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Marx as a Writer

Marx's work in Manifesto of the Communist Party shows himself to be a good writer, indeed. The first mark of a good writer is his knowing what he wants to say. The second mark is being able to say it in an effective way. On both counts, Marx is successful. When we consider that this 40-page polemic is one of the most well-known pieces of world literature, and that it has played a major role in the shaping of national and global politics in the 20th Century---for better or worse---we can hardly conclude other than that Marx is an excellent writer.

Marx hooks the reader immediately: "A spectre is haunting Europe---the spectre of Communism" (78). At the same time, he undermines the anti-Communist argument by mocking it, giving the message that Communism is not the horrible threat which its enemies pretend it is.

Then, in the first sentence of the manifesto proper, Marx presents his basic argument: "The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles" (79). Marx goes on to present a simple and clear argument---disputed and even inaccurate as it may be---backing up that first sentence. His argument is that history is a matter of the evolving relations between the oppressor and the oppressed, from the feudal age to the capitalist age and, finally, to the salvation of socialism or communism.

Marx shows himself to be a good writer because he is conscious of what he wants to say, of how he wants to say it to fire up the reader and make his points, and because he presents his arguments vividly, clearly, and with passionate confidence that he is correct about what he is claiming.

Marx is also a good propagandist for his cause, primarily for the same reasons that he is a good writer. A good writer to some degree is a good propagandist. A writer without some cause is probably not a good writer. A writer who presents both sides of an argument with equal passion and confidence will probably not do anything ...

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Marx as a Writer. (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 12:25, March 28, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1701473.html