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Ben Palli Final Experience FEXPA '21-22 Final

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The Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx and Friederich Engels

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The Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx and Friederich Engels

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Global Context: London, England, 1848
In the mid-19th century, political unrest and class conflict was present throughout the world, especially in Europe. Capitalism was the most dominant form of economic and political structure. In 1848, the Revolutions of 1848 (also called the Springtime of the Peoples) occurred. These uprising of the lower and middle classes happened throughout Europe.

Primary Source: The Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx and Friederich Engels (1848)
Written by German philosophers Karl Marx (1818-1883) and Friederich Engels (1820-1895), the Communist Manifesto originally released in London, England in 1848. Marx, the father of Marxism, writes a framework for communism. The pamphlet also explains the issues of a capitalist society. The largest issue that they highlight is the constant conflict between the 'haves' and the 'have nots,' which results in the unhappiness of the working class, and ultimately revolution. They argue that this cycle continues to repeat itself.

Excerpt(s): (the full document is attached above)
“Let the ruling classes tremble at a Communistic revolution. The proletarians have nothing to lose but their chains.”

“It has resolved personal worth into exchange value, and in place of the numberless indefeasible chartered freedoms, has set up that single, unconscionable freedom—Free Trade. In one word, for exploitation, veiled by religious and political illusions, it has substituted naked, shameless, direct, brutal exploitation.”

Analysis:
From the excerpt, the quote, "the proletarians have nothing to lose but their chains," proves the oppression of the working class. In the Communist Manifesto, Marx and Engels suggest that free trade "exploits" the working class. They also point out the irony of the association between capitalism and freedom. Again, the authors argue how capitalism results in perpetual class conflict, which leads to social unrest and ultimately revolution. They state how this cycles repeats itself. They provide a framework of communism, suggesting that it avoids these issues. Ultimately, capitalism and its privileged participants serve as the global oppressors of the working class. The manifesto is their form of rebellion.

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Written: Late 1847;
First Published: February 1848;
Source: Marx/Engels Selected Works, Vol. One, Progress Publishers, Moscow, 1969, pp. 98-137;
Translated: Samuel Moore in cooperation with Frederick Engels, 1888;
Transcription/Markup: Zodiac and Brian Baggins;
Proofed: and corrected against 1888 English Edition by Andy Blunden 2004;
Copyleft: Marx/Engels Internet Archive (marxists.org) 1987, 2000. Permission is granted to copy and/or distribute this document under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.

See Note in: Marx Engels Collected Works.

Contents

Preface
Preamble
I: Bourgeois and Proletarians
II: Proletarians and Communists
III: Socialist and Communist Literature
IV: Position of the Communists in Relation to the Various Existing Opposition Parties

Appendix: Prefaces to Various Language Editions

Communist Confession of Faith | Principles of Communism | Demands of Communist Party in Germany

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Manifesto issued by Marx in 1848, regarded as founding documents of Communism

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Global Context: Russia, 1899.
In 1899, under the control of Tsar Nicholas II, Russia experienced an industrial revolution. This resulted in the emergence of the working middle class in both size and political power. As a result of extremely poor working conditions along with high taxation, radical (far left) political parties emerged. Among them included Vladimir Lenin (1870-1924), a prominent Russian Marxist who most famously designed the Bolshevik (or Russian) Revolution in 1917

Primary Source: Our Programme by Vladimir Lenin (1899)
This is a newspaper article written by Vlademir Lenin Lenin wrote the article for an illegal social-democratic newspaper, Robochia Gazeta. Police intervention and censorship laws prevented Lenin's work from ever being  published.

Excerpt: (a link to the entire text is provided above)

“The free right to call meetings, to join in unions, to have their own newspapers and to send their representatives to the National Assembly… In order to obtain these rights, a political fight must be carried on. In Russia, not only the workers but all the citizens are deprived of political rights. Russia is an absolute monarchy.”

Analysis:
In this excerpt, Lenin details what rights Russian citizens (especially the lower and working class) should have, including freedom of assembly (including making unions), freedom of press, and better representation in the government. He asserts that these rights can only be obtained through violence and uprising. He concludes the excerpt by stating that every Russian citizen is "deprived of political rights," is an absolute inferior to the Tsar. This excerpt provides evidence of the citizen oppression (politically, economically, and socially). This disregard for Russian citizens by the government propelled figures, such as Lenin, to bring attention to the injustices and attempt to violently improve their situation, regardless of the consequences of treason.

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Vladimir Ilyich Lenin

The Military Programme of the Proletarian Revolution

Written: Written in September 1916
Published: First published in the magazine Jugend-Internationale Nos. 9 and 10, September and October 1917. First published in Russian in 1929 in the second and third editions of Lenin's Collected Works, Vol. XIX. Translated from the German. Signed: N. Lenin. Published according to the magazine text.
Source: Lenin'Collected Works, Progress Publishers, 1964, Moscow, Volume 23, pp. 77-87.
Translated: M. S. Levin, The Late Joe Fineberg and Others
Transcription: Zodiac
HTML Markup: B. Baggins, D. Walters, & Kevin Goins
Public Domain: Lenin Internet Archive, 1993(z), 2000(bb,dw), 2002, 2005, 2008. You may freely copy, distribute, display and perform this work; as well as make derivative and commercial works. Please credit "Marxists Internet Archive" as your source.

The "Military Programme of the Proletarian Revolution" (in a letter Lenin refers to it as an article "On Disarmament") was written in German and meant for publication in the Swiss, Swedish and Norwegian Left Social-Democratic press. However, it was not published at the time. Lenin somewhat re-edited it for publication in Russian. The article "The 'Disarmament' Slogan" appeared in Sbornik Sotsial-Demokrata No. 2, Decmeber 1916 (see pp. 94-104 of this volume).

The original, German text appeared in Jugend-Internationale, organ of the International League of Socialist Youth Organisations, Nos.9 and 10, September and October 1917, under the heading "Das Militärprogramm der proletarischen Revolution". The article was reprinted with this editorial forward: "In our day, when Lenin is one of the most spoken-of leaders of the Russian revolution, the following article by this veteran revolutionary stalwart, in which he sets out a large part of his political programm, is of especial interest. We received it shortly before his departure from Zurich in April 1917." The heading was apparently given by the editors of Jugend-Internationale.

Jugend-Internationale (The Youth International)-Organ of the International League of Socialist Youth Organizations, which was associated with the Zimmerwald Left. It was published from September 1915 to May 1918 in Zurich.

Contents

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Lenin: The Military Programme of the Proletarian Revolution

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Written: Written in September 1916 Published: First published in the magazine Jugend-Internationale Nos. 9 and 10, September and October 1917. First published in Russian in 1929 in the second and third editions of Lenin’s Collected Works, Vol. XIX. Translated from the German. Signed: N.…

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"Melon Theater" political cartoon in Popular Rights Illustrated (1912) 

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"Melon Theater" political cartoon in Popular Rights Illustrated (1912) 

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Global Context: China, 1912
Imperialism (occurring from the 16th to the beginning of the 20th century) was era in which (mostly) European global powers forcibly took control of other regions, including China. Europeans wanted to control these regions because of trade advantages and to prevent other European countries from becoming more powerful.  Large parts of China were under foreign control along with Chinese shipping ports, main cities, and resources. Not only was China subject to outside imperialism, it was also an imperialist nation itself under the corrupt Qing Dynasty, which led to the Xinhai Revolution (1912), which ended Chinas last imperial Dynasty and established the Republic of China.

Primary Source: "Melon Theater" political cartoon in Popular Rights Illustrated (1912)
In this recurring political cartoon, multiple men in suits (representing  imperialists) attempt to cut a melon (a common symbol during this period) representing China. The cartoon is symbolic for how foreign powers wanted China's resources and the geographic power the region would give them. It expresses that the Chinese believed they were being taken advantage of by Western powers and Japan.

Analysis:
The artist represents China as a singular, united front (a whole, uncut melon), a propaganda by the Chinese government mechanism to create a foreign common enemy and thus promote Chinese nationalism. However, the ultimate Xinhai Revolution reflects disagreement among the citizens and the government, and thus a desire for change from the citizens. This domestic conflict confirms the biased nature of the image and the necessity of the Chinese government to bolster their grip on their citizens. The image reflects China’s undesired submission to European authority as a result of the events such as the Opium Wars, which reduced China’s geographic and economic power; the revolution indicates a desire to regain control and “global dominance.” It also reflects the submission of Chinese citizens to the Chinese government.

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The Burning Monk by Malcolm Browne (1963)

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The Burning Monk by Malcolm Browne (1963)

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Global Context: Saigon, South Vietnam, 1963
Considered a part of the Cold War (1947-1991), the Vietnam War (1955-1975) is the conflict between the Viet Cong and North Vietnam (supporters of communism) against South Vietnam and the United States. Out of fear of losing Asia to communism, the United States engaged in war, ultimately deploying 2.7 million American troops to Vietnam. On a broader scale, it was a conflict between the American ideals of democracy (and capitalism) and the Soviet ideals of communism. In 1963, the President of South Vietnam, Ngo Dinh Diem, a Catholic, continued to enact many anti-Buddhist laws. As a result, Vietnamese Buddhists began protesting.

Primary Source: The Burning Monk by Malcolm Browne (1963)
This photograph was shot by Malcolm Browne, an American journalist and photographer for the Associated Press. The image's subject is Quang Duc, a Vietnamese Buddhist Monk, who as the finale of a protest, set himself on fire (committing suicide) to bring attention to the oppression of Buddhists in Vietnam. This particular protest was a reaction to the recent ban of the Buddhist flag by Ngo Dinh Diem, who, shortly after the image was taken, was assassinated by Vietnamese nationalists (non-communists) during a coup. In the United States, the image  was very famous, providing American citizens evidence of the horrors of the war.

Analysis:
This image shows the rebellion of oppressed groups/individuals as the Buddhist monks protest the policies of the South Vietnamese government. The martyr Quang Duc performs the ultimate sacrifice in order to bring attention to the corruption and hypocrisy of the South Vietnamese government that supposedly promote ideals of democracy and thus freedom of religion. Quang Duc and the other monks were clearly willing to take on any ramifications in the hopes of improving the treatment of Buddhism. Released by the Associated Press, a legitimate and famous news source, this image is also a rebellion against the U.S. government as it draws attention to the unnecessary suffering occurring because of the war. Images such as these are anti-propaganda as the undermine the benevolent image of the government.

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"Fortunate Son" by Creedence Clearwater Revival

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"Fortunate Son" by Creedence Clearwater Revival

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Global Context: United States, 1969
Considered a part of the Cold War (1947-1991), the Vietnam War (1955-1975) is the conflict between the Viet Cong and North Vietnam (supporters of communism) against South Vietnam and the United States. Out of fear of losing Asia to communism, the United States engaged in war, ultimately deploying 2.7 million American troops to Vietnam. On a broader scale, it was a conflict between the American ideals of democracy (and capitalism) and the Soviet ideals of communism. During the late 1960s, towards the end of the conflict, anti-war opinions were rapidly growing among American citizens, many of whom questioned whether the government had the best interest of the American public.

Primary Source: "Fortunate Son" by Creedence Clearwater Revival (1969)
Creedence Clearwater Revival an American rock band founded in San Francisco, were among many musicians who utilized their work as a platform to express their political stances. A form of rebellion, this strategy was especially used during the late 1960s, a time when American citizens did not feel heard by the government (for example, the Civil Rights Movement). The song, "Fortunate Son" comments on the advantage of privilege Americans who express a "false patriotism."

Excerpt(s): (A link to a lyric video is included above)

“Some folks are born silver spoon in hand

Lord, don't they help themselves, Lord?

But when the taxman come to the door

Lord, the house lookin' like a rummage sale, yeah”

“Yeah-yeah, some folks inherit star-spangled eyes

Ooh, they send you down to war, Lord

And when you ask 'em, "How much should we give?"

Hoo, they only answer, "More, more, more, more"

Analysis:
The excerpts from the song mention two forms of corruption occurring in the United States. The lines, "But when the taxman come to the door Lord, the house lookin' like a rummage sale," criticizes those born with a "silver spoon in hand" (privileged Americans) who constantly evade taxes. The lines "they send you down to war" and "'How much should we give?'...'More, more, more, more'" references how people of status often escaped deployment. The ultimate critique by the song is that although the powerful, upperclass Americans are more vocal "patriots" and thus encourage the war, it is both the money and bodies of the lower and middle class who are actually sacrificing and suffering. The oppression occurred domestically because the American government disregarded their own citizens to fulfill their political goals. Encouraging citizens to refuse service, this song exemplifies rebellious citizen action in order to make change (regardless of massive consequences, including jail time).

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Creedence Clearwater Revival - Fortunate Son (Official Lyric Video)