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Quote by Karl Marx

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The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte

This work examines the political and social circumstances surrounding the coup of 18 Brumaire (December 2, 1851), in which Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte, nephew of Napoleon I, dissolved the French National Assembly and seized dictatorial power. The text explores the interplay of class struggles, state power, and historical repetition, famously noting that great events occur twice: first as tragedy, then as farce. It provides a critical perspective on the rise of authoritarianism within a democratic framework, focusing on the role of the peasantry, the bourgeoisie, and the proletariat in shaping political outcomes. The analysis is grounded in the specific events of mid-19th century France, offering insights into the mechanics of political manipulation and the fragility of republican institutions. more

Author

Karl Marx
Karl Marx

Karl Marx (May 5, 1818 - March 14, 1883) was a German philosopher, economist, sociologist, political theorist, and revolutionary. He is one of the founders of Marxism and his works, including 'Das Kapital' and 'The Communist Manifesto', have had a profound impact on the world. more

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“The philosophy of Hobbes, it is true, contains nothing of modern race doctrines, which not only stir up the mob, but in their totalitarian form outline very clearly the forms of organization through which humanity could carry the prerequisite for all race doctrines, that is, the exclusion in principle of the idea of humanity which constitutes the sole regulating idea of international law. With the assumption that foreign politics is necessarily outside of the human contract, engaged in the perpetual war of all against all, which is the law of the "state of nature," Hobbes affords the best possible theoretical foundation for those naturalistic ideologies which hold nations to be tribes, separated from each other by nature, without any connection whatever, unconscious of the solidarity of mankind and having in common only the instinct for self-preservation which man shares with the animal world. If the idea of humanity, of which the most conclusive symbol is the common origin of the human species, is no longer valid, then nothing is more plausible than a theory according to which brown, yellow, or black races are descended from some other species of apes than the white race, and that all together are predestined by nature to war against each other until they have disappeared from the face of the earth.”

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“It is significant that modern believers in power are in complete accord with the philosophy of the only great thinker who ever attempted to derive public good from private interest and who, for the sake of private good, conceived and outlined a Commonwealth whose basis and ultimate end is the accumulation of power. Hobbes, indeed, is the only great philosopher to whom the bourgeoisie can rightly and exclusively lay claim.... .... The consistency of this conclusion is in no way altered by the remarkable fact that for some three hundred years there was neither a sovereign who would "convert this Truth of Speculation into the Utility of Practice," nor a bourgeoisie politically conscious and economically mature enough openly to adopt Hobbes's philosophy of power.”

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“How I love to hear the rich and titled, the magistrates and the priests, how I love to watch them preach virtue to us! It is very hard to keep oneself from stealing when one has three times more than one to live! A great strain to never think of murder when one is surrounded by sycophants and slaves for whom your will is law! Truly difficult to be temperate and sober when one is at all times surrounded by the most succulent dishes! So difficult for them to be sincere when they have no reason to lie!”

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“Totul era corect; le va oferi puțin mai târziu vizitatoarelor o carafă cu oranjadă și biscuiți pudrați. Doamna Perrin nu va fi șocată de meschinăria acestei gustări. Din contră, va vedea în ea o nouă dovadă a bogăției familiei Angellier, căci, cu cât ești mai bogat, cu atât ești mai avar. Va recunoaște în ea propria-i preocupare de a face economie și acea aplecare spre ascetism care e în natura burgheziei franceze și adaugă plăcerilor ei secrete și rușinoase o amărăciune tonică.”

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