Communism has come to be considered a bad name, despite its noblest of intentions from its promising start, as one reads in this manifesto of the communist party. The class-divide is one of the most obvious and pinching forms of inequality, and always has been. The revolutions, most of them, have always been attempts to close the gap between the rich and poor of the society, and carried out mostly in bloody ways.
As the history suggests, and the present might prove of it too, that the rich people of the society, or the bourgeoise as they are called in this manifesto, eventually become indifferent of their bitter effects on the increasingly poor peoples living in that same society. Although one’s efforts along with a few strokes of fortune should count to one’s deserving of the lifestyle they lead, the fundamental equality of good-enough life for everyone should nevertheless be made sure all the time, despite the backwardness of some idle, but mostly, unfortunate people.
It is so often that the masses are not aware or clever enough to think for their own good, and are thus used by the minority of the people who do know how to work their way up in the world. In order to ensure a balance of respect and fairness in the society, laws are formed and so are government to impose them; where the quality of life is fair for everyone at the most basic levels of food, security, justice, education, and health, regardless of one’s status in the society.
But should the government go corrupt itself, and reside under the rule of the bourgeoise, then the balance of society gets disrupted and the people at the lower ends of the status quo, suffer. With no one to turn to, the poor of the society, or the proletariat as they are termed, with thinning patience of theirs, are then left with no option but to rebel and carry out the justice by their own. These revolutions come about every few centuries to bring the balance in society, under which things could go smoothly.
Communism, introduced by Marx and Engels, was such an attempt, where they rejected the unfair treatment of the proletariat by the powerful bourgeoise under the system of capitalism. The labor of the common people does but add to the capital of the bourgeoise, while giving them only enough to just survive.
This manifesto is an explanation as well as a guideline of the clash between the bourgeoise and the proletariat and how the communism would resolve that by turning the tables upside down. The tone here is very strict and provoking, and so are the demands. The first half of the manifesto builds a thorough and very convincing argument against the bourgeoise and what they are doing, while the second part explains how communism is different from other socialist movements of that time.
I am not a political student, neither as learned in economics, so reading the manifesto for me was to understand the argument for communism, whose practice has utterly failed in the modern world – perhaps because of its radicality. However, what remains worthy to remember is Marx’s vision for a just world and his precautions about what harm capitalism would do to the masses. Despite its inevitable failure of idealism for a just world, this manifesto is a reminder the justice would always fight to be heard, despite the odds.
Ratings: 4/5 **** July 31, 2021_