the manifesto.
Before expounding upon these ideas, it is necessary to establish a baseline
from which to view these topics. It is important to realize that we as humans
view everything from our own cultural perspective. Marx speaks of this saying,
"Your very ideas are but the outgrowth of the conditions of your bourgeois
production and bourgeois property, just as your jurisprudence is but the will
of your class made into a law for all, a will, whose essential character and
direction are determined by the economical conditions of existence of your
class."
