The Communist ManifestoThe Communist Manifesto is too long to be a concise statement of principles and too short to be a book. It comprises approximately 17,000 words, including various introductions by Friedrich Engels. It is essentially organized into four sections. The first section introduces the Marxian idea of ​​history as class struggle. He contrasts the conditions and development of the various strata of society, "freeman and slave, patrician and plebeian, lord and serf... in a word, oppressor and oppressed". It is hypothesized how the development of each of these in history gave rise to the next step in an inevitable historical process that will ultimately culminate in the rise of a working class. Marx and Engels put forward the idea that the working class is exploited by the bourgeoisie. Posing a labor theory of value in which the value of goods and services is based strictly on the amount of labor put into them, the Manifesto asserts that all surplus that goes to the capitalist as profits is actually the "property" of the class worker who created that wealth. The second section of the Communist Manifesto addresses the nature of the new working class which he calls the proletariat. It examines its implications for the progress of society, including the abolition of property and the family. This section also highlights a kind of utopia that can only be achieved through violence and conflict with the working class wresting power from the bourgeoisie (the owners of the means of production). This conflict is also predicted to lead to the end of nation-states and ultimately all forms of government, resulting in a workers' paradise. Parts 3 and 4 of the Communist Manifesto are more arcane and relate more to the politics of the era and geographic region in which the document was written (1848). Section 3 discusses the various forms of socialism, feudal socialism, petty-bourgeois socialism, and "true" socialism. Part 4 goes on to show how these various groups interact. The document ends with a moving cry: "Workers of all countries, unite!". As you would expect, the Communist Manifesto is a statement of the intentions of a communist organization. . Yet it turned out to be much more than that. It also served as a short and concise explanation of the ideas that form the foundation of communism and...... middle of paper ......d been just one or two large brewers, now micro-breweries have become anger. Where only a few networks dominated the airwaves, hundreds of channels now proliferate. The Internet has opened up publishing to anyone with a few dollars to rent a server. The cost of entry into many, though not all, markets has become relatively low. In essence Marx was wrong not because class struggle didn't exist. Indeed there has been class warfare throughout much of history. He was wrong because he failed to see that the dialectical process would work to elevate the working class to an entrepreneurial class and not to reduce all of society to the lowest common denominator. We are still at the beginning of this process. Ultimately the efficiency brought about by the capitalist system, if allowed to operate in a free environment, will provide a high standard of living for most of the world. The Communist Manifesto still finds favor with many political groups and its principles and ideas are worthy of respect. study because it contains economic and historical truths. It also proved to be the foundation of one of the most important economic and political movements of the 20th century.